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| #PER CHI AMA/FOR FANS OF: Black/Death, Aevangelist, Phlebotomized, Nocturnus |
Non so se sia il caso di parlare di nuova ondata black metal, ma negli Stati Uniti si sta mettendo in luce, con una certa prepotenza, una scena estrema davvero invidiabile. Oltre agli inflazionati "post black" e "Cascadian", c'è ancora chi insegue i fasti passati del metallo più nero. È il caso dei Tine, oscuro duo della Pennsylvania, che si colloca in quest'ultima frangia di nostalgici, vantando ancora il face painting atto a palesare il loro amore per le atmosfere noir degli anni '90, e forgiando un impianto sonoro che ricalca la vecchia tradizione, almeno in apparenza.
'The Forest Dreams of Black' ne è il loro manifesto programmatico, costituito da otto tracce più l'intro, "Enter the Black Forest", con cui i nostri ci danno il loro benvenuto all'ascolto di quest'album. I due loschi figuri, Count Murmur e la damigella Vanth, ci offrono la loro personale visione dell'estremo, che miscela pericolosamente il black con il death, venati di un tocco sinfonico dai toni orrorifici. "Horrors at Antioch" è il pezzo che segue il prologo e anche quello che in assoluto prediligo, in grado di suonare terrificantemente malato e visionario, come se 'The Key' dei Nocturnus fosse stato pensato dai Limbonic Art e suonato dagli Aevangelist, in una notte di plenilunio. Vi piace l'accostamento? A me parecchio, perché forte risulterà il dualismo che lungo il disco si instaurerà fra death metal e black. Non vi preoccupate se vi troverete a saltare con un certo fare libertino, fra un death dalle sbiadite tinte sinfoniche di "Lord is Self", monolitica song in stile Morbid Angel, al black monumentale e claustrofobico di "The Crusade of Dracul" (ovviamente ispirato a Vlad l'Impalatore), passando attraverso la soffocante strumentalità di "The Darkest Premonition (of Things to Come...)". A livello vocale, Count Murmur alterna un growling imperioso a qualche raro sprazzo screaming, modulandosi con la ritmica che sta sotto, più compassata o dal riffing serrato. Magari nel corso del disco, vi imbattere anche in qualche passaggio a vuoto, frutto dell'eccessivo mixing estremo dei nostri, trovandoci di fronte pezzi che forse non hanno una identità ben definita, volendo stare a cavallo tra i generi, o forse per la mancanza di una vena illuminata: è il caso di "Encounter With the Shadow People", traccia per lo più anonima, cosi come la conclusiva "The Watchful Eye", in cui la violenza sembra essersi sbiadita, per lasciar posto ad una vena più avanguardistica, che per carità ci sta anche in un lavoro cosi complesso come questo. Un plauso va invece alla lunga "Herein Lies the Crooked Elm", che pone in evidenza ancora le ottime orchestrazioni sinfoniche che contraddistinguono il sound morboso dei Tine, e anche la presenza di alcuni chorus puliti, che mostrano un'altra faccia del malefico duo statunitense. Quello che colpisce è comunque la plumbea atmosfera malsana che si respira lungo l'arco degli oltre 50 minuti della release, nonché il continuo cambio di tempi, dettato da spettrali tastiere ed esoteriche ambientazioni.
Ascoltando e riascoltando il cd ho trovato altri punti di contatto dei nostri con lavori del passato soprattutto a livello della matrice chitarristica: ascoltando la strumentale "The Key to Forbidden Knowledge" ho rilevato infatti delle forti affinità tra il suono delle chitarre cosi ovattato dei Tine con quello melmoso di 'Preach Eternal Gospels', EP di debutto degli olandesi Phlebotomized. Alla fine 'The Forest Dreams of Black' è comunque un buon album, forse non cosi semplice da affrontare ma sicuramente di grande impatto. Sinistri (Francesco Scarci)
I don’t know if it is the appropriate time to bring up the subject of this new wave of black metal, but in the US, it is becoming very popular, and with a certain aggressiveness; an extreme scene that is quite intriguing. In addition to the inflated “post black”, and “Cascadian” scenes, there are still those chasing the original concept of black metal. This is the case for Tine, a dark duo from Pennsylvania, which ranks in the latter fringe of nostalgia, but donning corpse paint as a showcase of their love of black metal of the 90s, and by the looks of them, it would seem that their sound would be reminiscent of the traditional black metal scene.
“The Forest Dreams of Black” is their official proclamation into the extreme metal scene. It consists of eight tracks, plus an intro, “Enter the Black Forest”, that welcomes you to the rest of the album. These two ominous characters, Count Murmur and the lady Vanth, offer us their personal vision of extreme metal; an ambitious mixture of black and death, tinged with a touch of eerie symphonic tones. “Horrors at Antioch” is the track that follows the album intro, and it is the track I believe would be preferred by most. I would describe it as “The Key” by Nocturnus, however written by Limbonic Art, and performed by Aevangelist under the light of a full moon. Do I like this combination? Yes I do. The duality of death metal and black metal are presented and established throughout the duration of this album. Do not be alarmed if you find yourself to be morally dissolute while listening to this album. Especially allegorically dying from the harrowing symphony, “Lord is Self” (done in the rigid style of Morbid Angel), or suffering a fit of claustrophobia from the dark epic, “The Crusade of Dracul” (obviously inspired by Vlad the Impaler), or suffocating under the instrumentality of “The Darkest Premonition (of things to come…). Vocal-wise, Count Murmur alternates between a harsh growling style, and a rasp that goes along with the underlying melodic rhythms. Perhaps during the course of this album, you may come across a strange transition or two. This is a result of the extreme mixing of genres that creates a piecemeal genre that has no definitive identity, or the desire to stay in-between genres, or perhaps from a lack of a general atmosphere. Such is the case with “Encounter with the Shadow People”, which remains ambiguous in terms of genre. This also applies to the closing track, “The Watchful Eye”, where the harshness of the album begins to fade, giving way to a more avant-garde atmosphere. It is a kindness that there is a work as complex as this on the album. Praise goes to the lengthy track, "Herein Lies the Crooked Elm," which again highlights the great symphonic orchestrations that distinguish the macabre sound of Tine. Also, the presence of clean vocals shows yet another face of the evil US duo. What is striking, however, is the heavily brooding atmosphere that presides over more than fifty minutes of the release, and the continuous change of tempo dictated by ghostly keyboards and esoteric environments.
Upon listening and listening again to the album, I found more key points that are reminiscent of works of the past, especially involving the main guitar. In the instrumental, “The Key to Forbidden Knowledge”, the muffled guitar sounds are reminiscent of the muddiness of “Preach to the Gospel”, the debut EP by the Dutch band Phlebotomized. In conclusion, “The Forest Dreams of Black” is a good album. It may not be for everybody, but it is certainly impactful. (Francesco Scarci - Translation by Carrie Eakin)
“The Forest Dreams of Black” is their official proclamation into the extreme metal scene. It consists of eight tracks, plus an intro, “Enter the Black Forest”, that welcomes you to the rest of the album. These two ominous characters, Count Murmur and the lady Vanth, offer us their personal vision of extreme metal; an ambitious mixture of black and death, tinged with a touch of eerie symphonic tones. “Horrors at Antioch” is the track that follows the album intro, and it is the track I believe would be preferred by most. I would describe it as “The Key” by Nocturnus, however written by Limbonic Art, and performed by Aevangelist under the light of a full moon. Do I like this combination? Yes I do. The duality of death metal and black metal are presented and established throughout the duration of this album. Do not be alarmed if you find yourself to be morally dissolute while listening to this album. Especially allegorically dying from the harrowing symphony, “Lord is Self” (done in the rigid style of Morbid Angel), or suffering a fit of claustrophobia from the dark epic, “The Crusade of Dracul” (obviously inspired by Vlad the Impaler), or suffocating under the instrumentality of “The Darkest Premonition (of things to come…). Vocal-wise, Count Murmur alternates between a harsh growling style, and a rasp that goes along with the underlying melodic rhythms. Perhaps during the course of this album, you may come across a strange transition or two. This is a result of the extreme mixing of genres that creates a piecemeal genre that has no definitive identity, or the desire to stay in-between genres, or perhaps from a lack of a general atmosphere. Such is the case with “Encounter with the Shadow People”, which remains ambiguous in terms of genre. This also applies to the closing track, “The Watchful Eye”, where the harshness of the album begins to fade, giving way to a more avant-garde atmosphere. It is a kindness that there is a work as complex as this on the album. Praise goes to the lengthy track, "Herein Lies the Crooked Elm," which again highlights the great symphonic orchestrations that distinguish the macabre sound of Tine. Also, the presence of clean vocals shows yet another face of the evil US duo. What is striking, however, is the heavily brooding atmosphere that presides over more than fifty minutes of the release, and the continuous change of tempo dictated by ghostly keyboards and esoteric environments.
Upon listening and listening again to the album, I found more key points that are reminiscent of works of the past, especially involving the main guitar. In the instrumental, “The Key to Forbidden Knowledge”, the muffled guitar sounds are reminiscent of the muddiness of “Preach to the Gospel”, the debut EP by the Dutch band Phlebotomized. In conclusion, “The Forest Dreams of Black” is a good album. It may not be for everybody, but it is certainly impactful. (Francesco Scarci - Translation by Carrie Eakin)
(Self - 2015)
Voto/Score: 70
https://www.facebook.com/Tine.BlackDeath/
Voto/Score: 70
https://www.facebook.com/Tine.BlackDeath/