Vessel of Light - Last Ride

I've never quite understood Dan Lorenzo's trajectory after The Downside and Damnation. While the last Hades albums' progression made sense to me, and were in many ways good records, his solo material always seemed to lack a certain... seriousness? Edge? There was always an unpleasant tang of gimmick jumbled in with the inside joke tracks and I will never understand the decision to include three other band's songs with a hype up track on Cassius King. Lorenzo's audacious ambivalence for convention is in every way a NJ attribute. That is for sure. So, I do not expect another Resisting Success - how could I? - but I've always hoped. Dan Lorenzo's collaboration with Nathan Opposition in Vessel of Light is a recent project, but the material presented, at least on this years Last Ride, explains a lot of what I've not understood about Lorenzo's progression in other projects. The doomier setting, somewhere between Sahg and Alice In Chains, gives insight into the thrashless tone of his solo records. There is, of course, the formative influence of Sabbath present, as well as stoner bastions like Down. Vessel of Light is not as gritty as any of the Down material, but a shared architecture can be found nonetheless. Perhaps the best comparison would be locals King's Destroy - particularly their 2013 album, A Time Of Hunting. 

Long time followers of Lorenzo's storied and illustrious career will recognize the entourage. Bassist Jimmy Schulman, Lorenzo's long-time wingman, has followed him into the project. Lorenzo just drags him wherever he goes, it seems, but Schulman is a naturally gifted bassist and effortlessly suits the material. Drummer Ron Lipnicki, another Lorenzo henchman, also has moved into one of the project's bedrooms, kicking N. Opposition out of the percussion role, leaving him to handle the vocal element singularly. Though I'm not familiar with previous records from Vessel of Light, Last Ride is a very professional sounding affair. The guitars carry the jagged resonance of seasoned tweaking. Lorenzo does not spend much time, unfortunately, gracing us with guitar solos or leads on this album and his position is mostly of a rhythmic affair. A few good wailings and unadulterated shredding, which he is capable of, would have provided highlights in some songs. Schulman's bass, though, is a highlight for me, as it adds depth and subtlety to each track and I spent at least two listens only listening for his bass lines. Lipnicki's drumming is interesting and varied throughout, especially in a track like "Carving Station". I do wish there was more punch to his kick drum during the slower beats on the album.

If there was a major complaint, it would reside in the song structures. Throughout, on almost every song, the movement and pacing is essentially the same, with a short musical refrain followed with N. Opposition following shortly with opening verses. While there may be shifting of the location of bridges, and some short instrumental spaces, the patterning could become irksome for someone actively listening for deeper musical elements. I felt some tracks, like "Torture King" were wordy. Structurally, this became an issue for me and it carried into my enjoyment of the thematic elements. Initially I was not sold on the lyrical content, unable to poke my finger through the architectural issues. In fact, I still am not entirely invested into the predominance of serial killer and sadist themed songs but objectively I really can't find much to be sour about. Each song's lyrical content fits well with the tone of the track. A song like "Disappearing Pact," one of my picks for best track on the album, with it's quicker tempo and lighter mood plays well with the narrator's expectation of finding hope in suicide. 

Similarly, a track like "Carving Station" is notably darker and heavier, like it is dragging a weight behind it. As Opposition somberly describes his character's motive operandi, the big thick chugging rumbles on. The track also marks the spot in the album where I felt Lipnicki really started to shine. The songs throughout are generally well matched with the lyrical content and with the persona which Opposition takes on as well. While on most songs and choruses, he channels Layne Staley, there are times when he shuns the emotionally distanced demeanor in favor of something darker and deadlier. I think the vocal style may unfortunately hinder fans of more epic doom or traditional doom from truly welcoming this record though, as both of these underlying vocal styles is unlikely to sit well with elitists. "Awaken in Dreams" is one of the more unique tracks on the record, sporting a quiet mellowed section that breaks up the B-sides. Closing track, "The Death of Innocence" closes the record appropriately for me. I get the feeling of the ending credits rolling, the theater emptying, until only one person remains, their killer having already disappeared into the night. 

Skorbvstr - Sakte Fort Veldig Kraftig

Rarely does an album capture a moment in time the way in which Skorbvstr's Sakte Fort Veldig Kraftig has managed to subdue the slippery atmosphere of 2020. No evidence is needed to lend credence to the claim that this year has been bleak, raw, harsh, and solemn; a trudging timeline of frustration and maliciousness; a water torture-esque pattern of bad news; Black Metal through and through in many ways. After several listens to the album, and at least one listen driving through torrential rain, that my impression matched the purpose of the single individual behind Skorbvstr, no less a victim of this year's misery and bitterness than any other, is evidence of the the power of emotional transmission achievable through Black Metal. In an interview with OccultBlackMetalZine, "I wanted to capture all of the feelings this insane year has brought upon the world. Cold. Raw emotion. Tension. Isolation. Despair. Monotony. Darkness. Uncertainty. Sickness. The cold and raw emotion comes through pretty clearly in the overall sound."

I mentioned to the sole force behind the record the gem-like scarcity of an album achieving it's aims. "Thank you for that high praise. It’s not for me to say if I captured anything perfectly or not so I’m glad you feel that way. This has just been such a fucked up year so I felt like it wasn’t too difficult to channel those emotions. I have released a few other albums this year with various projects and it’s been quite frustrating to not be able to play many shows or get together with my bandmates very often. Watching everything get canceled and spending weekends at the house when I would’ve normally been out at gigs sometimes got the better of me as I’m sure it did a lot of people. Trying not to fall into a depression. I’ve been at this with different bands of all different genres since I was 15 years old playing my first gig in Nashville in the mid late 90s. Looking at a calendar and not knowing when I’m gonna play another show or get together with my bandmates has been incredibly frustrating and something I’m not used to. The most natural thing was to look at doing a solo project or two to help fill the void. That’s pretty much how this whole thing came about. A lot of extra time on my hands and needing to release something and stay productive. The weekend I did this was just one of those times when I was sitting there with absolutely nothing going on so I started drinking and went down the rabbit hole."

Excluding the one-minute long intro, the five tracks are exemplary of the style and the means to achieve the desired outcomes. Each track is singular in many respects with simple melodies repeating to build tension and the desire for change and something new to be introduced. Often, we are given a nuanced textural shift at points in the song, however the minimalist structure remains true. In many ways this is in line with albums like Drudkh's Forgotten Legends, before the total shift away from Saenko's Hate Forest rawness in that project. First track, "En Veldig Tung Og Melodisk Lyd Starter" is a strong representation of the album's overall aesthetic. As it shifts between two main components with long tenuous notes which seem to hold out too long. The ending of the track contains another major textural element of the album; long sharp ringing notes that cut over the atmospheric backdrop of the rhythms. This is utilized to great effect on the final track, "Mest Dystre," in which the main melodic element is carried by the echoing high guitar notes. Vocals are sickly and dripping with dusty sandy spit. Set back dynamically in the mix, there is a definitive rehearsal or demo quality to this which is appreciable. As if they are imprisoned somewhere begging to be let out. Skorbvstr would lose something with a crystal clear, typical production. 

This combination of echoing and ringing notes, raw minimalist black metal, and imprisoned vocals speak to a natural proclivity for this style, and not something which was overthought. "I went into this on a Friday evening with absolutely nothing but a vague idea of how I wanted it to sound. No riffs or parts or anything at all. Just the ideas I mentioned above combined with the desolate feelings. I got in pretty deep that night and just stayed in it as long as I could. Obviously everything morphed a little bit over the next couple of days but that’s pretty much it. Once I came up with the idea of all the arrangements being the same and everything being based around one principal note per song It felt like it sort of wrote itself." One principal note sounds minimalist to me. Carrying the minimalist theme forward further is the DIY presentation of the silver-sharpie labelled glossy digipak and plain white CDr disc with plain handwritten labelling. Skorbvstr's Sakte Fort Veldig Kraftig, though, proves that in 2020, the minimalist nature of this annum is perhaps best represented not by hope and socially-conscious messages but instead by the time-tested truisms of malcontent, struggle, and desolation underground Black Metal best conveys.