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░ ██ ██ Artist: Mesmur ██ ██
▓ █░░ ■█ Album: S █■ ░░█
■ █▓▀ █ Year: 2017 █ ▀▓█ ░
█ ▓ Rel. Date: 2018-03-24 ▓ █
▒ ▒ Genre: Metal ▒ ▒
█▄ ░ Label: Solitude Productions ░ ▄█
░ █▄ ░ Source: CD ░ ▄█
░ █▓ Type: Album ▓█ ░
▓ █ Quality: VBR, 44.1kHz, Joint Stereo █ ░ ▓
▓ █ █ ░ ▓
▄ ■ ■ ▓ ■
░█ █░ ▀
█ MesmurÆs S is hands down one the best funeral doom █
█ albums IÆve heard, and by that I donÆt mean itÆs █
█ merely some kind of subgenre revival. S stands on █
█ equal footing with the greats of funeral doom, and █
█ like any particularly high quality album, it █
█ should capture the interest of fans of other metal █
█ genres. Funeral doom as a niche genre is possibly █
█ one of the shakiest premises to have spawned from █
█ the recesses of heavy metal. What if the very █
█ pacing of the songs and their structures were, in █
█ of themselves, a source of heaviness? Well, more █
█ often than not you end up with something that █
█ feels more slow and boring than crushing. ItÆs a █
█ wildly challenging balance to strike, but on S █
█ Mesmur calibrates the overall atmosphere just █
█ perfectly with a detailed landscape of tones. █
█ ItÆs almost ridiculous to mention given the nature █
█ of the album, but even in a genre where the █
█ everything is supposed to be heavy and a subgenre █
█ that is supposed to be crushing, this album is █
█ notably oppressive. The heaviness though is more █
█ than just thick guitars and bass backed up by what █
█ I am sure is an impressive array of gear. What █
█ really makes S stand out is how clear everything █
█ is, or in other words the impeccable mixing helps █
█ to highlight every last bit of the albumÆs overall █
█ sound. The vocals in especially are uncannily even █
█ and strong. So instead of just being crushed by a █
█ falling wall of heaviness you also happen to █
█ notice the beautiful bricks and artisan-tier █
█ mortar work just before you get pancaked. █
█ Aside from the obvious musical comparisons █
█ (Esoteric, Ahab, Mournful Congregation et al.) █
█ some of the more relaxed spacier moments remind me █
█ of Earth, like when the lush lead guitars take the █
█ forefront or start to softly echo around. ItÆs a █
█ nice example of how S keeps things interesting █
█ because the high end is incredibly rich without █
█ coming across as overly sugary. Many moments in █
█ the songs even have a delicate feel to them, some █
█ airy riff with effects whirling about in the █
█ background like leaves in gentle breeze. These █
█ moments however never interfere with the overall █
█ song structures, and even help to enhance them, █
█ which is critical when you have songs that are █
█ over 14, 15, and even 16 minutes long. █
█ The only flaw I really picked up on that I canÆt █
█ chalk up to not being obsessed with funeral doom █
█ was how some of the effects are super obvious in █
█ the first song ôSingularity.ö I donÆt know if itÆs █
█ the distortion, fuzz, flanger, or phaser but █
█ during parts of the first half of the song I could █
█ have sworn there was some loose change or maybe a █
█ rattlesnake on top of my speakers. While a little █
█ distracting, particularly for such a crystal clear █
█ produced album, it isnÆt a huge issue for the song █
█ or overall music. Otherwise I have no grips with █
█ S. ItÆs worth noting that while the bandÆs 2014 █
█ self-titled debut was pretty damn good, S is █
█ definitely a step up. Even after revisiting some █
█ of my favorite funeral doom albums (many of which █
█ are releases that are widely viewed as lodestars █
█ for the genre) I can safely say that S puts Mesmur █
█ up there with the greats. █
▓ ▓
▒ ▒
░ 1. Singularity 15:06 ░
░ 2. Exile 14:35 ░
░ 3. Distension 16:24 ░
░ 4. S = k in O 6:48 ░
░ 52:53 ░
░ ▒ ▒
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