Post black metal French band Decline of the I are back with their fourth album, which sees them start a new trilogy. Their first three were inspired by the works of French surgeon and neurologist Henri Laborit, while the new set are based on the output of Danish philosopher, Søren Kierkegaard. Who said metal bands weren’t well read? All music and lyrics were written exclusively by band leader AK, who also provided guitars, keyboards, and some of the vocals. The line-up is completed by SI (vocals), AD (bass) and SK (drums). Here we have five songs, with nothing under seven minutes in length and the longest being more than 14, and this is packed full of emotion and solid riffs which would make Sabbath proud.

Doom is prevalent throughout this album, along with misery, angst, cold emotion and plenty of black metal riffs and stylings which somehow have been morphed perfectly into a post metal area. It is a perfect coming together of different styles, so much so that it is hard to see the join, and the crossover is so effective that there is a high chance that fans of one of the sub genres may well find themselves wondering if they should listen to more from one of the others as well. The use of a boy chorister only adds to the emotion, as does the choir, and fortunately the production is strong enough for the music to be really allowed to flow. One can imagine this being played in a ruined cathedral on a hill in the dark night with just some stars to accompany a band where it is all about the music and not the individuals. It is rough, it is raw, dynamic, and controlled yet with chaos ready to be unleashed at any moment. Agonia Records have long had a reputation of releasing some of the finest extreme music around, and this is yet another great addition to their canon (I could listen to the slid guitars in “The Veil of Splendid Lies” all day!!). Well worth discovering.

Rating: 8/10

Links:
https://www.facebook.com/declineofthei
https://www.agoniarecords.com/