Pantheon of Blood - Tetrasomia EP (2013)

Based solely upon my experience with their last EP, Consociatio Solis et Lunae in 2011, I was half expecting the latest Pantheon of Blood to emit another brooding monolith of darkness, snuffing out the summer sun like it were just another candle on the mantle. Instead, the Finns have surprised me with a more melodic, traditional black metal selection that possesses an altogether warmer disposition than I would have predicted. It's not necessarily that these elements were absent on the older material, and when I say 'warm' I don't mean this is friendly or happy sounding, but Tetrasomia functions due to a bedrock of studied melodicism that creates a rapturous contrast against the fundamental harshness of the black metal vocals and majestic if traditional flow of chords.

Speaking of vocals, they're quite effective here, with a ghastly mix of rapacious genre snarls and some blunter barks that complement one another rather well, occasionally using an even more grotesque, sustained guttural (as in "Monta Maailmaa Nähnyt") which resonates hauntingly over the more uplifting melody beneath. The guitar techniques here are nothing out of the ordinary for this style, but I think the way they mix the rhythm tracks to split them on the stereo/headphones is quite good, with a muddier tone conjoined to the knife-like tremolo picking that can often border on hypnosis (especially on the closer "I.N.R.I."). They're also unafraid to induce a folksy clean guitar (again, in "Monta...") or support a distorted progression with some cleaner picking so that the music roils with variety and atmosphere. Bass isn't too heavy in the mix, and it might be better if it were, but you can hear a few distinct grooves and swells that separate themselves from the tinnier guitar lines. Drums are clappy and thundering where appropriate, giving the production an even more 'live' and natural appeal to it that doesn't rely on a mechanized finish. All part and parcel to the emotional and philosophical wilderness of the compositions.

Basically, Tetrasomia is raw without becoming unassailable, reminiscent of certain records by Darkthrone or Horna where they also relied heavily upon dirtier heavy metal riffs and melodies, and no doubt some of the vocals recall Shatraug or Nocturno Culto. The note choices aren't exactly ingenious or immortally memorable, but instead textured and rustic and honest to a fault. Much of the pervasive 'evil' here is left strictly to the vocals. This is not obscenely polished music, and the little inequalities between guitar tracks, vocals and beats give it a real connection to the listener who opposes modernization, and values the core aesthetics of black or even folkish black metal. Mysticism is manifest strictly through attention to the note patterns and the suffering of the vocals, without a massive backdrop of ambient effects or synthesizers to guide one into the subconscious. Ultimately, I wouldn't say it was better or worse than the last EP, just a little different. A marginal reinvention, but Tetrasomia is a successful one, and Pantheon of Blood are obviously not interested in flogging a dead horse. Well worth hearing if you're into primal Finnish sound sculptures of Blood Red Fog, Vitsaus, Horna or Mortualia; or rustic, roots European black metal in general.

Verdict: Win [7.5/10]

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Pantheon of Blood - Consociatio Solis et Lunae EP (2011)

Finland is no stranger to the more primordial side of the black metal spectrum, with scores of its prominent artists helping keep alive (or dead, depending on your perspective) the grim savagery of the Old Guard of Scandinavia, newsprint-toned progenitors of evil that are still wildly worshiped to this day. Into this maelstrom of morbidity is thrust Pantheon of Blood, an act formed in 2009, which attempts, successfully I might add, to fuse the primal aesthetics of its parent genre into a broader mysticism that carries it well beyond the reach of mere, predictable derivation. All the while, the EP remains loyal to its blackened roots via the threat generated through its crude, grimy guitar tone and desperate, spacious desolation of the vocals, which are surprisingly manifest in more of a guttural timbre than the rasp or snarl you might normally expect.

As the title implies, Consociatio Solis et Lunae provides a metaphysical examination of the lush, classics concepts of Sun & Moon through the contrasted context of barbaric rhythms guitars, brutal vocals and existential, image-rich lyricism that champions a mythological perspective on the poles of light and darkness. A wonderfully packaged gatefold 7" through Glorious North Productions out of the UK, its complete with colorful paintings of a, surreal, almost psychedelic artwork that stirs both the mind and loins of the beholder. As for its production, the vocals of Boreas prove most resilient, haunted and echoing guttural drudgery that echoes as widely across the fuzz of the retching chords as it its titular celestial bodies span the solar system. Drums are tinny but supportive, bass seems almost an obsequious afterthought, but the real focus is on the domineering of its poignant prose and the callow churning of the guitars which eschew any real notion of complexity in order to promote an antediluvian hypnosis.

It's a little hard to compare Pantheon of Blood to any one of their peers, because where I might the generally slower riffing structures similar to something like Horna, Beherit, Warloghe or Baptism, the addition of the more ominous vocals and the implementation of cackling laughter and soaring, abyssal chants creates this refreshing level of hostility that breeds some distinction and individuality. Clean guitars are incorporated in the first track, "Overflowing Manifestation", while its more doom-laden companion "The Crimson Empress of Night" features a stronger melodic undercurrent and even a bluesy lead (courtesy of Shu-Ananda from the grisly Saturnian Mist and Charnel Winds). I found the latter mildly more impressive, with its slower build of harrowing guitars and the meter of the vocals to the skeleton of the rhythm, but both provided a corpulent, oft frightening tribute to their illuminated subjects.

If there could be any complaint leveled against the music, it's simply that the structure of the guitars doesn't quite match the creative expanse and atmosphere of the vocals or the chants. There is little subtlety or nuance, just a slough of familiar texture and ideas that have manifest through hundreds if not thousands of similar recordings. That said, the dressing slathered upon them through the vocals of Boreas, and the incredibly vulgar mixdown of the music lends it a lot of character that its riffing architecture might otherwise have lacked. Pantheon of Blood broods and elevates with an effective, passionate carnage that will certainly suit fans of like-minded black metal acts, or even those enamored of the more cavernous climes of the current death metal retrospective. The excellent packaging and atmosphere of the music are worth experiencing, though I feel the Finns' music will be better suited to an extended, full-length evolution, with more substance explored through the guitars, and a deeper immersion conjured through a greater duration.

Verdict: Win [7.5/10] (memories of a thousand passed aeons)

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