LAMENT IN WINTER'S NIGHT

Australia's LAMENT IN WINTER'S NIGHT has been churning out black metal that arguably might have more in common with the Finnish scene than the primarily war metal variety for which the country is known. Its second album,"Whereunto the Twilight Leads", sees the band expressing itself in a relatively unique way that can't neatly be pigeonholed because of its juxtaposition of black metal grit with memorable, melodious melodies. Try as you may to prevent it, the key riffs in "Dawn, Cast Your Heart" and the title track will bounce around your head for days.

The outfit's sophomore long player saw the light of day earlier this year via Atrocity Altar on cassette, and is out this week on CD and vinyl through the revered underground American label Hells Headbangers. To be clear, when we speak of LAMENT IN WINTER'S NIGHT as being a band, it was essentially the solo project of one named The Seer, now joined by Blood Fury on drums for this release. While the hyperactive musician has been involved with numerous projects, LAMENT IN WINTER'S NIGHT is clearly his focal point, and he's more than slightly prolific.

Considering everything on paper, a predominantly one-man, raw black metal project that is lo-fi to the max — or to the minimal, as it were — is nothing new. And for those familiar with the style, there isn't anything dramatically out of bounds. Unfortunately, this includes the style's expected and noticeable lack of bass punch. But the guitar melodies on a track like "Blazing Galactic Kingdoms" hit the mark with the intended trance-inducing effect, leveraging the repetitive, hypnotic riff work that comfortably fits within the song, which is more than nine minutes long. The bulk of the six songs comprising "Whereunto the Twilight Leads" are epic in length, the shortest being 6:34, and the songs' length pulls listeners into the band's world; however, it is a double-edged sword in that the expected redundancy comes into play.

But the reason that the album stands out is because of the almost pop-music like guitar melodies that shine brightly. "The Night Beckons in Yellow and Blue" is rich with melancholy that's a fine hair's distance from being up-beat, never quite hitting the point of happiness, ultimately amplifing the music's depressive core. The duel between these horrendously beautiful melodies with caustic screams and screeches makes the album stand apart from this year's the majority of this year's generic black metal albums. For fans of black metal, "Whereunto the Twilight Leads" is bound to have you coming back for more.