ALBUM REVIEW: Eloah Burns Out – Trivax
After moving to the UK from Iran in April 2009 in order to freely pursue a career as a metal musician, TRIVAX mastermind Shayan has quickly become one of the country’s most promising and powerful black metal musicians, fronting one of the most impressive black metal acts currently operating in the UK, with a slew of records and some excellent live shows garnering the Birmingham-based act some well-deserved acclaim. Their latest, second album, Eloah Burns Out, is the culmination of an especially strong few years for the band, serving not only as their best work so far, but arguably one of the best albums by a UK black metal act this year.
This album couldn’t have a stronger starting point than Azrael, whose folky intro quickly gives way to a punchy slab of black metal with excellent guitar work, frenetic drums and caustic vocals. The ominous, militaristic chug that bridges the song’s two halves works extremely well too, breaking up the melodic touches and kicking things off with an absolute juggernaut that sets a lofty bar for what follows. Alpha Predator, another powerful offering with a cavernous, chaotic approach is for the most part a full throttle aural assault that manages to remain incredibly catchy and memorable, embracing the blackened thrash hinted at on the previous track more effectively whilst still leaving room for heaps of atmosphere, rabid hooks and bellicose vocals.
Silent Contemplation, a short instrumental interlude built upon acoustic guitars and haunting synths, serves as a great segue into the following track, The Serpent’s Gaze; originally appearing on an EP of the same name, this new version is just as monolithic and dark, using the drums and rumbling bass as a weighty backbone around which to craft muscular, mid-paced guitars that take in a lot musically, from domineering rhythmic gallops to slick melodicism, with a few jarring flourishes and clean passages thrown in for good measure. The synths make an appearance again, casting a shroud-like ambience over the music at points and adding depth to an already expansive sound without distracting from the imaginative riffs and searing vocals, adding another layer to this magnificent piece of hypnotic black metal.
Against All Opposition (By Aeshma’s Wrath) is another cacophonous offering that takes the unhinged blackened thrash formula of Alpha Predator and leans heavily into its bestial end, with certain sections of this song presenting a dizzying blur of noxious guitars, sludgy bass and energetic drums, along with similarly feral vocals, showcasing a demented and discordant side to the band’s sound. Memento Mori, another short interlude with a murky and sombre sound, is a great, minimalistic change of pace after the preceding track that bleeds seamlessly into the start of Twilight Of Death, a song that reverts to punchy, melody-driven guitar work and tight, forceful rhythms. The opaque backing vocals add a link between this track and the one that came before it, with the main vocals being harsh roars that contrast with the polished, virtuosic leads, injecting a fierce edge into one of the album’s catchiest efforts, with thick basslines, dancing synths and acoustic moments providing some interesting elements into the mix.
در آخر دنیا is a fantastic, slow-burning way to close this album, gradually building from a subdued, ethereal sound that utilises acoustic guitars and cleaner tones to a much more grandiose, even epic, take on black metal with dramatic clean vocals and tight musicianship on all fronts. As the song progresses, it slowly gets darker, but never really shifts out of its mid-tempo style until the very end, when the music suddenly lurches into a razor sharp, thunderous behemoth, bringing this album to a close on arguably one of its most bombastic and immersive numbers.
This is easily one of the best black metal albums from a UK-based band to come out this year, and it’s safe to say that it is even one of the best records by any black metal act, underground or otherwise. This is in no small part due not only to the chemistry and skill that TRIVAX clearly have as songwriters, but it’s also due to the variety on offer from song to song. Each of these eight tracks feels distinct from the others, and could have been a stand out track in its own right on an album by another band, meaning that this album doesn’t get stale at any point or feel formulaic, keeping the listener engrossed from the first track to the very last. Although Sin was by no means a weak record in its own right, the musical shift towards leaner, more focused black metal with some interesting flourishes in the intervening seven years shows how strong TRIVAX are currently as a creative force, and it’s a change of pace that makes them one of the lead purveyors of black metal in the UK today.
Rating: 9/10
Eloah Burns Out is out now via Cult Never Dies.
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