Hrizg - Inferno EP (2011)

Hot on the heels of his sophomore Anthems to Decrepitude, the one man Spanish Armada known as Hrizg has returned with Inferno, a shorter release which is being dubbed an EP, but very near a full length album in of itself (27 minutes). As I mentioned in my previous review, this is not an artist who prides himself on innovation within the black metal sphere, instead writing in a style very similar to the Scandinavian masters like Bathory, but he also bears the distinction of full fluency in the entire range of core instruments, and it's never less than a wonder how a guy can play drums like this, snarl like a cacodaemon, shred through a barrage of high strung chords and even shift into some subtler strains of melody...

That aside, I can sort of understand why the material on Inferno would be relegated to a shorter form release and not given top billing on the next full-length effort, because half of these tracks are rather forgettable. "Inferno I - The Awakening" is the least impressive, a straight shot of volatile Swedish-styled black at a rapid pace, recalling Bathory, old Marduk and so forth. There is a gleaming bridge nestled deep in the track's structure, but it comes too late to create any real variation. "Inferno II - To Yield Below the Frozen Sky" ranges from the same, blasted exhaustion to a slower, atmospheric elegance, and it seems to be the rule that all of the more mellow fare ("Infernos III and IV - Shadowshield and Ars Goetia") shows a stronger sense for melody, versatility and enduring quality, even if its not enough to pursue this release for.

The closing track, the 8:30 minute "Inferno V - Conqueror of This Wooden Abyss", seemed to carry a more rustic aggression, with a mildly more rugged production, and I found this to be the most resonant and impressive piece on the album, a little more in check with the quality on Anthems to Decrepitude. I enjoyed some of the darker, grimier vocals he spat out over this one, and the thunder-folk finale. But again, it's not so amazing that I'd choose this over either of his full-length records. The production on Inferno is pretty smooth without losing its organic, evil qualities for any over-processed nonsense. All the instruments well balanced (even the bass shines in places), and Hrizg's performance (in particular his drumming) is laudable, but there's simply not all that much to distinguish this from countless other acts in the genre. But he could certainly do a lot worse than this.

Verdict: Indifference [6.75/10]

http://www.myspace.com/hrizg

Hrizg - Anthems to Decrepitude (2011)

Hrizg might on the surface seem like another voice in the infinite choir of misanthropy that is the black metal spectrum, but by no means should the man (or band) be casually written off. Hailing from Spain, he handles all compositional and instrumental elements of this album, no easy task in of itself, but more importantly he manages to bridge the gap of atmospheric aesthetics and cult fervor. Anthems to Decrepitude is not a nexus of novel ideas, featuring the same black blazing guitar dynamics we've heard a thousand times over since the earlier years of the 2nd wave in Norway. But given such a spacious and tangible effusion of darkness here, they are once more endowed with the dark and pleasurable elation of spite and obscurity.

Hrizg tends towards a darker, ominous vocal tone that conveys both the dingy dust of primordial death as well as the more inherent, carnal rasp of this genre, and along with the sodden grace of the synthesized backing choirs ("Opposite to Light") or the ambient sequences (the intro to "The Infernal Scripture", the numbing ritual synthesizer swells of finale "Broken Shield" or the acoustic/rain duet of "Invierno") they create a convocation of beckoning shadows. The guitars are in general predictable, but there are some points at which they take you by surprise, such the forceful, dire melodic agony of "Necrosanctum" for one, or the stern, doom-like strains of "Angercraft", or the gleaming arc of depression "In Solitude". In addition, a fluid sense of dynamic variation permeates the experience, meaning that you'll never hear quite the same song twice, a relief among a cloudy haze of similar artists. A few of the tracks feature have some less interesting guitars embedded within them ("Into the Caves of Earth", "I Hate" for example), but even these shift towards vile hypnosis after a few cycles.

These Anthems to Decrepitude do require a few complete listens to sink themselves into the listener's conscience, not that they lack accessible components, but it might be easy to ignore their overall, ebbing flow of bitterness. Like most of the better atmospheric black metal acts, Hrizg is not openly confrontational. It haunts you from the corners, from the depths of the unseen, from an ancient corridor that most fear to tread alone. The solitude of the artist who wrote and performed this is conveyed fully through the leeching effect it has on the witness, and while it's perhaps not the most inspired example of its class, it at least demands repeated listens, especially when one can set the proper mood and atmosphere to indulge it.

Verdict: Win [7.5/10]

http://www.myspace.com/hrizg