ALBUM REVIEW: The Falling – Aiwass
Hailing from the eccentric and diverse city of Austin, Texas, and created by multi-instrumentalist Blake Carrera, AIWASS is a one man, occult-inspired psychedelic doom project influenced by the works of and named after the controversial yet acclaimed English occultist Aleister Crowley. Bursting onto the scene throughout 2021 with a series of singles and eventually his debut album Wayward Gods, AIWASS began to establish himself in the underground. Now he returns with his sophomore album The Falling, which marks a step into the unknown for AIWASS as Carrera expands his horizons beyond doom.
Aleister Crowley is a polarising but fascinating figure in the history of occultism; he published a number of works during his lifetime and declared himself a prophet in his own religion of Thelema, and his fundamental ideology was to guide humanity into the light of the Æon of Horus. While Thelema has been at the core of Carrera’s work since the beginning, The Falling is a significantly more experimental and expansive album than its predecessor. While his lyrics are intertwined with Thelema, he also expresses a more personal side as he explores his personal struggles and thoughts around mental illness, philosophy and psychology.
The album channels the enigmatic esotericism that Crowley was known for in a far more succinct way. The Falling also incorporates influences from across the musical spectrum including classical music, black metal, country and more. For Carrera, the creation of The Falling was a high risk, high reward endeavour and the results speak for themselves, as it is a wonderfully intoxicating and enchanting set of songs. This multi-influence songwriting and exploration of eerier atmospheres began to emerge on The Eastern Scrolls – a split EP by AIWASS and AAWKS which was released earlier this year.
Notably, The Falling is significantly spacious with a new level of intensity and depth. The album was shaped partly by Grant Husselman (a long time collaborator with KING BUFFALO), and with his production input AIWASS has reinvented itself as an intriguing and zealous new entity. Ominous and evocative, The Falling shows AIWASS in a haunting new light as Carrera departs from the fuzz-saturated modus operandi of doom.
If The Falling was a novel it would be something like Dante’s Inferno, yet all the layers of the album do not reveal themselves all at once. There are nuances and melodic passages that you’d miss on a first hearing, as the album overwhelms you with its dark beauty. Anthemic choral vocals envelop you and the Planet Caravan flange applied to Carrera’s vocals throughout make him sound like a disembodied voice sent from the ether realm to guide you. This in turn conjures up vivid imagery of a transcendence into another world, full of rituals and seeking a truth in the darkness of the abyss.
AIWASS has certainly pushed the boundaries with The Falling. There is a shining confidence throughout this album as well as a passion to try new things. The main examples of this are the divine vocal harmonies and increased use of black metal atmospheres, something Carrera avoided on Wayward Gods. As a whole the album has a fascinating complexity that is bound to appeal to a variety of people.
Opening with the tolling bells of Prometheus, this haunting and eerie track is deeply spiritual with celestial singing and anthemic riffs. It is a fitting start to an intense and ritualistic album. Gnosis sees more of the aforementioned black metal atmospheres and riffing, as buzzsaw-sounding distortion and thunderous drums create a deeply foreboding atmosphere emphasised by Carrera’s disembodied vocals. Over the track’s nine and half minutes you’re taken through a plethora of pensive soundscapes and emotions.
The Light Of Evil is an anthemic venture into darkness, screeching rock organ chords and hazy, disorientating psychedelic atmospheres that send you into another realm. This is the most black metal sounding track on the album; grim, dark and grimy, it sends chills down your spine. Be Not A Man carries on this unrestrained, dark intensity. With a sinister build up it launches into a chaotic cacophony of screaming rock organ chords and tumultuous riffs, that makes you feel like you’ve descended into the final stages of a ritual where your soul dances like a shadow out of your body and into the darkness. Album closer Crossing The Veil gives a subtle nod back to Prometheus with its hauntingly beautiful choral vocals backed by the warmth of an acoustic guitar. The ballad slowly builds before erupting into one final searing solo to finish The Falling with a flourish.
The Falling was a risk and the risk was well worth taking. Carrera’s experimentalism has shown AIWASS in a captivating and exciting new light, one that feels significantly more in tune with his artistic vision. Esoteric and darkly ethereal, if Crowley was a doom fan he’d thoroughly enjoy this.
Rating: 9/10
The Falling is set for release on October 13th via King Volume Records.
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