By: Andre
Almaraz
Album Type: Full
Length
Date
Released: 26/1/2018
Label: Season of Mist
“Ossuarium
Silhouettes Unhallowed” CD//DD//LP
track listing:
1.Sempiternal Grotesqueries
2. In Eerie Deliverance
3. Cathedral of Labyrinthine Darkness
4. Cascade of Ashes
5. Charnel Reflections
6. Black Moss
The Review:
“Ossuarium Silhouettes
Unhallowed”
is the fifth full length album by Finland’s reigning kings of
death-doom, Hooded
Menace. It also happens to be their first full length release as a
five piece unit since their recent acquisition of new member, Harri Kuokkanen,
as stand alone lead vocalist. The recording consists of six tracks which
combine to make up forty-two minutes of total running time and the scheduled
release date by Season
Of Mist is January 26th, 2018. It appears that a seventh bonus track
does exist on some formats but unfortunately, we did not have it made available
to us for this review.
First
track, “Sempiternal Grotesqueries,”
is the longest running song of the album. This lumbering juggernaut slowly
builds up from an epic graveyard crawl which eventually transcends into that
classic Hooded
Menace gallop, after which we are thrown into a frenzy of
double-kick drums and pummelled into oblivion. This song has all the classic
cornerstones that we love about Hooded Menace and it bounces our brains back
and forth between them all for over ten and a half minutes. It is an all
encompassing thrill ride of pure death-doom bliss in such a way that only Hooded Menace
can deliver.
Second
track, “In Eerie Deliverance,”
begins with those signature guitar harmonies which have always accompanied many
of the band’s massively haunting riffs. The opening movement has a bit of a
twist in its groove and some unorthodox drumming, slightly akin to something Immolation
might do - to give you a rough comparison. I feel like this aspect combined
with the melodic chorus part make this track a bit of a standout from their
usual repertoire. This is a good indication of a band that is continuing to
grow and not afraid to take some chances outside of their usual comfort zone
which is very admirable. Plenty of melody and double-kick while having minimal
guitar soloing make this one an interesting listen for seven minutes and it
works very well.
Third
song, “Cathedral Of Labyrinthine
Darkness,” lets the heavy dirge rumble of the bass guitar take the lead for
a few brief seconds in the very beginning and leaves me wanting more. This one
in general is a crawling behemoth with so much gloom and doom that it feels
like a slimy dense fog is pouring out of your speakers and into your
unsuspecting lungs. It is pure suffocating slow death. Fourth song, “Cascade Of Ashes,” creeps in like an
undead zombie dragging its decayed carcass across the night’s shadows after a
brief acappella vocal line chimes in to start off the number. The central focus
point of this track comes in the form of a small break in the middle that
leaves only a solitary guitar to ring out some unconsecrated notes that segue
into a groovy tribal drum beat. This seems to me as another venture into
slightly unusual territory for the band and again, it works very well.
Fifth
song, “Charnel Reflections,” much
like the opening track is a stroll through the familiar cemetery of the damned
that Hooded
Menace have worked so hard to create and perfect over the last 11
years. It is another fine example of the band's classic style of riffs and
melodies which we, as fans, have come to know and admire. The sixth and final
track, “Black Moss,” is an
instrumental two plus minute outro that morphs from a heavy driving riff with
plenty of guitar soloing into some classical guitar as it fades off and unwinds
us from the bludgeoning assault of dust and cobweb covered ancient headstones
that have been hurled at us for the duration of the previous five songs.
As
always, the musicianship on this album is indisputable metal mastery at its
finest and the production is near flawless. Although the vocals are a bit
different this time around, but I feel it is not a drastic change and in my
opinion, the new vocalist suits the band well. One can only appreciate that Hooded Menace
is still growing and changing ever so slightly with each new release but one
thing is certain; as long as Lasse Pyykkö is at the helm, they will continue to
hold their place at the top of the death-doom subgenre and never grow stale in
their craftsmanship. Hooded Menace, to me, is the quintessential death-doom
metal band and this album shows that they remain as relevant as ever.
“Ossuarium Silhouettes Unhallowed” is available to
preorder/buy here
