Blaze of Sorrow – Echi (2012)

With the amount of releases we get here at Infernal Masquerade it is rare that we spend as much time reviewing one as we have with Blaze of Sorrow’s “Echi”. In this killer album the band combines tons of atmospheric and folk-ish elements into their very melancholic blend of Black Metal. For the duration of the 52-minutes of this album we found ourselves constantly wanting to replay the songs one more time in order to fully appreciate the intricacies of the expertly crafted tracks.

Opening with a lush acoustic intro, “All'Ignoto” greatly sets the mood for the release, once the melodic aggressive guitars hit, we just knew this album will be magical. There are indeed very fast-paced moments, but they are very well balanced with beautiful slowdowns and killer vocal work. The Folk-ish acoustic sections on “Empatia” reminded us of early Alcest, and their excellent combination of lush atmospheric slow sections and powerful guitar riffs. The Doom-ish edge to this track greatly enhances the overall mood of such a sublime track.

The instrumental “In Memoria” nicely delivers a playful track that changes the pace of things a bit, and prepares the listener for the enigmatic “Il Soffio Del Sole” and its excellent tempo changes. The Folk atmosphere of “Alberi” gave us chills and really allows the release to change faces before delivering more killer guitar melodies. The album’s title-track is another fine example of how the band can be delivering hectic Black Metal sections with an underlying sense of melancholy like no other band we have heard recently.

Our favorite track in this release is the emotional rollercoaster “Ma Il Vento Ricordò Il Mio Nome”, featuring some killer harsh sections and majestic melancholic passages with some brilliant Shoegaze-ish Post-Black Metal moments. The album closes with another killer instrumental titled “Aspettando Il Tempo” where the band keeps a very ethereal atmospheric vibe but with excellent percussions and acoustic guitars.

Overall, “Echi” is one of those releases that you can’t miss if you like Melancholic music with a heavier Black Metal side and tons of more different influences. Blaze of Sorrow is a very talented ‘two’ man band and really shows what they are doing in terms of creating music that moves you and transmit emotions. If you are a fan of Alcest, An Autumn For Crippled Children, etc., you will love this killer release.

Release: November 15th, 2012

Genre: Atmospheric Black Metal

Country: Italy