GEVAUDAN
Litost.
Produced, mixed, mastered by Joe Crow, Sound Arc studios Shefford 2016.
Cover art – Aiden Moore.
Art design of a man with a splitting headache perhaps representing a psychiatrists case study of split mind disorder? Rather fitting for the tone of the music.
Creepy unsettling sounds open WASTED ETERNAL (9:34) With a thrashing gong decreeing a serious darkly sound, heavily reminding me of Candlemass/Cathederal/Black Sabbath, with gorgeous guitar licks and tuneful riffs. It’s quite slow and gloriously doom laden and the lyrics wont cheer you up either. A ray of sunshine on a stormy night this band are not!
It is surprising how clear, clean, easy to distinguish the vocals are, where guttural growling death metal like vocals would often be the norm and even suit the music. At least you can hear the lyrics peddling their doom as you would expect THE NINTH CIRCLE (9:02) comes over as a paranoid schizophrenic mad man’s rumblings with quite theatrical operative vocals.
The song is quite hypnotic in places, sounding lush and refreshingly soothing but not in any slushy radio friendly way and all coming over like a metal based melt down.
LORD OF DECAY (9:38) all sounds rather steady as if it needs ‘G’ing up a bit; all too ploddy but still melodically good to listen to. Perhaps by now I am hoping for a fast galloping guitar riff to come soaring in.
Bluesy Hendrix like riffery blast you where needed, it has a dreamy quality ambling along at an intelligently thoughtful pace.
Tortured vocals tail end the track, which leaves the listener in a dark despairing place of metalized doom!
Fantastically enjoyable and for the most part ‘my sort of music.’
Review by keith. www.bedfordalternativemusic.co.uk