Artist: Хлад
Album: Власть Зимы
Release: 2010
Genre: Ambient Black Metal
Rating: 90%. Short and sweet.
The cacophony of liquored voice (muffled only by the thin drywall separating my roommates from myself), interlaced with laughter and the steady hollow bounce of ping pong ball meeting masonite table. With pen and pad in hand, I rest my iPod in its dock, and fill the room with the enchanting melodies of Власть Зимы.
We are met head-on by a full arrangement of instruments; soft tremolo, a subtle keyboard soundscape, all glued together by the drive of Ivan's pulsating drumming. No intro to speak of, which is somewhat unorthodox considering the musical path Хлад guides you along throughout the album. Already, there is a defining Russian quality resonating through the music. Stunning, and often joyous keyboard pieces are elegantly interwoven, starkly contrasting the fundamentally black metal structuring of the album. From the albums first track, Власть Зимы, to its finale (and outro), Светлая Скорбь, there is a distinct emotional evolution. The music carries you from the darker, more cliched black metal found on the first two tracks, ever so slowly into the feelings of hope you are left to ponder when the last few notes fade into silence.
Born of a country whose black metal scene is heavily dominated by self-produced, solo-project, basement musicians (the majority of whom probably should, and likely will, remain as such), Russia's Хлад truly is a diamond in the rough.
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