EP REVIEW: Mascara And Mythril – Feminizer

Washington’s FEMINIZER are one of the very best out of the many new depressive black metal bands at present. Eschewing the sort of murky, rawer tones and lyrical preponderance for themes of suicide and self-harm, the one-woman Seattle outfit creates incredibly polished and powerful music that explores gender dysphoria and trans issues, creating a fresh and relevant twist on this tried, tested and fairly formulaic strain of black metal that sounds far more inventive and interesting than anything that has come out in this style in close to a decade. The band’s latest EP, Mascara And Mythril, moves away from the DSBM sound of their earlier works and embraces dungeon synth, with results that are every bit as epic and creative as the weightier albums that have preceded it.

Mascara And Mythril kicks things off in haunting fashion, with ominous, spacey synths easing the listener into the record and drawing them in with their hypnotic, ethereal quality. Far from feeling like the sort of tired dungeon synth that often features heavily on some albums, this feels distinct and lighter, with dancing, intricate melodies piercing through the denser undercurrent as foreboding percussion adds to the bombastic edge that this whole track possesses, serving as an engrossing piece of music rather than a brief introduction for what’s to come.

Black Shroud Sorrows blends these beguiling elements together with both folkier and darker musical turns, creating a sharp, crystalline sound early on that is far more polished. It sticks firmly to the heady dungeon synth sound whilst adding in lots of drama and grandiose flourishes that develop and refine the sound that was present on the preceding track, making this sound much more cinematic and layered than what came before it.

The Sapphic Tomb, the final, lengthy offering of this EP, initially adopts a more minimalistic dark ambient sound than the animated affairs that featured earlier on the record, but it gradually morphs into an expansive, angelic sound with spartan hooks and a far more cavernous backdrop. The song’s sprawling running time is utilised well to incorporate more melodies and catchy motifs, whilst never fully shedding the overarching ambient influences, making this song not only a very cohesive and powerful addition to the EP, but also an incredibly inventive one that brings this record to a close in an epic way.

Although this is far removed musically from the slick, haunting DSBM that FEMINIZER have crafted across their first two records, Mascara And Mythril is every bit as impactful and grandiose as the band’s albums. With a lot of black metal acts opting to incorporate dungeon synth into their music, even partly, and the growth of this style over the last few years, there was a risk that this change could have made this EP sink into the background amongst a slew of other releases, but luckily the music here is so well thought out and imaginative in its scope that it feels distinct from many other relatively faceless dungeon synth acts. Whether this change of pace is permanent or a mere segue between albums, it’s nonetheless impressive, broadening FEMINIZER‘s musical horizons even further and embracing a different side of M.S.‘ influences.

Rating: 9/10

Mascara And Mythril is out now via Fiadh Productions/Vita Detestabilis Records.

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