SUBCONSCIOUS DISSOLUTION into the CONTINUUM

A step backwards, but still as great as ever. - 95%

For Esoteric's newest release, Subconscious Dissolution Into the Continuum, they have followed a slightly different path from all their material that preceeds it. For this album, the band has taken more of a funeral doom approach. At points the music sounds in the vein of Thergothon, Skepticism, Stabat Mater, and the like. The overall loudness of their older material has somwhat dissipated, but the vocals are still brutal as they ever were.

Though only 4 tracks long, SDITC stretches over 50 minutes, in the band's usual style. The first track, "Morphia", is heavier and more reminiscent of older Esoteric. The second track, though, reaches deeper into the dark, depressing form of Doom Metal that most fans tend to love. "The Blood of the Eyes" is a 13-minute funeral doom opus, with tons of hair-raising melody and ridden with emotion. The third track, "Grey Day", kind of reminds me of Forest of Shadows, but with Greg's incredible growls. And the final track, "Arcane Dissolution", is an outro which "Grey Day" bleeds right into.

For most bands a 4-track release would be a EP, but for this British Doom masters, they have taken it to the extreme. Esoteric are easily one of the best of the modern Doom acts (though they date back to the time of the 2nd-wave bands). The music encapsulates every aspect of Doom Metal and utilizes it in its purest form to achieve a sound so dark and, well...esoteric. If you're looking for extreme metal that isn't watered down as much as the more popular Doom bands, this is for you.

Written by mutiilator on June 18th, 2004 (Metal Archives)