Autolatry - Native (2013)

Ever come away from a film screening, a listening party, or an art exhibit with a broad smile on your face that translates into 'something right just happened'? Well, Native, the sophomore full-length from Connecticut's Autolatry has proven the latest instance of this phenomena for me, a conceptual piece which musically expands and expounds upon the band's prior output (the Of the Land EP) in decidedly thorough and positive directions that help to address any possible shortcomings there might have been. Previously an intensely melodic, harmony-drunk black metal outfit who were already quite skilled, they've now successfully embraced and smoothed over tangents of jazz, folk, and post-rock/hardcore chord progressions into a delightful, dynamic whole that remains compelling across a number of listens, and while perfection might still have eluded the quintet, there is no question that Native demands to be head by anyone interested in forward thinking, eclectic spins on its parent genre.

There is precedent, of course, and I'd be remiss to ignore that established European acts like Enslaved and Klabautamann, or modern US cults like Krallice have already tilled some of the fertile soil Autolatry are harvesting, but these guys seize such aesthetics and paint them onto a personal palette of grace and agony which becomes even more engrossing the further through Native one travels. For instance, "Colony", while a formidable exhibition of (or introduction to) the group's rhythmic versatility and devotion to non-standard chord choices (at least in this niche), barely scrapes the surface of the range of emotions and ideas lying in wait for the listener, and is quickly eclipsed by the bass-driven grooves of "Waning Moon" or thundering blast-work which ushers in "Unrest with the Tide", and from there the surprises never cease, from the warm and proggy bridge of "Pale Dishonor" to the immediately memorable acoustic/saxophone interlude "Setting of the Sun", or the immense surge of the titular finale. Autolatry's sense of pacing here is brilliant, through both the consonant and dissonant flux of their riffing progressions, and combined with the lyrical themes of native New England subjugation during the early colonization of the United States, it's clear we've got an album that is unique and important.

This is not pulled off through strict adherence to conventions, but through creative, proficient instrumentation culled from a number of influences. For one, the excellent, fluid and occasionally frenetic bass playing has its roots in jazz, fusion, or progressive rock & metal, an almost Cynic-level attention to details. Its fat, thriving, swerving tones create a seamless contrast to the harsher discord of the modernized chords, which are just as often steeped in post-punk/hardcore (Sonic Youth meets Voivod) architecture as they are paeans to the formative melodic black metal out of Sweden in the 90s. The drums are everything they need to be: whether blasting in concussive clarity or settling into a rock groove, the strikes and fills are well-placed, well-timed, and I love how they're able to achieve such audible, loud levels in the mix without smothering any of the guitars or the vocals. Speaking of which, the snarling might be considered the least of Native's 'curiosities', but there is plenty of conviction there, an occasional growl, and they thankfully avoid the predictable cliche of the Scandinavian soaring cleans. When Karl Chamberlain goes for a mildly cleaner timbre (as in the bridge of "Pale Dishonor") there is still a lot of grime and constipation there which I enjoyed.

Autolatry is artfully abreast of their US contemporaries like Krallice, Liturgy, and Deafheaven, only more intense, memorable, and less prone to the frustrating bouts of ironic and uninteresting compositional choices that render their works incongruent to the amount of hype they celebrate. Native doesn't bear that same philosophical burden of 'let's be artsy for art's sake' which plagues a lot of unfortunate, insipid hipster neckbeard black metal. This isn't some forestry-obsessed Fugazi with rasped vocals, but an actual black metal album, albeit with a difference. Complex, and challenging in that it will occasionally flood the listener with its jarring dissonance and tempos, but ultimately not difficult to follow or headache-inducing. In fact, the harder hitting riff sequences here proved quite a compelling counterweight to the simpler imagery inherent to the lyrical passages of nature and loss. Like if a reincarnated Walt Whitman, speaking on behalf of the Nehantics, Sequin or Pequot-Mohegan tribes, was putting together a Lulu-styled collaboration with members of Enslaved, Agalloch and  Borknagar. Only awesome. I can't say that I loved this record entirely, since I found 3-4 tunes more interesting than the rest, but at its worst, Native is still bound to be one of the most engaging USBM recordings of 2013. Translation: listen to this.

Verdict: Win [8.75/10]

https://www.facebook.com/Autolatry

Autolatry - Of the Land EP (2012)

So often do I spend aurally roaming metal scenes the world wide and seeking out new (and old) sounds that I very often neglect to pay much attention to what's happening in my own back yard. To be fair, Connecticut is not exactly a stone's throw away from my present haunt in Witch City, Mass, but I still feel a sort of surreal kinship and personal obligation to laud and expose those New England artists who are worthy of attention. Thanks to some initiative from their guitarist Dave, I can now add Autolatry to this number, a quintet which plays a curious blend of progressive black metal that I simply do not hear much from the Northeast area, but possesses all of the potential and professionalism you'll rarely hear in bands with twice or three times the history and experience.

Don't let the minimalism of its song titles or the simple, rustic cover art fool you: Autolatry creates a heavily textured, fairly complex cycle of riffing which is born half of the late 90s Swedish melodic black metal sect of Dissection and Dawn, and half of the more progressive, recent tendencies you'll find in Norwegian bands like Enslaved or Immortal over this last decade. A heavily rasped drawl is slightly echoed and thrust above the driving, woven tremolo rhythms and floods of chords that comprise the guitar patterns, while the drums and bass throttle along with some measure of distinction all to themselves. Though I wouldn't say that the actual vocal timbre is particularly unique in this neck of the woods, the production ensures that they slice through the dense dual melodies like a stainless steel knife through a heavily seasoned gourmet dish. There are thundering passages, like the suffix of the opener "Mountain", in which the lyrics drop out and the drums and guitars go at it like desperate refugees attempting to survive the bite of cold and wind, but I think the process works best when the band surges into its warmer, enormous textures.

Best example of this is the opening riff for "Oak", which is relatively straightforward and recalls mid-period Katatonia or Rapture for how much depth is drawn out of a deceptively simple chord pattern, but once they break into that second sequence of notes it's pure, emotionally leaden paradise with the vocals set at the perfect meter. "Snow" has a similar effect, though it's thrust forth at a charge, with some fibrous explosions of melody once the tremolo guitar joins in for the final moment. "Stag" is another particularly strong piece, though it's cast from a more jamming, progressive rock mold with the guitars freaking out, individually panned to give off a very 'live' and organic atmosphere. Still, the dense production values and the musicianship are incredibly consistent throughout the 20 minutes of the EP, and each of the four tunes feels different enough that they don't seem to be blandly reiterating ideas from one to the next.

Granted, this is not the most morbid and threatening of black metal associated acts. Autolatry will not be winning a gold...err, gray ribbon for grimness anytime soon. If you seek only hatred, necroticism and utter desolation, this might not prove so relevant to your interests. Instead, they seem to have developed their lyrical aesthetics towards the thriving, restless wilderness around them, placing them more directly in a spiritual parallel towards bands of an uplifting, pagan metal nature and a pinch of New England folklore. I haven't heard their 2010 full-length recording, The Hill, so I cannot compare the two releases, but I just can't think of anything else in this region of the US which sounds quite like Autolatry. Not every riff is incredibly memorable, and I wouldn't mind a bit more alternation between the warm and cold tones, maybe some acoustic breaks or cleaner vocals for added variation (though this can grow a bit cliche). Otherwise, the future seems bright here. Fans of the influences listed above, or the heavier sides of other American staples like Woods of Ypres or Agalloch would be wise to check this out, especially as its available as a 'Name Your Price' download through the band's website.

Verdict: Win [8/10]

http://autolatry.bandcamp.com/