FEAR OF ETERNITY

Italy's FEAR OF ETERNITY consists of a single individual, Tilenni, who plays all instruments and produces his works. The style is a form of keyboard-based black metal despondency. Typically slow, doom-like tempos with guitar serving as more of a background instrument and Tilenni's croaky vocals are heard on albums like "Toward the Castle" and "Spirit of Sorrow", neither of which did a whole lot for me. My initial impressions after limited spins were that it was basically paint-by-numbers fare that lacked a true sense of melancholia and suicidal atmosphere. As it turns out, "Ancient Symbolism" had me thinking that the man's bleak compositions can be rather alluring at times.

With the melodies dominated by keyboards and a steady tempo, "Ancient Symbolism" is not one for the overly caffeinated. In fairness, Tilenni's compositions are quite elegant, even beautiful at times. Though songs like "Fragments of Wisdom" and "Throne of the Gods" work well as odes to self-medication and a sinking spirit, I found piano interlude "Malignant Spirits" and "Intro (Passing)", with its operatic female vocals and chants, to be just as compelling, if not more so. The title track stands out a bit for its funeral march grimness and chilling keyboard melody, but even it would not be mistaken for a major departure from any of the rest of the tracks. The moments when piano is used extensively, such as on "Human Weakness", add a measure of depth and enhance the atmosphere considerably.

The tough part about reviewing an album like the "Ancient Symbolism" is that whether an artist has successfully captured a certain vibe through compositional minimalism depends on the person doing the listening. I'd not be surprised to find some viewing the album as the height of sonic tragedy. I still think that albums like KROHM's (aka Dario Derna, DRAWN AND QUARTERED, ABAZAGORATH, and HIEROPHANT) "A World Through Dead Eyes" achieves a more convincing level of human despair. Still, "Ancient Symbolism" did leave enough of an impression on me to at least go back and re-evaluate "Toward the Castle" and "Spirit of Sorrow". Provided you're into this kind of thing and aren't expecting blasting black metal or adrenaline-charged extremity, "Ancient Symbolism" may be worth checking out. Given a very specific state of mind and a want for nothing more than creeping dirges that slowly envelope, "Ancient Symbolism" may occasionally find its way into my disc player. But that's a big "may."