Search - Monolithe :: Monolithe II

The definition of Funeral Doom, without being at all generic

03/18/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I was introduced to this band by accident: I saw the album in a Tower Records store, and the cover caught my eye. Turning it over, I was greeted with a familiar logo- that of the Appease Me... record label. Appease Me..., for all those who do not know, is the underground French label run by the incomparable black metal genius known as Vindsval, of Blut Aus Nord fame. So I decided to take the chance. I figured, if Vindsval would put his stamp of approval on it, it couldn't be all bad, right?



And right I was.



The first thing I noticed when I threw this disc in my cd player was the cd player's display: it said "1 track, 50:24." That's right- this album is a single track, of just under fifty-one minutes in length. I thought, "Oh boy, what have I gotten myself into?" The album (or track, I suppose) opens with several moments of a swirling, industrial ambient effect, and then the guitars kick (or should I say, thunder) in, followed several moments later by the drums. A minute later, we are greated with the vocals which, to quote another review I read elsewhere, sound like the lid of a stone coffin being shoved open. These are some of the most well done funeral doom vocals I've ever heard performed. The album continues in this mostly instrumental way for a further 48 minutes, before slowly dying out. Along the way, we are treated to a number of slowed-down, suffocatingly heavy riffs and even some crushingly brutal leads. There is a keyboard that accompanies most of this album, adding a swirling cosmic, almost mystical ambience to the album. And an accordian even makes a recurring appearance! Now, I was of the belief that the only other instruments cut out for funeral doom were the organ and piano, but somehow the accordian used here fits the atmosphere better than either of those instruments could have.



This is some of the most atmospheric metal I've ever heard. The best word to describe this, that I've found, is "mystical." Where most other funeral doom albums possess an atmosphere of pain, suffering, crushing depression and death, this one is different. Imagine you are deep in space, attached to the spaceship by a cord. Suddenly, the cord snaps. You drift away into the cold, darkened void. The realization that you are completely alone, but still very far from death, is all that you have. This realization is somehow even more crushingly immense in scale than knowing that death is very close. If you follow my logic, you can maybe understand what I mean by all of that. This album is a must for all funeral doom fans, and even death/doom fans will enjoy it. Definitely a must-own for fans of bands like Esoteric and UDOM."

Legendary

Mr. B | USA | 03/30/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This band Monolithe is the Pink Floyd of Funeral Doom. They take you on an epic 50 minute journey of absolute beauty and despair. Monolithe II is layered thick with haunted atmospheres and crushing low tuned guitar riffs, and the crusty doom-death stile vocals are a perfect fit with this twisted and dark creation. You have to dedicate some time for Monolithe II though, being that the album has only one song on it. But believe me, even though the song is extremely long, you will not wish it to ever end. This would be the soundtrack to an epoch of Earth's future existence, just barely surviving the death of the sun, nothing left but a cold dead rock bathed in the light of a spinning white dwarf and nebulous gasses. There is beauty here, but there is no hope. If you want to hear a sample of them, you can grab a free 20 minute download of their MCD titled Interlude Premiere off their website. The MCD easily earns ***** stars as well. And if you're really lucky, you can find Monolithe I. Trust me, searching for this Holy Grail of doom is well worth the effort. If you're into bands such as Evoken or Ahab, there's no doubt you'll cheer over Monolithe. If you're new to the Funeral Doom stile, Monolithe would be a perfect example of what it's all about."

Don't be misled

The Jester's Ghost | Louisville KY | 01/16/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The track listings provided by Amazon are wrong. First off this is a single disk album. Second there is only one track about 50:00 minutes long, simply called Monolithe. As for the CD itself this is a monumental undertaking by Monolithe. They have created a slow and crushing doom-trip through the vast oblivions of space. While listening to this you'll feel as if you are slowing being pulled past the event horizon of a black hole, without any hope of ever seeing the light again. This is where all journeys end, and the fear of the unknown beyond begins. If I had to pin a tag on what exactly to call this kind of music I would go with Portrait Doom. That is crushing funeral-like doom that paints a vivid image of what the artist is trying to portray. For fans of Evoken, Mourning Beloveth, Tyranny, Morgion, and maybe Esoteric and Ahab."