ALBUM REVIEW: The Fractal Ouroboros – Bull Of Apis, Bull Of Bronze
Colorado has produced some of the most exciting and interesting takes on extreme metal that the genre has seen in recent years; from BLOOD INCANTATION to WAYFARER, the Centennial State has produced some of the most stunning bands and albums within the US’ already impressive underground scene, with even relatively new bands creating some incredibly world class music. BULL OF APIS, BULL OF BRONZE are certainly one of the most impressive black metal acts to emerge from there in the last few years, with the trio’s debut album Offerings Of Flesh And Gold boasting some surprisingly broad and immersive musicianship within it. The band’s latest record, The Fractal Ouroboros, provides an even more sprawling take on the already gargantuan sound present on its predecessor, developing the heady and noxious blend even further.
Trophy serves as a long and ambitious opener, beginning as an atmosphere-drenched slab of minimalism before suddenly bursting into life in a sea of discordant guitars and visceral vocals, with the thunderous, percussive drums shifting to a faster, more urgent pace to match the ferocious core of the music. It’s a great piece of music that never seems to lose any of the domineering, ambient undercurrent even when it is at its most intense, ebbing and flowing between the lighter and sinister moments with ease, making it an engrossing and impactful introduction to the album. The shorter and leaner A History Of Cages And Broken Bones, by contrast, strips away much of the ethereal backdrop and slow-burning nature of the preceding track, with noisy, hazy guitar work and snarling vocals establishing this as a darker affair. With its crawling pace and monolithic, doom-laden rhythms, it’s incredibly robust, despite its ponderous approach.
Suffocate O Earthen Lungs; They Now Lungs Of Ash proves to be a biting slab of black metal with jarring leads, intricate drums and acidic vocals, lending this a solid black metal sound and stripping away the doom and drama that characterised the album’s earlier efforts. It’s got some great, dancing riffs that make this instantly catchy, and is quite memorable and punchy despite being so aggressive and unhinged, acting as a stunning, imaginative piece of ferocious, bleakly cinematic extremity that shifts the album’s sound into new and exciting territories. The following track, Annihilation, goes in the opposite direction, removing almost all of the extreme metal from the sound and replacing it with crystalline ambience and faint, whispery vocals, starkly moving in a completely different direction that uses the album’s beguiling undercurrent as the central focus. Even when the denser guitars and rumbling drums are added, it doesn’t transform into a weightier offering until it reaches its climax, being quite reminiscent of TRIPTYKON in their lighter moments.
Liberation Ritual provides an ominous, primitive sound centred upon booming drums, spoken word passages and heady synths to create a palpable atmosphere, rather than being imposing and intense, acting as a great segue between the previous track and the two final, bombastic offerings that this album concludes on. Our Overt Apocalypse, with its sombre, goth-inflected guitars, subdued vocals and intricate undercurrent, is another great example of how this band uses longer tracks to gradually craft an imaginative and layered piece of music, shaking off the murky tones of its opening moments and morphing into a cavernous juggernaut with muscular, dirge-like rhythms, caustic vocals, impactful leads and a lot of cacophonous, dissonant moments that make this by far one of the album’s most abrasive and vicious outings.
Ekstasis, Enstasis, And The Fractal Ouroboros, unlike earlier songs which rely on the ambience to set the tone before the song proper begins, bursts into life almost immediately, with grating hooks, intricate drums and incredibly varied vocal performances lending this a brooding, eclectic feel. Although it does lapse into measured, hypnotic moments at certain points, this is on the whole much livelier, with frenetic and discordant moments thrown in, matching the preceding track in terms of intensity, and ebbing and flowing between aggression and softer elements to bring this album to a close with arguably one of its most powerful songs.
In a lot of ways, The Fractal Ouroboros manages to stretch out the formula that was present on Offerings Of Flesh And Gold as opposed to developing or progressing beyond that album’s sound. Luckily, the intoxicating blend of atmospheric black metal, sombre DSBM touches and frenetic, cacophonous flourishes is every bit as impressive here as it was on the debut. If there is one small thing that stops not just this but both albums from feeling a lot more impactful, it’s the reliance on huge, ambient builds that prefigure almost every single song on here, as it often kills the album’s momentum when it’s probably intended to inject a sense of foreboding into the mix. Nonetheless, the band’s core sound seems to have been refined to its fullest form here, and it serves as a powerful piece of atmospheric black metal that is very easy to get drawn in by.
Rating: 8/10
The Fractal Ouroboros is out now via Fiadh Productions and Vita Detestabilis Records.
Like BULL OF APIS, BULL OF BRONZE on Facebook.