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JUDAS ISCARIOT:
DISTANT IN SOLITARY NIGHT
Moribund |
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Here’s
another slab of love-it-hate-it black metal, the stylings of one man band
Judas Iscariot. Akhenaten’s music is best described as true Norwegian
black metal from America. Few acts come as close to duplicating that style
as he does. DISTANT IN SOLITARY NIGHT is certainly no departure from this
sensibility, which we JI fans can rejoice in. The true black style isn’t
so prevalent nowadays, and it’s good to be able to rely on someone.
As usual
the riffs are styled mainly in the vein of DARKTHRONE and BURZUM at their
most primitive, prolonged and repetitious melodies. In the case of "The
Wind Stands Silent," "The Black Clouds Roll Under the Parapet
of the Sky," and "To the Black Tower of Victory" the melodic
stylings receive extremely fast tempos. They are just shy of blasting,
about as fast as you can play without actually doing so.
Many criticize
Akhenaten for having noticeable mistakes in his drumming, but I doubt
they’re really unplanned, and I don’t find them to be very distracting.
It’s just all part of that intimately raw style. Some will just call
that an excuse, but it’s something you either identify with or don’t.
More relaxed tempos inhabit "Where the Winter Beats Incessant"
and "In the Bliss of the Eternal Valleys of Hate," where the
BURZUM influences really show up. "The Clean Moon, and the Glory
of the Darkness" is mostly guitar without drums, in the style of
ISENGARD and BURZUM’s "The Crying Orc."
The album
concludes with "Portions of Eternity Too Great for the Eye of Man,"
a spoken outro backed by a verrrrry repetitive synth line. It’s an
extremely long track for its simplicity, and you’ll either succumb
to its atmosphere or stop the album at that point. If you liked past JUDAS
ISCARIOT endeavors you’ll find this to be another jewel in the
crown, and if you have a bent toward Black Metal at its most raw and primitive,
it’s well worth seeking out.
4 SKULLS
This review copyright 2000 E.C.McMullen Jr.
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