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The latest outing from neo-folk stalwarts Sol Invictus, is, in a way, much like all their others. That is, it is patently a Sol Invictus album, yet it has its own sound that marks it out as an indivdual. It manages at the same time to be fresh and entirely predictable, the perfect balance for fans and newcomers alike.
This time round, the sound has been tweaked in two opposite directions, building on the stylistic base of Thrones and The Hill of Crosses. The music itself has become more complex, stranger, more ethereal. The percussion has been put on a back-burner in most songs (we still get that massive, booming, martial drum that defines many classic Sol Invictus songs in the title track, but it is notably scarce elsewhere), in favour of layered, carefully crafted soundscapes, with shimmering, ghost-like surfaces of brass and violins concealing buzzing, atonal depths of electronics and tortured instrumental samples. Even the guitar is lost in this forest of sound half the time, emerging occasionally for tracks such as the comparitively raw, punchy interpretation of "Twa Corbies" (infinitely superior to the version on In the Jaws of the Serpent, though clearly based on it). There is easily enough variation however, to set up dynamics that keep the listener from getting bored, with lyrical and musical themes carried between the songs creating a sense of wholeness, and there are few places that one feels that the band is trying your patience ("Where Stone Lions Prowl" is perhaps a little over-long, "A Steed For the Devil" slightly superfluous). These are minor gripes, though, compared with the general epic, easy sweep of the album.
All in all, it represents a fresh take on a the Sol Invictus sound that proves that the band still has something to say, albeit only one voice to say it in. The other interesting thing you notice reading the liner notes is the relatively high number of songs incorporating lyrics from other sources: "The Silver Swan", "Twa Corbies" and "There Did Three Knights Come From the West" are all traditional (and "We Are the Dead Men" easily could be) whilst "The North Ship" is taken from a poem by Philip Larkin. This is quite a high number on a 14-track album with three instrumentals, and it's interesting that as Sol Invictus take yet more liberties with their folkish formula, they simultaneously start incorporating more 'true' folk songs into their repertoire.
This is a very solid release indeed. Guaranteed to please any neo-folk fan worth their salt, and of definite interest to anyone with any sort of interest in dark ambient or other similiar sorts of music. Along with Current 93's more recent Black Ships Ate the Sky, it proves that the veterans of the style still have a definitive edge over many of the younger bands now springing up, and if it means albums of this calibre, long may that continue.
Quietus
This time round, the sound has been tweaked in two opposite directions, building on the stylistic base of Thrones and The Hill of Crosses. The music itself has become more complex, stranger, more ethereal. The percussion has been put on a back-burner in most songs (we still get that massive, booming, martial drum that defines many classic Sol Invictus songs in the title track, but it is notably scarce elsewhere), in favour of layered, carefully crafted soundscapes, with shimmering, ghost-like surfaces of brass and violins concealing buzzing, atonal depths of electronics and tortured instrumental samples. Even the guitar is lost in this forest of sound half the time, emerging occasionally for tracks such as the comparitively raw, punchy interpretation of "Twa Corbies" (infinitely superior to the version on In the Jaws of the Serpent, though clearly based on it). There is easily enough variation however, to set up dynamics that keep the listener from getting bored, with lyrical and musical themes carried between the songs creating a sense of wholeness, and there are few places that one feels that the band is trying your patience ("Where Stone Lions Prowl" is perhaps a little over-long, "A Steed For the Devil" slightly superfluous). These are minor gripes, though, compared with the general epic, easy sweep of the album.
All in all, it represents a fresh take on a the Sol Invictus sound that proves that the band still has something to say, albeit only one voice to say it in. The other interesting thing you notice reading the liner notes is the relatively high number of songs incorporating lyrics from other sources: "The Silver Swan", "Twa Corbies" and "There Did Three Knights Come From the West" are all traditional (and "We Are the Dead Men" easily could be) whilst "The North Ship" is taken from a poem by Philip Larkin. This is quite a high number on a 14-track album with three instrumentals, and it's interesting that as Sol Invictus take yet more liberties with their folkish formula, they simultaneously start incorporating more 'true' folk songs into their repertoire.
This is a very solid release indeed. Guaranteed to please any neo-folk fan worth their salt, and of definite interest to anyone with any sort of interest in dark ambient or other similiar sorts of music. Along with Current 93's more recent Black Ships Ate the Sky, it proves that the veterans of the style still have a definitive edge over many of the younger bands now springing up, and if it means albums of this calibre, long may that continue.
Quietus