Search - Catacombs :: In the Depths of R'Lyeh

Falls sonically right between Skepticism and Esoteric

Aquarius Records | San Francisco | 04/15/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"There are two kinds of doom. Well, okay, there are probably more, but for the purposes of this review I'll stick to two. The first is the new breed of sludgey dirgey slow motion doom practiced by folks like SUNNO))), Moss, Marzuraan, Bunkur, Buried At Sea, Dot [.], Boris, Khanate, Whitehorse and the like. The interesting thing about this type of doom, is it's not necessarily doom METAL, in fact more often than not it's more experimental than metal, and is often played by folks who are far from being metalheads. One might call it indie-doom. Or something. Although for god's sake let's not call it indie-doom. That's almost as bad as calling romantic comedies rom-coms. Anyway, there's that distinctly indie, avant breed of doom, and then there is DOOM METAL. And within doom metal, there is a breed of super slow, super dirgey, beautifully depressive funereal doom, that at least sonically, most resembles that avant drone dirge doom I love so much. Maybe that's why all those non-metal folks into SUNNO))) and Earth and Corrupted and Boris can get into stuff like Skepticism and Esoteric and diSEMBOWLEMENT as well. It pushes the same sort of buttons, it's slow, lurching, rife with tarpit rhythms and glacial cadences, everything is tuned ultra ultra low, it's just very dark and droney and depressive.



But the thing about doom -metal- is it retains some of the elements of it's parent genre, metal. Instead of being like a distorted electric guitar version of Angus Maclise or Henry Flynt or any of the other modern minimalists, It's like Sabbath or St. Vitus or Wichfinder General or Candlemass or Pentagram, but slowed waaaaaaay down. Actual metal songs caught in some sort of time rift, that renders each riff a lengthy smear of depressive ambience, a drum fill can plod along for minutes instead of seconds. The difference is subtle but it is definitely a big difference. That's maybe why, as much as I love all that NWODDDD (new wave of drone death dirge doom, you read it here first!) I tend to be way more engaged by the metallic end of the doom metal spectrum. Esoteric and Skepticism obviously, but also less distinctly funereal outfits like diSEMBOWELMENT, Paramecium, Evoken, My Dying Bride and loads more.



One more modern group who better captures that depressive funereal doom sound better than almost anyone is Catacombs, a one man band whose gloomy doomscapes definitely fall sonically right between Skepticism and Esoteric. Haunting minor key melodies drift wraith-like over a bleak and barren soundscape of plodding, mournful musical sorrow. Guitars dripping with cave-like reverb, everything sounding like it was recorded in an antechamber of hell, vocals so low they sound like someone dragging a huge piece of sheet metal along a rough patch of pavement or like a field recording of a thunderstorm, slowed down. Surprisingly dynamic for a doom record as well, with riffs that hover and drift over vast expanses of nothingness, before lurching back into motion. But also quite melodic, with some tracks sounding almost like a more metal Low, lilting and melancholic, all grey and washed out and wrapped in a distant haze of Burzumic guitar fuzz.



So slow and beautiful and creepy and ominous and amazing."

Extreme Doom/Death Unlike Any Other (TRUE doom)

Saevus Militis | 03/29/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is the most extreme doom/death album in existence in the scene today, and TRUE doom... not sludge/noise/drone garbage.



Unique and macabre harmonies overlay cataclysmically heavy rythyms, yet with enough off-time variation within the songs to keep things interesting. Pay attention, and you'll hear the variations in timings etc., and absorb the incredible atmospheres and monolithic heaviness.



A solid wall of massive dark, brutal doom, with the lowest vocals of anyone else out there, and no keys.



Wan't TRUE extreme doom/death? This is it!

"

The Depths of Chutulu Beckons You

J. Wilkes | Douglas GA | 05/12/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is one of the finest doom recordings ever. This isn't music, its something other. It crawls in your brain and nests. In the Depths of R'yleh has fastly taken its place in my top 5 cd's. If you want to expierence doom metal and not just listen to it, then try Catacombs...but be forewarned, its mesmerizing grip my not let go..."