RAGINPIT MAGAZINE

Azathoth - Self Titled EP
Release Date: March 2007

Track Listing:
Intro (2:07)
In Darkest Dreams (5:34)
Alhazred (5:31)
The Lament Configuration (6:04)
Amaranth (6:24)
Outro (1:00)

For those of you reading this from Central California that follow the local underground metal scene, you may already be familiar with Azathoth. For the rest of you, please read on. Azathoth formed in Fresno, CA and after gathering a solid lineup began what became a two year process of writing and recording from 2005 to 2007 when the album was released.

Upon viewing the cover art I notice a striking, piercing logo akin to many black metal bands hailing from Europe. The artwork is all black and white, but somehow still seems vibrant to me. It's reminiscent of a Rorschach test. I've spent many idle moments staring at it and have seen everything from an angel or demon to a wolf or butterfly. Inside there is the standard list of lyrics, band members and thanks. The band only uses their first names here.

"We are not interested in becoming scene celebrities and would prefer to maintain a certain degree of anonymity," says guitarist/vocalist Nick. The band is rounded out by Erik (guitars), Justin (drums), Kyle (keyboards/vocals) and Travis (bass).

Upon reading over the lyrics I notice a deft command of the English language. While Iusually don't like lyrics that rhyme, I enjoy these. The lyrics are well phrased, intelligent, dark and poetic and remind me very much at times of Edgar Allan Poe. "With our lyrics as well as our music, we attempt to pay homage to those artists who have come before us, drawing from a variety of cinematic, literary, and musical inspirations. The life and works of H. P. Lovecraft, in particular, have significantly influenced nearly every aspect of this band. The band's moniker is derived from Lovecraft's Mythos fiction," says Nick regarding the origin of the inspiration for the music.

The disc opens with an incredibly well crafted piano intro that goes through peaks and valleys of intensity and speed. Near the end the track errupts into some of the best dark and heavy writing I've heard. My only qualm with the track is that it has no title but is merely entitled "Intro." The opening track "In Darkest Dreams" wastes no time and kicks in with a tasty guitar lead and then bursts forward with a classical black metal scream. The song chugs forward and I can't help but notice the incredible dynamic of the vocals as they go back and forth between high end black metal screams and death metal gurgles/growls shared between Nick and Kyle continuing on with very impressive tremolo picked black metal leads that remind me of early Dissection. The keyboards add a nice atmosphere during the slower parts before a very abrupt ending.

"Alhazred" is the third track. It opens with mean chugging and a deep growl with the keyboards floating atop giving it an epic, ominous feel. The vocals continue to swap back and forth rapidly keeping things interesting. The keyboards on this track are the most impressive including a synth lead and a piano lead coupled with tremolo picked black metal guitar that breaks into an epic and folk like part before exploding into a ferocious blast followed by a groovy death metal section at the songs conclusion.

The fourth track, and my personal favorite, is "The Lament Configuration." Begining with an interesting use of ambient samples you hear the clicking and shifting of the famed puzzle box from the movie "Hellraiser." Opening up fast yet again with the keys using a bell voice juxtapose very nicely with the chugging guitars and growls giving the feel of being slammed around in the bell tower of a church. After more excellent symphonic black/death metal the song unexpectedly takes a turn to a piano and then slowly builds back up into an insane lead and then slams into a short groove highlighted by intense, brutal gurgles at the song's end.

"Amaranth" is the last song. A bit slower in tempo at first than the other songs, it quickly shifts back to the status quo of fast and brutal. What sets this track apart from the others is the acoustic guitar section in the middle that transitions into a folky keyboard section that's suprisingly upbeat considering the rest of the album's content that is punctuated at the end by the use of horns and an epic lead that's just straight up fist pumping. The build following leads into dueling keyboard and guitar leads.

The album ends with a somber piano piece. It's slower and feels very contemplative or perhaps like the ending of a storm. Once again, the title "Outro" is a bit simple and leaves a bit more to be desired for such a well crafted track.

Overall I find few flaws with the album. What are they, you ask? At times the guitars seem like they need to be brought forward a bit and the cymbals are very difficult to hear. Otherwise this is an extremely good effort for a first outing. All of the instrumentation is nothing short of excellent. The songs are innovative and never lose my interest in spite of their length being above average.

If you're a genre purist, this isn't for you as this album combines several different styles. For those of you reading this that enjoy several different styles of metal ranging from death metal such as Nile or earlier Amorphis or black metal like Arsis or Dissection, you should give this a listen.

Rating: 9

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