Anwech "My Frozen Dream Slept too Eternally..." CD

Recorded in Winter 2005 already.

 second album 2007 melancholic atmospheric Black Metal From Italy with Vardan, Nostalgic Darkness, Tomhet...

Oddly enough, it was the title of the album, 'My Frozen Dream Slept too Eternally...' and the lyrical themes that attracted me to Anwech. The title reminded me of Judas Iscariot and as a big fan of Judas Iscariot, I decided to go on impulse and check Anwech out, to see what they were all about and if they held any resemblance to the aforementioned band. Unfortunately for me, Anwech don't really resemble Judas Iscariot at all. Their styles are different. Whilst Judas Iscariot's work is just typical of black metal, Anwech seem to lean more towards the depressive/suicidal theme. Of course, a band of this nature is bound to run in to a number of critics calling them the 'next Burzum', or simply 'clones' of Burzum because of the depressive tag. To me, Anwech are nothing like Burzum. The comparisons begin and end at being black metal. Anwech are their own band.
It's unusual that a bands lyrics attract me to them because black metal vocalists are usually indecipherable and I rarely read the lyrics anyway, but they did. I like nature and I like atmospheric music, so the lyrical themes appealed to me in that sense, but no more than that. I don't know what the lyrics are, nor do I really care. The vocals play a pivotal role only due to the fact that the rasping nature of the cries suits the music style. The emotion derived from the rasps is all that is really needed to assess the use of them on the soundscapes. In this case, the vocals are apt. They reflect the sad and sorrowful nature of the music. The slow passages especially. The vocals aren't overblown or anything out of the ordinary, but neither are Anwech. They simply exist for one purpose only and that is to reflect the themes without having to take note of what the lyrics actually say to it's audience.
One thing I couldn't escape when I came across Anwech was the second members pseudonym, Wankar. Come on, seriously, it's funny. I hope to god he doesn't speak English because that would be something out of the ordinary. I'll no doubt have a good laugh over that for some time to come. Besides that humorous point, Anwech's style doesn't make me laugh. It's desolate in it's approach and uncompromising on it's audience. Soundscapes are high on the list of priorities in terms of exploration, but that's about it. The repetitive style won't suit everyone, but it can be pulled off (Now i'm thinking of Wankar) to great avail. 'Shining Depth' is a fine example of the repetitive style done correctly. The keyboards, which are ever present in the background, offer light relief if you're searching for exploration in sound. The guitars are generally minimalistic, as is the bass, which has a dull sound to it. The percussion is much the same as the previous two instruments. It repeats itself a lot, but the songs have enough variation, over time, to maintain the interests of an audience. 'My Frozen Dream Slept too Eternally...' has enough packed into it to keep depressive/suicidal fans happy, but anyone else might be disappointed.

Sample: https://www.youtube.com/watch?...