With an extensive intro called ‘Necropolis’, Apparitional Glare immerses us in what I suppose for the Canadian duo is a way of projecting the cold and oppressive experience of travelling through a lost place plagued by death and reverberating whispers of terror trapped in a dark dimension of deep pain and immeasurable sorrows beyond the stench of oblivion from violated tombs.
The theme that bears the name of the work is positioned in the second vertebra of the black spinal column and brings to practice what its name invokes: ‘Raw, Satanic Black Metal’ with a rapacious distortion, cavernous sound, and anguished moans almost transformed into painful screams, a chaotic display and minimalist triumph of lo-fi pregnant with imprecations.
In cuts like ‘Death Upheaval’ and ‘Malevolent Shroud’, memorable riffs are intermingled, sometimes superimposed on the other instruments due to their volume and dissonant presence, using the keyboard to underpin the atmospheric intention of the musicalization, which is nothing more than to create an insane and dark environment for the delight of the lurking black entities…
In ‘Light Degradation,’ I find some nods to the old Demoncy due to its violent execution; guttural screams and shrieks blend together, darkening the march. The album features two covers: one by the Portuguese band Black Cilice (‘To Become’), which aligns more with their own Black Metal style, and the other by Lifelover (‘Expandera’), both very well executed.
Something I really liked about this release is the cover art created by the artist Rotting Reign, which faithfully depicts the content with its vermilion tones of rotten blood and the shadows of death. As for the visual aspect, a detail I always take into account, I liked the band photo and the cover art, as mentioned above.
In short, a very good release from the North American label Jems and Altare Productions, 666% recommended for denizens of dreamlike terror and the negative shadows crackling from the dark candelabrum!
