Portland is a well known niche for extreme heavy music. It gave birth to great acts like Aldebaran, Megaton Leviathan, Atriarch, Trees, Black Chalice, Agalloch and many more. Usnea is another fine example of doom bands coming out of the Portland scene. Featuring Zeke Rogers (ex-Amarok and owner of Orca Wolf Records) on drums, Justin Cory (ex-Bodhisattva) on guitar & shrieking vocals, Joel “The Wizard” Williams (who also performs as Banishing, a one man black metal band) on bass & guttural vocals and Johhny Lovingood (Effrays, Electric Desert, Descent from the Cross) on guitar. Coming from such different musical backgrounds and drawing influence from all over, their musical sensibilities end up working out surprisingly well. Fusing elements of funeral doom, sludge and black metal with lyrics that, as they state, revolve around the human condition in a world full of oppression and bleakness which gives them inspiration but also fuels their anger. Recorded at Haywire Studios with Fester (who also recorded great records by Stoneburner, Nux Vomica, Atriarch, Burials, Knelt Rote, Rabbits, Spectral Tombs and many others), Adam Gonsalvez mastered this mammoth hour long, four song session and Orca Wolf released the record in February of 2013.
Kicking off with “Chaoskampf,” we enter slowly into a vast and foggy scenario where melodic notes seem to echo in the distance, but it doesn’t take long before we are brutally awakened and crushed with a heavy mass of doom. We are literally thrown to the ground by the impact of the slow paced riffs that, allied with the drum and Joel’s cavernous voice, result in a perfect alchemy with the guitar that weeps in the background in that really melancholic and dramatic funeral doom tone. The fusion of funeral doom with atmospheric sludge are melted here (and along the album) perfectly, creating a pretty cohesive sound where we can distinguish each instrument as they crush us, note upon note. Suddenly, without any warning, we’re hit by a storm of blackness. A blizzard made out of blastbeats and tremolo picking unleashes all of its fury commanded by the grim voice of Justin that seems more like the horrific screams from a harpy cast down from Hell. Nobody would guess this unexpected twist into this track – it’s these kind of details that really hook me up to a track, especially when we are facing tracks that are 17 or more minutes long. Then, without any signs of warning, the track forks again from this vile black metal attack to the slow paced doom closing in a way which is, at least, epic.
“Brazen Bull of Phalaris” starts by punishing our eardrums with noisy feedback and creeps at a slow pace, stumbling between the opposite voices of Joel and Justin. This track really owns a very dense and dramatic tone attached throughout the 17 minutes that it lasts. The attributes of the musicians are put to the test when, from a dense and dreary register, they unfold the music into a more atmospheric, almost psychedelic point, giving us one of the most beautiful moments on this track. By creating such moments like this, Usnea hold and captivate the listener, using unpredictability as one of their biggest weapons, besides giving the tracks a unique character to each one. Just imagine the dreary funeral doom atmosphere created by Aldebaran, blended with the lurid and mysterious atmosphere of Laudanum, with the most calm yet threatening side of Thou. In one whole track we have that crushing doom with some psychedelic atmospheres and it closes with a beautiful, serene and comforting instrumental. Just awesome.
“Monuments to Avarice” is another colossal track sweating the word “epic” out of all of its pores. The opening chords are simply beautiful and it’s amazing – once again – how the melancholy quickly gives way to the heavier sludge as the voices cry with rage in the middle of this thick wall of sound. Simply devastating. The only band that I can recall who are capable of such power must be probably Thou, the beginning of this track reminds me lot of Thou’s “Grissecon.” It starts slowly with some drunken, slow notes before collapsing into a massive avalanche of doom. Monolithic riffs are thrown mercilessly as they are aligned by Zeke Rogers, performing in his most natural habitat, behind the drum kit. A track that gradually grinds our mind slowly throughout its 14 minutes. Comprising sections that are quite distinct from each other but at the same time, result in a brutal and perfect strip of doom metal to which is impossible for the listener to fall in boredom. Another fine example of the crushing power that Usnea are capable of. This amazing Usnea’s debut closes with “Empirical Evidence of a Deranged God” that starts with an intro of what seems to be a catholic radio show, where some preacher tries to convert a Satan worshiper through the telephone but without success… silly man, trying to compete with the disciples of The Great Goat. Marked with the burning iron of 666, this track is a little bit different from the previous tracks, it’s filled with more groove and fits in a more sludge territory where bands like Noothgrush, Grief or even Zoroaster, belong. Usnea certainly made a right choice here and what best way to close this album than with a occult laden track filled with the scent of sulphur? The Great Goat is pleased with this offer and so am I.
Few albums hit me like Usnea’s debut did after a first audition. I only heard one track on their Bandcamp some weeks ago and I immediately knew that something really amazing was on the way. Not all bands blend in such a perfect way their influences that go from the early Peaceville doom bands to the more contemporary bands like Loss, Aldebaran, Mournful Congregation and others.
With this album not only Usnea open their way to the front-line of the US doom/sludge scene, right along with bands like Lycus, Amarok, Hallow, Bädr Vogu, Bereft, Serpentine Path and many others, but they also had the prowess to make one of the best albums of doom/sludge of the Year. I’m pretty sure that this album will take place in many lists of the best that has been done in terms of heavy music at the end of this year. Clearly the solid background as (great) musicians is one of the main factors of Usnea’s success but also the creativity, the performance, the whole production involved and the level of excellence of what has been heard here makes me want to believe that Usnea is a name that soon will be heard on every doom/sludge fan not far from now.
I simply love this album, it quickly became one of my favorite albums of the year. I must confess that hear it almost every day. It blends perfectly some of my favorite genres – funeral doom, doom metal and sludge – by creating beautiful atmospheres that give me complete goose-bumps like i didn’t felt since Aldebaran’s “Buried Beneath Aeons” or Mouth Of The Architect’s “The Ties That Blind”. If you seek your favorite doom album for the year, look no further. Just like usnea (the lichen), this album will grow more and more right after each audition.
This S/T LP is already available at Orca Wolf and comes with an 11×22″ poster/lyric insert and a download code for the record plus two extra songs. You can also stream, buy and download Usnea’s full-length on their Bandcamp. Meanwhile, new work is underway on a second LP as they will be embarking on a West Coast tour in May of 2013 followed by a short tour in August to Oakland for Dead Fest. So be sure to catch them live. Follow the band steps through their Facebook page. Support and worship total Doom!!
A big thanks to Zeke and Johnny from Usnea and Kyle from Pact Ink Records.
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