Liminal Shroud – Visions Of Collapse

Album number three for this Canadian three-piece and with 2022’s ‘All Virtues Ablaze’ they have set the bar high for its follow-up release. That sophomore album held basically everything that makes a contemporary Atmospheric Black Metal records great: expertly multi-layered riffs, epic melodies and captivating drums. And, above all, the three musicians showed their craftsmanship when it comes to their song writing skills.

Releasing a great record is something to applaud and such an album should be cherished, yet it also brings some dangers and risks. Expectations are peaking and it is not always as easy to match or outdo yourself, besides the risk of trying a bit too hard to repeat the same things that seemed to have worked so well previously.

Frankly, with ‘Visions Of Collapse’ Liminal Shroud has trapped itself in a bit of both. While nothing on this third album is remotely bad and it wears the bands musical DNA proudly on its sleeve, I haven’t been able to shake off a slight feeling of disappointment. The problem is then, where to start this analysis? As ‘Visions Of Collapse’ feels like a logical continuation of what they have been doing before, not only on the previous album, but in their musical journey as a whole, since their inception in 2018.

The most telling perhaps is that in the 45 minutes, there is not really a moment that I could point to as truly memorable or the album’s highlight. Without wanting to sound all too negative, it feels like these are just rejected songs from the ‘All Virtues Ablaze’ sessions. Well above the level of the average Atmospheric Black Metal band, but when compared to what we’ve heard from the band before, it just doesn’t stand out. Even the splendid musicianship doesn’t save the album from sounding a bit stale.

Whether it just sounds a bit on the “safe” side and the riffs lack a bit of that piercing memorability, or maybe it is the overall rather smooth and slick production (which the drums in particular suffer from) that prevents the album to really kick in… Maybe it is a combination of all the above. It’s actually a shame that it says Liminal Shroud on the cover, because while it is essentially a solid piece of work, many will probably be left with a sense of disillusionment.