Ambient

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    Astarium – Invasion to Forbidden (2011)

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    As we all know most one-man bands suck, with a very few exceptions they are just outlets for untalented people to produce what they call ‘music’. Going with this notion, I was gladly surprised by the quality of Astarium’s music, a one-man band from Novosibirsk, Russia. Getting strange looking envelopes from far away places in the world is one of the thrills of working for Infernal Masquerade and this time, the envelope also delivers good music (something that is not the case at least 50% of the time).

    “Invasion to Forbidden” is the latest EP from this Symphonic/Atmospheric Black Metal band that while not having the best sound quality or musical equipment, it can surely create a eerie atmosphere and deliver 16 minutes of creepy as shit Black Metal.

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    Progenie Terrestre Pura - Promo 2011 (2011)

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    Hailing from Italy, today we have a short-but-sweet promo release that will grant this band some momentum before the release of their full-length album. Having never met, Eon[0] and Nex[1] (computer nerds maybe?) formed Progenie Terrestre Pura and have been working digitally over the last few years.

    With the two tracks presented in this promo, the band nicely mixes Black Metal with a hefty dose of trippy atmospheric and electronic elements. We wouldn’t go as afar as calling this Post-Black Metal (the guitar work does not indicate this), but they are surely creative enough to clearly stray away from the ‘traditional’ side of things.

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    Antimatter – Alternative Matter (2011)

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    Releasing yet another compilation album, today we have Antimatter and their latest offering “Alternative Matter”. While we like these types of compilation releases that have unreleased tracks and alternative versions, we are kind of getting tired of Antimatter taking their fans to the cleaners with 2 non-new albums after their great “Leaving Eden” back in 2007.

    That being said, “Alternative Matter” comes in two different versions: the standard double-CD digipack (reviewed here) and a premium art-book edition with 3 CD’s, one DVD, and a 104 page book. Out of the 22 tracks presented in our promo version, we are mostly interested in Duncan Patterson’s remixes and some enhanced versions.

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    Ion – Immaculada (2011)

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    Following the same path that Duncan Patterson forged for himself with his side-project Íon and their first release “Madre, Protégenos”, “Immaculada” brings to the listener a hefty dose of World/Ethnic music with Celtic and Folk elements that will transport the listener to an ethereal world were everything seems peaceful and serene. One can quickly understand why Patterson decided to pursue his own interests after leaving Nick Moss and Antimatter to create Íon.

    Duncan Patterson in “Immacualda” once again presents us with a wide variety of musicians and singers coming together in creating a very cohesive release that delivers in every aspect and creates a very peaceful atmosphere for the duration of this album. Every instrument is clearly presented in a way that allows the listener to feel all the emotions behind them.

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    Soufferance, Vision - Travels into Several Remote Nations of the Mind (2010)

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    Presented in a lush A3 digi-pack format, today we have Soufferance, Vision’s full-length release “Travels into Several Remote Nations of the Mind”. In this ambitious release, Peine (the mastermind behind this project) presents us with one 65 minute long track of chilling Dark Ambient music, with the intention of taking the listener through a journey through the subconscious and the human mind.

    Having been disconnected from the Dark Ambient scene for quite a while, we have to say that “Travels into Several Remote Nations of the Mind” feels very ethereal and mystical in nature. It might be the minimalistic nature of it, or the dark atmosphere around this release, but it made us actually sit down and fully open our ears and minds to this release.

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    Locrian – The Crystal World (2010)

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    Every once in a while we get a release that makes us listen to it more than normal since it’s so complex and different that we can’t really craft a solid opinion about it with only 3-4 spins. This month we have Locrian’s third full-length album “The Crystal World”, the band plays a very experimental mixture of ambient, drone, and some Black Metal and Post-Rock elements. This might sound like a handful, but it actually works very well for the flow of this release.

    “The Crystal World” is a very powerful emotional ride that spreads through 6 tracks. With the first track “Triumph of Elimination”, the band immediately sets the stage for this dark and minimalistic journey. In the traditional fashion of creating expectation, this track starts building up with samples and drones that seem to be gaining momentum but they also seem to never culminate. The ‘culmination’ section for us that need it, comes in the next track “At Night’s End”.

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    Wolfshade – When Above… (2010)

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    Every few months we get an album that completely takes us by surprise and we end up loving it and adding it to our permanent ‘all-time favorites’ playlist. This month the “When Above…” by the Wolfshade has achieved a spot for eternity in said playlist, featuring seven compositions of majestic Atmospheric Black Metal/Dark Metal, this one-man band is probably one of the best we have heard in quite a while.

    Kadhaas is the sole member behind Wolfshade, a French ‘band’ that has released three full-length albums to date and if “When Above…” is only their third release, we can only imagine how amazing their future albums will be. The band features influences from Dark Metal masters Bethlehem (vocals particularly), a hefty influence of Atmospheric elements, some Post-rock/Post-Black Metal elements, and some more Doom/Gothic oriented guitar/keyboard structures that create an ethereal atmosphere that will send chills through your spine.

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    Lustre – A Glimpse of Glory (2010)

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    Hailing from Sweden, Lustre (one man band) brings us his second full-length release with “A Glimpse of Glory”. Mixing Ambient elements with the raw beauty of Atmospheric Black Metal, we get a very solid release that instantly became one of our top 10 releases of 2010 so far. During the 40 minutes of “A Glimpse of Glory”, Lustre reminded us of bands such as Enid, Blut aus Nord, Velvet Cacoon, etc. combined with the ethereal nature of artists like raison d'être and Robert Rich.

    Each of the three tracks found in “A Glimpse of Glory” focuses more in creating a very enthralling atmosphere than on the ‘Black Metal’ aspect of things. There are distorted guitars through most of the album (two thirds maybe), but there is only a little section (on track one) that has harsh BM screams. We didn’t even care if anybody was singing since each song crafts a mysterious atmosphere that gave us chills while listening to them at night.

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    Year Of No Light – Ausserwelt (2010)

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    Around the same vein as Ufo Mammuth, we have Year Of No Light, and band that does great justice to its name by playing mesmerizing Ambient Doom with Shoegaze influences that will take you in a dark voyage with a considerable lack of light. Hailing from France, this band has a very crushing sound, mostly due to the fact that they have three guitar players and two drummers, one of the richest line-ups we have ever seen in a band.

    “Ausserwelt” is a 48 minute journey into a dark and desolate place that features a very rich and powerful soundtrack. With 4 tracks the band manages to create a super thick atmosphere that only a handful of bands are capable of. This album is not for the weak of mind and will surely blow yours away with every listen you dedicate to it.

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    Midnight Odyssey – Firmament (2010)

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    Hailing from Australia today we review Midnight Odyssey’s debut full-length album “Firmament” which in fact is a reissue of their 2009 demo of the same name but with different cover art. This band plays Atmospheric Black Metal and does a fine job at creating a very eerie release, but falls short in terms of originality and diversity.

    Dis Pater is the mastermind (and only member) behind Midnight Odyssey. The album features over an hour of haunting hymns dedicated to despair and darkness. Like we mentioned this release is neither original nor diverse, but it has interesting individual features, like the use of some beats in the programmed drum track and some nice ambient melodies.

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