A new one man Black Metal project named Vymtocimyx hailing from Atlanta, Georgia, has cast their first demo release out into the metallic wilderness. This demo tape features eight tracks and spans just over thirty-five minutes in runtime. Here, the artist is embodying a deeply shadowy and bone-chilling manifestation of Blackened Gothic electronics that demonstrates attributes ranging from bleak, disturbing to lonesome, although the material is also at times eerily soothing.
The tracks on this demo all feature a heavy usage of electronic drum parts akin to many swathes of Goth-Rock, Post-Punk and eighties’ electro-pop sounds. These percussion sounds have been carefully slathered with layers of droning and enchanting guitars and vocal stylings that range from hair-raising whisper chants to traditional rotten Black Metal shrieks. Various other creepy splashes of instrumentation are prevalent, be them the dark synth wave notes that fly around the spacious mix of opener ‘I Live in the Shadows’ or the use of very vampiric sounding organ keys at various points in the track list. The eight minute ‘Becoming’, opens to an isolated and sad-sounding bass medley, a hushed duality of electric guitar and organ keys slowly drones their way into the fold before hasty drums and aggressive vocals disturb the stillness of the song’s opening progression. After this shake-up, the bass hangs quietly in the background, meditating on a glistening melodic pattern whilst the drums and vocals command the song’s tempo changes with an addictive style. The harmonic synchronicity of bass and guitar on ‘Invoking the Spirit Guide’ is a particularly pleasant experience and I also find the controlled stalking tension of the track to be a prime example of the demo’s overall atmospheric strengths.
The electrified percussion carefully blended with the more conventional Black Metal elements on this demo will be of interest to those who enjoy Godkiller’s ‘The End of the World’ album. The droning aspects of the instrumentals, along with the organ sounds and the stripped-back approach of much of this material, will also be sure to catch the attention of Funeral Doom lovers. This is a fun release from this new artist that showcases an exciting, haunting and experimental musical vision.
