black tray jewel case with 2 page booklet
Truly excellent occult black metal from parts unknown. Songs of Satanic dark magic permeated by the beautiful sorrow of mortality. Some of the best-constructed raw black metal in recent memory. Definitely would have placed high on
my year-end list if only I'd goddamn heard it.
Since nothing about Haunting Depths or its member(s) is known to the public, nothing will be said about the band's origin or member(s). GoatowaRex's Beijing-based label has released albums from countries across the globe, and therefore nothing written herein will make assumptions about this project's geographical origins -- which turns this into a fun challenge.
The thing is, even if the majority of black metal listeners today are indifferent about a band's home base, there are indiscriminate assumptions and parallels that are made, albeit subconsciously, about its parallels and influences. For instance, the album's first track, "A Strict Master Named Death," kics off with an unmistakable Jon Nödtveidt guitar tone a-la Somberlain that just sounds like classic, Swedish, blue album madness. Is the piercing coldness of the guitar tone what this artist intended for its listeners, or is it simply a byproduct of what happens when something reminds you of Dissection? Let's call the Dissection parallel a loose one, shall we? Beyond the basic guitar aesthetic, there's really not a whole lot about Death's Sacred Fire that sounds too blue album-y.
For all intents and purposes, Death's Sacred Fire is straightforward black metal. At least, it comes off as that at first. However, some albums have a tendency to not reveal everything to their listeners immediately. To say the album is a grower is a bit off-base as well, because that somehow implies it is not immediately likeable or accessible. No, this one's a bit of a conundrum in that it's fairly easy to grasp, but it still opens up like a young bottle of Piedmont red after having been decanted. (Thanks to Gaahl, the pretentious wine similes work with black metal now.) In other words, there aren't many layers to the music, so it's quite easy to let this album sink in, but that doesn't mean there isn't depth. The riffs do indeed haunt, but there's also a satisfying warmth to them that's just nowhere to be found on albums like "The Somberlain" or "Storm of the Light's Bane." If Dissection haunts its listeners like wraiths that were sent to destroy all that's good, Haunting Depths haunts like a dead loved one visiting its family member in a dream.
Instrumentally, the acoustic guitars are pivotal to these haunting-yet-warm emotions Death's Sacred Fire's emanates. This is much more noticeable on the album's second half, and from here on out the Dissection comparisons will cease. As a matter of fact, the emotions given off with Haunting Depths' acoustics are as poignant as they are sorrowful. Think The Chasm's From the Lost Years... if one wants a strong comparison of interwoven acoustic melodies ("My Tideless Seas" is the penultimate example). "The Unique Magick of Rigor Mortis" is also a prime example of what the somber nature of serene acoustic strumming can add to an otherwise homegrown recording.
There are synths throughout Death's Sacred Fire firmly ingrained into the mix, and the organic nature of the album's production allows the long, drawn-out notes from the keys to fill in spaces that would otherwise feel empty in the overall mastering. Although not necessarily a flaw, the drums hide quite a bit in this mix as does the bass, but neither present any real problems or take away from how good the songwriting is. If anything, stretching those ears to latch onto fleeting-yet-brilliant basslines make repeated listens -- and marijuana listens -- much more interesting and thought provocative. The drumming is nothing spectacular, by any means, but it's as competent as it needs to be to get the job done. The beats are good. The groove is there. The focus is where it is intended to be -- that is -- on the album's main strong points.
As mentioned, the latter half of this potentially modern classic is particularly stunning, and perhaps shines brightest in its finale. There is just one more comparison that should be made, and that's only because it is an insane feat for Haunting Depths to have pulled it off so effortlessly. As the curtains close on "Blood Vicar," the song starts to sound like something these ears have only heard on the masterful conclusion of Enslaved's "Neogenesis." As masterful as Isa is, Haunting Depths seems to... match that feeling while only utilizing half of the instruments and a quarter of the studio tricks that obviously went into Isa. Needless to say, the emotional elements run strong with Death's Sacred Fire. Sincerity is something an album has or it doesn't, and it can never be faked. This one has it in spades.
Death's Sacred Fire is a strong release. I'd even go so far as to say it will age the way Mgła's Groza did, due to its organic, gritty, earthy recording. As difficult as it is to sort through all the black metal releases that nail the aesthetic but miss the overall point of black metal, this is an obvious one, folks. The real deal. And Haunting Depths makes it feel effortless.
Sample:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkUNV_l7u_4&t=1005s
