SMOHALLA — Tellur / Epitome (review)

SMOHALLA — Tellur / Epitome album cover Split · 2013 · Avant-garde Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
3.5/5 ·
Time Signature
A deadly avant-garde black metal combo...

Genre: avant-garde black metal

Take two of the most interesting black metal acts on the more experimental black metal scene and put them on the same release. The result is this highly challenging, and rewarding, split.

The four Smohalla tracks are probably best described as avant-garde blackened death metal. The first track 'Sa voix transperce nos fos' goes in a more death metal direction, featuring both old school thrashy riffs and more technical overlaid guitar leads, while the second track 'La main d'Abel' features more black metal elements and may perhaps be described as a more accessible version of Deathspell Omega. What makes this track particularly interesting is the it features some quite Cynic-like guitar figures which have been wrapped in a black metal blanket so to speak. Ever the experimentalists, Smohalla go as far as featuring an electronica track on their side of the split in the form of 'O deluge' - but despair not, oh ye metalheads, we are dealing with a dark track which is more akin to Depeche Mode than, say, Aqua. And, well, I must say that, as electronic music goes 'O deluge' is very well put together, which even features a couple of dark ambient elements. At this point, the listener should also have been attuned to the electronic elements which characterize Smohalla's contributions to this split. On the epic 'Les passagers du vent', the French experimentalist return to the metal universe, combining heavy sludge with simple black thrash and, of course, the obligatory blastbeat-accompanied passages.

And, having been totally blown away by French avant-garde and experimental black metal, British mayhem awaits the listener in the form of Omega Centauri's three tracks.

Drawing on a more traditional black metal sound and with a rawer production, Omega Centauri nonetheless take an avant-garde approach on these three tracks, as evidenced by the use of dissonant overlaid guitars and generally spacey keyboards in 'Naissance', the heavy and almost alternative feel of 'Submission', and the general dark ambiance weirdness of 'Desuetude'.

If you are in the mood for a different black metal experience in the company of some of the more interesting acts on the experimental black metal scene, then do not hesitate to check out this split.
Share this review
more

Review Comments

Post a public comment below | Send private message to the reviewer
Please login to post a shout
No shouts posted yet. Be the first member to do so above!

Review Index

Member Zone

Username:
Password:
Stay signed in

Metal Subgenres

Artists Alpha-index

MMA TOP 5 Metal ALBUMS

Rating by members, ranked by custom algorithm
Albums with 30 ratings and more
Master of Puppets Thrash Metal
METALLICA
Buy this album from our partners
Paranoid Heavy Metal
BLACK SABBATH
Buy this album from our partners
Moving Pictures Hard Rock
RUSH
Buy this album from our partners
Powerslave NWoBHM
IRON MAIDEN
Buy this album from our partners
Rising Heavy Metal
RAINBOW
Buy this album from our partners

New Metal Artists

New Metal Releases

Suffocated By Fungal Odors Deathcore
VISCERAL EXECRATION
Buy this album from MMA partners
Lethargy Metalcore
HEARTLAPSE
Buy this album from MMA partners
Vitriol Deathcore
BEHEADING THE ICON
Buy this album from MMA partners
Cecità Atmospheric Sludge Metal
NITRITONO
Buy this album from MMA partners
Resiliencia Metalcore
SOURCE OF MYSTERIES
Buy this album from MMA partners
More new releases

New Metal Online Videos

Suicidal Tendencies - Send Me Your Money
SUICIDAL TENDENCIES
UMUR· 10 hours ago
Suicidal Tendencies - Trip at the Brain
SUICIDAL TENDENCIES
UMUR· 11 hours ago
Suicidal Tendencies - Nobody Hears
SUICIDAL TENDENCIES
UMUR· 11 hours ago
Suicidal Tendencies - You Can't Bring Me Down
SUICIDAL TENDENCIES
UMUR· 11 hours ago
Thanatos - Source Of Mysteries (Video Oficial)
SOURCE OF MYSTERIES
Bosh66· 1 day ago
More videos

New MMA Metal Forum Topics

More in the forums

New Site interactions

More...

Latest Metal News

members-submitted

More in the forums

Social Media

Follow us
Follow us on Twitter Become a Facebook fan RSS Feed