Earth – ‘Angels Of Darkness, Demons Of Light II’ [Album Review]

Finally, a drone metal band that doesn’t literally give me a headache. Seattle’s drone stalwarts Earth are back with the sequel to last year’s Angels Of Darkness, Demons Of Light I. What makes their music so much more palatable than the extremely avant-garde Sunn O))), a band that was formed as a tribute to them by the way, is the fact that you can actually hear discernible guitar melodies and coherent song structures instead of just stoning to drooones, drooooones, drooooooones and more droooooooooooones.

Right from the opening, echoing strums of the lead guitar on “Sigil Of Brass”, an ambient and calm atmosphere of longing is conjured, and you know you’re in for either a snoozefest or an immersive sonic pilgrimage to mental Nirvana—whichever one you’re likely to get, they are both worth the trouble of taking in all 46 minutes of this record. This atmosphere sticks around like a stubborn stain should, and it doesn’t dissipate until the last note on “The Rakehell” fades away. By then, you probably need to splash your face with cold water to get those hints of sleepiness out of your eyes.

As with Angels Of Darkness, Demons Of Light I, Lori Goldston pops up every now and then to do her thingamajig on her cello, leading the charge with sorrowful solos that are simply beautiful. The most prominent example of this happening can be heard in “Waltz (A Multiplicity Of Doors)”, and not so prominently in “The Corascene Dog” as well.

While there are no vocals being utilized by the band again, this record still manages to convey emotions and encourage introspective thought through the power of wordless instrumentals alone. Why process sung words when you can just concentrate on feeling and interpreting the music however you want?

Track Listing:

01. Sigil Of Brass [3:32]
02. His Teeth Did Brightly Shine [9:16]
03. Waltz (A Multiplicity Of Doors) [13:04]
04. The Corascene Dog [8:26]
05. The Rakehell [11:51]

Run Time: 46:07
Release Date: February 14, 2012 (USA, Worldwide)

Check out the song: “His Teeth Did Brightly Shine”