On their new album Sky Burial, ECHTRA from Olympa, WA boil the concept of combining Black Metal with (Neo-) Folk down to its purest essence. Simple acoustic guitars, sometimes strummed, sometimes picked meet a basic, almost shy percussion, very seldom accompanied by half sung, half whispered vocals. Mostly an electric guitar is just present as a background for the other instruments, except for one short moment in the whole 46 minutes of the album, when all of a sudden a quavering riff breaks out, which is the strongest reference to “classic” Black Metal you’ll get to hear on this record. The rest is just as described almost trance-like, monotonous, hypnotic and overly very quiet. Thus Sky Burial creates a tranquilizing atmosphere that is able to entrap and absorb you – if you let it happen.
Somehow Sky Burial is like the acoustic intro and outro of one of your favourite Metal records, but without the Metal record in between (and lengthened to a maximum degree). I find it quite astonishing how ECHTRA takes the concept of bands like AGALLOCH or the early ULVER and really strips the whole thing down to its barest bones, so much that there’s almost nothing left. Also on a conceptual level, ECHTRA doesn’t stray away from the pagan relationship with nature that’s also present in the works of those bands.
Yet Sky Burial is indeed an intense, unique record, even if not exactly “fun” to listen to. The mood is very calm, haunting and close to ambient. Obviously there’s not happening much in those two, each 23 minute long songs. So I could totally understand people who find Sky Burial in its attitude and musical expression boring, but there’s something in here that strikes a chord within myself and fascinates me more than high-complex, super technical music. For me, ECHTRA’s Sky Burial is one of the most surprising records this year so far – moody, touching and more real than you might be able to come to terms with.
Sky Burial is going to be released on Temple Of Torturous on 3/31/13 and comes with a DVD as well, which shows the only live performance of Sky Burial ever, shot in 2008. Unfortunately I haven’t seen this, so I can’t really tell you anything about it.
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