Ivanova Kula - Lullaby For Undead Knights

The Greek label Black Death Industry also deals in dungeon synth, and Lullaby For Undead Knights by Serbian-based Ivano Kula falls into that category. The person behind this project is also responsible for several experimental/electronic projects, which you can all check out in his Discogs profile (link below). This album is by Ivano Kula. And it has been released as a CD-R that comes in a plastic sleeve, with a booklet, offcourse. 9 tracks, 20 minutes in total.

The name of the project comes from the name of the fortress of  Ivan Kosančić, which is situated in Serbia, located close to the village of Ivan Kula itself. It is also the same tower on the cover. Offcourse, lots of history is attached to it. The foundation of the tower was built by the Romans. And the album title might refer to two knights who were attached to the fortress... named Milan Toplika and Miloš Obilić, who were members of the Dragon Order. Who went to the Battle of Kosovo in 1389. 

The first intro track is simply called Overture, opens the album with a melancholic touch on a cold and foggy day. Instantley getting the impression of seeing the fortress from a distance. 

The second track, The Deserts And Ruins Were Once rolls straight into simple medieval-inspired dungeon synth... with that historic kind of sense to it. Early European proto dungeon synth like Mortiis and Depressive Silence. 

The third track, Through The Corridors Of Zaborav & Bestrag, has an elegant and haunting feel to it. The way the spirits of the dead can be sensed on historic sites, which is easier on a cold and foggy day, offcourse! 

We jump to my favorite piece on the album, which is the seventh track, with the same title as the name of the album. A slightly uplifting sense of pride rooted in ancient times. Still rooted in primitive ambient-synth sound, vibrating string synth, and reverb.

Lullyby For Undead Knights will please any fans of traditional proto dungeon synth, especially with that kind of European sound, which is rooted in history. With a sound that is melancholic, primitive, cold, grim, and worn out by harsh cold weather. And it´s simplistic, just two synths being played at the same time... but it does its job, there´s no need for extra layered sound or anything. Not groundbreaking stuff, but a piece that is simple and honest. You know what you should expect, and you get what u want... simple as that!

Bandcamp (label):

https://blackdeathindustry.bandcamp.com/album/ivanova-kula-lullaby-for-undead-knights

 Nerthus - Sudor Anglicus

One of the latest releases from this great German dark-ambient act. Released as a limited CD on the Greek label E.C.T. Recordings. With the iconic, sexy, and recognizable CD-cover design, offcourse! 

This new release is about a certain deadly and mysterious disease. 5 epidemics in England between 1485 to 1551. The symptoms were extreme sweating, shivering, and high fever. Death occurred only after a few hours! The cause of the disease remains unknown to this day; some have speculated that it may be related to the Hanta-virus. A virus that is being spread by rodents, through their urine, feces, and saliva. Yugh!

Anyway, this album comes with 5 tracks. About 50 minutes in total. All the tracks are nameless and are just called I, II, III, IV, V. Might just be the 5 stages of the disease maybee?.

The first track puts the listener straight into some murky place/crypt under the earth. Kind of close to the ambient undertones/sound to Brighter Death Now´s Necrose Evangelicum/Great Death-era, just without the harshness, but more focused on atmospheric soundscapes. Cold repetitive drones, haunting and sorrowful angelic sounds, and the rustling sound of metal in the distance. You almost get the sense that there is a melody there, but there isn´t. It´s the storytelling ability to tell a tale through sound, which is present. Beautiful track!

The second track starts where the former track ends (offcourse). Following up on the murkiness with new touches to the soundscape. A heavy synth is present, and the sense of a ritualistic practice is being focused on here. There is a thick, icy, and dense fog here, and the sense of being in a town which is completely...silent and dead. Also, another creepy sound in there, a cold wind blowing through a crack in the wall, and more mournful voices of the dead.. The virus is being transmitted right now. While the slow banging of rusty church bells is in the air. A very epic long track (23 minutes), don´t worry... it doesn´t even get tedious! 

The third and fourth tracks kind of get back to the repetitive death-industrial drones from the first track. More focused on the murky sounds, with fewer lighter elements. Coldest moment on the album so far.   

 

The fourth track has a soothing effect after the third and fourth tracks. Death has finally entered the sick and released them from the agony of a diseased existence. The dead can finally be buried. There is the feeling of release here, but also... in reality... There isn´t any light at the end of the tunnel. There is no sense of hope. The coldness of the track confirms that. 

Sudor Anglicus has a highly enjoyable and pleasing dark ambient release with a high-quality sticker attached to it. Kind of funny how something as dark and cold as this can somehow be an incredibly pleasant thing to lay your ears on. It can be somehow related to, that the recorded material has been made in a state of focused storytelling through sound. Gives the album a sense of warmth that u can sense the creator through the darkness and coldness. Highly recommended album to listen to in the coming winter! 

Discogs (label):

https://www.discogs.com/label/1264202-ECT

Bandcamp (band):

https://nerthus.bandcamp.com/album/sudor-anglicus

     

  

      

 Devil´s Breath - Abandoned By Humans,

Adopted By Wolves

The second time we get to review dark-ambient/tribal act Devil´s Breath, and this album is their fifth one. Also released on Zazen Sounds like the former album. Also released as an elegant and beautiful slimline digipack. Album artwork featuring human skulls and a wolf's head, and inside, we find a dark forest and information about the album's concept. Here goes: 

Abandoned By Humans, Adopted By Wolves is the fifth album from Devil's Breath, and the second released on Zazen Sounds.

Abandoned by Humans, Adopted by Wolves is inspired by the sense of feeling disillusioned by the human species—a disillusionment reactive to humanity's behavior towards its own race, towards the animal and plant kingdoms, and towards the Earth, which is its habitat.

Wolves are symbolic of what humans do not represent. This permanent state of disillusionment of the human species leads to the desire, the need, and the enthusiasm of withdrawing into isolation, deep into forests among the wolves.

And on this album, we have only one track, which is almost 1 hour long. So without further ado, let us jump straight into it!

Deep chopped-up drones and gentle, distorted machine rumblings. A heavenly synth sound from above penetrates the darkness and also gives the beginning an epic, ritualistic touch. Further on, we get bangings on huge and small chimes, radiators, and gongs, while the mood intensifies with a strange humming of a pulsating laser drill. I do like the sound of it, the way that sound travels through a dense and dark forest. Something strange and magical, hearing the echoed sound of metal inside a forest. You do get that feeling that you are alone, but not really. 

After 12 minutes, there is a metallic ringing of small metal rings, and icy crystalline sounds piercing the overall hypnotic soundscape. At this point, it does feel like I'm getting sucked into this. More ritualistic percussion lightens the intensity. 

A sensation of small underground explosions or the shifting of the earth, a cold wind? Sound of angels? And that thick drilling sound, grinding through solid stone. Almost losing my sense of time here!. At around 40 minutes, harsh noise and angelic touches clash together in a sense of ecstasy. 

There is (kind of) a sort of slow melody in there, and you get the feeling of being a participant in some sort of cleansing ritual. Everything is gently done, but the sound throbs and drills through your senses. It´s an adventurous, dark journey on a single track, a long story on a single page. Fans of Vidna Obmanna and Controlled Bleeding would dig this album! 

Bandcamp (label):

https://zazensoundspublishings.bandcamp.com/album/zzs-160-devils-breath-abandoned-by-humans-adopted-by-wolves-available-now-in-digi-format-sold-out-high-quality-digital-download

 Thru The Leaves - Nocturne

We reviewed the album Eleven Faces and Forty Two Arms by Stefano Bertoli in 2020, and now we get to review a new project with him called Thru The Leaves with the album called Nocturne. This project/release has been made with Erica Volta, who plays the electric harp, while Stefano does all the electronics. 

Also released by Italian Industrial Ölocaust Recordings, on cassette and on CD. Two tracks on it, with 47 minutes in total. The CD comes in a standard jewel case, accompanied by a thick and textured booklet inside. The artwork depicts a planet undergoing the cycle of night and day. 

The first track is called Thebit. Not sure what the title is, maybe the recorded audio on the track itself explains it. Pleasant electronic glitch-sounds, tweeps, and bleeps like an alien radio-recording. The playing of a harp adds to the sound and gives the listener the impression of watching the moon on a cold, starless night. I'm not really a huge fan of harp, but this kind of playing really suits me. I think it´s kind of improvised, and it tries to work together with the sound of otherworldly electronics. And yeah, it´s a pretty good match! A mesmerizing sense of ritual-purpose where time just goes... slow. Which is a good thing really, beause it´s a long track! It´s utterly beautifully done, like floating on something in a state of absolute bliss. Love the ethereal synth work aswell. 

The second track, Purbach. It might be the name of a large crater on the moon, or the surname of an Austrian astronomer. The harp continues its cosmic journey with some really excellent psychedelic space-ambient soundscapes. Very similar to the former track, but it really doesn´t mind... I wouldn´t mind if these two could just continue playing without end. 

Nocturne works best when it´s night, when u are alone. The moon is out, some clouds, and some stars. And the way it´s quiet in the nighttime, the sound of a hedgehog or a fox... the wind through the pines, the crashing of waves on the beach. You all know it, it´s quite more easy to relax in the nighttime... mainly because most people are sleeping. I really like the nighttime in that way, in the same way I like this album. Everything works between these two people, I don´t know if it's improvised or planned or anything.. but it works.. and yeah... magical stuff is happening aswell.

Bandcamp (Discogs - band):

https://www.discogs.com/artist/14506414-Thru-The-Leaves

Official website (label):

https://cardinium.com/product/ior-tk-xxxiiicdr/