Brown Jenkins
Angel Eyes

So here is Umesh’s second release of droning, one man black metal for Moribund, and while still retaining the undulating, icky undercurrent of the claustrophobic Dagonite, Angel Eyes sees more of a focus on sickly doomy riffs rather than ambience or mood, and the result while certainly oozing with tentacled horror and dread, is at times a bit repetitive.

That’s not to say its not effective -it is, especially at conveying down-tuned, cavernous, atonal, buzzing riffs that ooze like an open wound, but a lot of the ritualistic, scrawling, nails on rock, atmospheric creepiness has been replaced with a more direct emphasis on slimy, droning riffs layered with a continual staccato discordance and rarely used distorted vocals rather than palpable, oppresive moods. With all that in mind, the album is the musical equivalent of watching the mucus trail as it develops from some cephalopod or thick, repugnant slime drip down the interior of some fetid sewer-hardly exiting stuff and it can be incredibly boring barring the wrong mindset, but fascinating in an oddly hypnotic, sickening way if you were on psychotropic drugs or in some drug induced, horror filled paranoia. In such a state, tracks like “Like a Sword Through Worlds” and “Pale Conqueror Seven” could certainly effect your mental wellbeing. That being said, due to the overall same pace of the percussion, none of the tracks truly leap out or command your attention as they all meld into this sonic Lovecraftian horror (where Umesh continues to draw his inspiration) that has no real form, but is somehow fitting. Which I guess is actually the goal of Umesh, so mission accomplished in that regard.

Still, with the creepiest thing now being the cover art, not the music, Brown Jenkins has lost some of its otherworldy mystical appeal but still has some merit as far as loping, black tar paced, Cthulhu worshiping atonality.

[Visit the band's website]
Written by Erik T
June 9th, 2008

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