SUBCONSCIOUS DISSOLUTION into the CONTINUUM

Good Gods of Doom! - 99%

Good God! After being utterly owned by this 50 minute monster I was ready to review it several days later after near fatally getting overwhelmed with doom! ESOTERIC is one of those bands that never got the A) Press B) Sales and C) Respect they deserve. This is a band for the doom hardened only, or even the philosophy hardened (more on that later). This is an album of raw emotion, droning guitars, torturous vocals and insane subject matter, if you consider yourself a doom metal fan (especially funeral) get this, now. This album is possibly one the heaviest albums I’ve had the pleasure of listening to, it reminds ofSUNN 0)))’s “Flight of the Behemoth” in terms of heaviness. Everytime I listen to this album it really does take me into another world, a world where space, time and laws are of no application, seriously it does, listen to this with headphones on in your room, and it’s amazing really.

The album opens up with a simple riff, this riff drones on for about twelve minutes the vocals in this song are awesome, some very creepy stuff going on here, “Morphia” (the name of the track” is a fifteen minute monster that warns you: if you’re not ready for some serious stuff, leave now. “The blood of the Eyes” has a great beginning a very ethereal, almost BLURE OYSTER CULT-like beginning, the riff in this song changes a lot, but still keeps the same nature, this is probably my favorite song on the album, very atmospheric, really heavy, just straight up doom. “Grey Day” has some great lyrics, and the drums in this song are much more active, giving it some variety in the drone department, an extremely awesome song. The album finishes with “Arcane Dissolution” which is an instrumental, used purely for atmosphere a very great closure; it has these great sounds floating through it, a very well…esoteric song, to finish the album with.

So, yes get this band right now, they are one of the best things to happen to doom and easily the best thing to happen to funeral doom. If you like your music heavy, your vocals insane and your subject matter mature and awesome this is for you. Seriously though, these lyrics are great, very philosophical, highly intelligent and amazingly somber. You may need a degree in philosophy to really comprehend it, but it’s amazing. But, as I do with all serious doom bands I give a warning, this is very heavy, perhaps to heavy for some of you, if you think that songs shouldn’t be more than five minutes long and have fast riffs, you’re going to hate this band; if you think songs should be shorter than certain movies, you’re going to dislike this. But if you are a veteran of the doom scene or the funeral doom scene this band is amazing. Even you “tr00” doom fans gotta give it up for ESOTERIC, a band that was cruelly overlooked by almost everyone, so do yourself, and them a favor and buy this now, no seriously why are you still reading? NOW!

Written by PhilosophicalFrog on May 23rd, 2006 (Metal Archives)