I SHALT BECOME

Well, it's not a tribute to the '80s hair metal band nor is it FEAR OF ETERNITY, together a big plus for I SHALT BECOME's "Poison". A fixture in a USBM one-man-band community that has struggled over the years with consistency of product, but periodically wins big (LEVIATHAN, XASTHUR),the new individualistic work of art from I SHALT BECOME offers more than your typical display of depressive black metal ambience, regardless of the appeal being limited to a select group of diehard fans.

However, that may be selling "Poison" a little short. There may in fact be potential for some degree of fan base widening, as the most pleasantly surprising part of "Poison" is how well this 55-minute "concerto" comes across. As one continuous piece divided into 10 movements, the album offers a fully developed dark work of electronically-created (and effectively so) classical orchestration. There is very little in the way of the kind of repetitive drone on "Poison" that has afflicted similar releases, thanks to the care taken to put some personality and mood swings – within parameters that are necessarily bleak — into the songwriting. While the tension builds are short lived and the triumphant ascendance is limited, the outpouring of emotion during "The Swarming of the Locusts" one of the exceptions, the arrangements are allowed room to move. As such, the moments of monotone-induced hypnosis are few and far between.

Aside from the unintelligible, middle-of-the-mix croak vocals, some steady percussion, and the occasional swell into nearly proper black metal, "Poison" is a classically composed work of dark art that some outside of the metal community may even appreciate. Better than many albums of this kind I've heard, and usually avoid, "Poison" will still require a certain mood and frame of mind to thoroughly absorb and enjoy. There is no danger of it being dubbed a watershed release outside of the devotee realm, but it is better than I expected and won't be banished to the "Never Listen to Again…Ever" box.