"Listen to me!" são as primeiras palavras que ecoam em "I, Rodent", após a intro desconcertante e iniciática que é "Processional: Drudging The Mire". E, de facto, a partir deste momento impossível não estarmos atentos à voz de Mandy VKS Cattleprod (criadora do artwork para bandas como os Mournful Congregation, Stone Wings ou Lycanthia), que baloiça entre o doce canto fúnebre e o grito demoníaco, inserido num conjunto de temas extremamente bem sacados, homogéneos, enquadráveis num funeral doom que ao mesmo tempo nos soa bem negro e angélico ao qual se adicionam ocasionais espasmos avantgarde, tudo bem assente nas omnipresentes teclas que constituem a base deste trabalho. As guitarras ocupam um lugar secundário, quase de mero apoio nas principais linhas que constituem os oito temas deste segundo longa-duração do projecto desta australiana. Tudo isto é suportado no trabalho de Neil Dyer, no seu drumkit, que reforça a toada de miserabilidade que se ouve ao longo destes 72 minutos.
A primeira metade do álbum reserva os melhores temas, evidenciando a evolução que o projecto sofreu desde a estreia homónima, em 2008, explorando um pouco melhor as atmosferas que este género de música pode proporcionar - caso de "World", um tema nitidamente ambient -, ou então o já referido "I, Rodent" ou "Faceless", que pela sua hipnótica e doentia força nos vão ficando a martelar na cabeça. Os últimos três temas, não contando com "Berceuse - Slow Immersion" que mais não é do que um epílogo desta tormenta, apresentam-se bastante longos, em média rondando os doze minutos, e constituem o seguimento dos temas citados, onde a qualidade não baixa de forma assinalável, existe coesão e sem fillers, acabando por "Drudging The Mire" ser um todo sem partes indissociáveis e define com maior nitidez, confirma e cristaliza o som MurkRat, projecto este saído da tortuosa mente de Mandy, que assume a voz, guitarras, baixo e teclas neste trabalho acima da média, e que nos chega pela mão da britânica Aesthetic Death.
Num ano em que ainda são muito poucos os trabalhos que nos deixaram ficar realmente colados à cadeira, onde tem imperado a mediania, estamos em crer que da Austrália chegou uma das melhores propostas neste segmento musical e, esperamos, seja o mote para uma segunda metade de 2011 de maior qualidade. Listen to her! (17.2/20)
English:
"Listen to me!" are the first words that echo in "I, Rodent", after the disconcerting and annoying intro that is "Processional: Drudging The Mire". And, in fact, from this moment it is not possible not to be attentive to Mandy VKS Cattleprod’s voice (who created the artwork for bands like Mournful Congregation, Stone Wings or Lycanthia), that bounces between the sweet funeral chant and the devilish scream, inserted in a set of extremely quite withdrawn songs, homogeneous, fitting in a funeral doom sound that at the same time strikes us quite black and angelically to which occasional spasms are added of avant-garde music, completely well suit the omnipresent keys that constitute the basis of this work. The guitars occupy a secondary place, almost of mere support in the principal lines of the eight black gifts that constitute this long-duration from the project of this Australian. All of this is supported in the work of Neil Dyer, in his drumkit, which reinforces the melody of misery that is heard along these 72 minutes.
The first half of the album reserves the best songs, showing up the evolution the project suffered from the homonymic first record, in 2008, exploring much better the atmospheres that this type of music can provide - case of "World", clearly ambient-, or then the already above-mentioned one "I, Rodent" or "Faceless", with its hypnotic and unhealthy necessity in going on and on around our head. The last three moments, not counting "Berceuse - Slow Immersion", an epilogue of this quite long storm, on average patrolling twelve minutes, and they constitute the continuation of the quoted songs, where the quality does not go down, there is cohesion without fillers, making this " Drudging The Mire " an all without parts left behind and defines with bigger clarity, it confirms and crystallizes the MurkRat sound, this project gone out from Mandy's winding mind, which assumes the voice, guitars, bass and keys in this work above the average, and that in the reprimand for the hand of the Briton Aesthetic Death.
In a year which there are still very little records that let us be really glued to the chair, where the median quality has been ruling, we are in believing what of the Australia brought near one of the best proposals in this musical segment and, wait, be the motto for a second half of 2011 of bigger quality. Listen you it her! (17.2/20)
The first half of the album reserves the best songs, showing up the evolution the project suffered from the homonymic first record, in 2008, exploring much better the atmospheres that this type of music can provide - case of "World", clearly ambient-, or then the already above-mentioned one "I, Rodent" or "Faceless", with its hypnotic and unhealthy necessity in going on and on around our head. The last three moments, not counting "Berceuse - Slow Immersion", an epilogue of this quite long storm, on average patrolling twelve minutes, and they constitute the continuation of the quoted songs, where the quality does not go down, there is cohesion without fillers, making this " Drudging The Mire " an all without parts left behind and defines with bigger clarity, it confirms and crystallizes the MurkRat sound, this project gone out from Mandy's winding mind, which assumes the voice, guitars, bass and keys in this work above the average, and that in the reprimand for the hand of the Briton Aesthetic Death.
In a year which there are still very little records that let us be really glued to the chair, where the median quality has been ruling, we are in believing what of the Australia brought near one of the best proposals in this musical segment and, wait, be the motto for a second half of 2011 of bigger quality. Listen you it her! (17.2/20)