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░ ██ ██ Artist: Haeresiarchs of Dis ██ ██
▓ █░░ ■█ Album: Denuntiatus Cinis █■ ░░█
■ █▓▀ █ Year: 2010 █ ▀▓█ ░
█ ▓ Rel. Date: 2011-02-12 ▓ █
▒ ▒ Genre: Black Metal ▒ ▒
█▄ ░ Label: Moribund Records ░ ▄█
░ █▄ ░ Source: CD ░ ▄█
░ █▓ Type: Album ▓█ ░
▓ █ Quality: VBR, 44.1kHz, Joint Stereo █ ░ ▓
▓ █ █ ░ ▓
▄ ■ ■ ▓ ■
░█ █░ ▀
█ It's both appalling and fascinating just how much █
█ the art of the 'solo' black metal artist has █
█ progressed through the years, beginning with some █
█ of the crudest, most amateur recordings known to █
█ mankind in the genre's birth; then progressing █
█ into something like Denuntiatus Cinis. USBM has █
█ always been strong in this area, fielding such █
█ loved (or hated) personalities as Wrest of █
█ Leviathan and Malefic of Xasthur, and through the █
█ spite-filled, toxic ministrations of the █
█ H?resiarchs of Dis, we should now add Cernunnos to █
█ this small but expanding club, because the █
█ Californian demagogue of darkness has struck aural █
█ terror in its purest vein through this sophomore, █
█ eviscerating its 2008 predecessor Overture in the █
█ first few tracks alone. █
█ Now, before I begin to salivate opaque ichor from █
█ my worship glands over the albums central, █
█ diabolic diatribes of pure evil, I first must note █
█ that there are really two albums going on here. █
█ One is a strain of no nonsense, well composed █
█ black metal with vicious vocals that sound like a █
█ feline envoy from the abyss using a crucifix as a █
█ scratching post until it bleeds, over interesting █
█ if largely standard black metal rhythms that will █
█ occasionally throw the listener for a loop, oozing █
█ clean male choirs that give the Norsest █
█ northlanders like Borknagar a run for their krone, █
█ and sparse but volatile undertones of progression. █
█ Most of these compositions dwell about the 7-9 █
█ minute range in length, and are very often █
█ alternated with the other album: a series of █
█ interludes and instrumentals that explore vast and █
█ wide territories of sound. The problem is, which █
█ of these two disparate but strangely unified █
█ entities is the superior H?resiarch? I find it █
█ almost impossible to decide... █
█ The instrumentals and segues are certainly the █
█ more mystical, whisking the listener's spirit away █
█ to realms of sodden obscurity, of rapt antiquity █
█ and supernatural miasma. "Entry" creates a █
█ vacuous, 2 minute roiling tone poem, like blunt █
█ leviathans keening their alien tongues through █
█ some cosmic wailing wall, or the flood of █
█ spiritual ambiance through an abandoned asylum or █
█ torture chamber. "The Respite"'s acoustic guitars █
█ reek of abandonment, of dust motes filtered █
█ through forsaken chambers, of claustrophobia in █
█ bloom. Then you're thrown for a total curve ball █
█ with the traditional but demented vocal folk of █
█ "Bemoan the Fallen", or the gorgeous if morose █
█ vocal symphony mourning of "Nine Days They Fell", █
█ the brooding horror narrative of "Intent █
█ Concupiscence", black distorted guitar sheen of █
█ "Intent the Succedaneum", or the sinking finale █
█ "Exeunt". For fuck's sake, the language this man █
█ uses in naming his bleak conjurations! █
█ Woven through this aural adventure are several █
█ hymns of a more precarious, traditional nature, █
█ that is the actual black metal content, beginning █
█ at the searing "Intent the Prome" with its █
█ bewildering melodic collisions, deep and doomed █
█ clean vocals counteracted with snarling menace, █
█ and bizarre transgressions like the jangling █
█ mathematical bursts around 1:30 in. "Intent █
█ Canticle" creates the same surge of night sky █
█ vision that you once worshiped in Emperor, ridden █
█ with termite holes of strange nuance and █
█ discordance; "Intent the Augury" explodes from its █
█ rather humble asylum origins into a vortex of █
█ malaise, and "Median Existere" bristles with the █
█ black spikes of entropy as it navigates turbulent, █
█ blasted prose. But perhaps the best of its more █
█ aggressive offerings are located deeper towards █
█ the rear of this ritual, namely the wild and █
█ sporadic "Ad Baculum" and soul throttling rape █
█ rhythm of "Intent Postremo Enclosure Orsorum". █
█ In the end, it doesn't really matter which of █
█ these paths you prefer to wander, because you've █
█ won either way, with damn near 70 minutes of █
█ hideous evil that provides one the very best USBM █
█ release I've heard this year (alongside the latest █
█ from I Shalt Become). Denuntiatus Cinis is a █
█ painful place with no respite, no soft surface █
█ upon which to rest your worn heels, and even its █
█ most tranquil moments exude obscene horror. Before █
█ long, you come to the realize that it's either █
█ Cernunnos or the rest of us. No balance, no order █
█ and no civilization can bear fruit in the shadow █
█ of such an entity, and he must be burned alive, █
█ this philandering, godless shell of man! █
▓ ▓
▒ ▒
░ 1. Entry 2:06 ░
░ 2. Intent the Proem 8:30 ░
░ 3. The Respite 2:32 ░
░ 4. Intent Canticle 6:13 ░
░ 5. Intent the Augury 8:30 ░
░ 6. Bemoan the Fallen 1:53 ░
░ 7. Median Existere 7:34 ░
░ 8. Nine Days They Fell 4:14 ░
░ 9. Intent Concupiscence 4:19 ░
░ 10. Ad Baculum 7:03 ░
░ 11. Intent the Succedaneum 3:08 ░
░ 12. Intent Postremo Enclosure Orsorum 8:37 ░
░ 13. Exeunt 2:27 ░
░ 67:06 ░
░ ▒ ▒
▓ █ ░ ▓ ░
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