Esoctrilihum – Eternity of Shaog

Anytime you come across a release from I, Voidhanger Records, you’re in for an untamed, emotionally driven, avant garde sound that has so much dynamic & layers to it, it’s a lot for the listener to process and soak it in entirely first listen.

In the case of France based solo act Esoctrilihum, fifth LP “Eternity of Shaog”, which is impeccable out of Asthâghul’s discography. It’s a concept album describing despotic god Shaog isolated in a parallel universe, trapping unaware voyagers who trespass his realm through their dreams or comatose state. Beautifully colorful artwork by Alan E. Brown, who also did the cover for Mastadon’s 2017 LP “Emperor of Sand”.

If you’re an admirer of HP Lovecraft, and fan of bands such as Blut aus Nord, Deathspell Omega, or Portal, this is a necessity to your dark musical collection. Taking the listener into a celestial journey to engage into folky, maniacal arrangement, compositions styled with classical, acoustic, operatic fashion with strong powerful black metal cadence in his vocal pitch is out of this world. Ten tracks, totalling a sliver over an hour of playtime that you have to give this at least twice a play through to go over all the enriched details you may have overlooked the first time. One of the notable (and longest) track is “Thritônh” has a Black Metal structure blended with a Death Metal atmosphere & acoustic fills with an echoey richness to encompass the mood isolation while catastrophe surrounds you.

Gotta make a note for the folky, daunting violin that is outstanding for “Aylowenn Aela”. To have so much input as a solo musician, there’s nothing like “Eternity of Shaog” that you came across last year. It deserves as contender for album of the year 2020 by far, one of the best innovative sounds to resonate our ears for the underground. (Tori Belle)