out this Friday: Infera Bruo (review by MMB)

Infera Bruo

Cerement

Prosthetic Records

Released on: 7 September 2018

1.Poison Waters 01:10

2.Shroud Enigma 07:02

3.Effigy of Reason 02:03

4.Endnotes 05:59

5.The Lunar Pass 07:35

6.Draped in Sky 08:24

7.Scorne 03:20

8.Temporial 04:13

total time 39:46

In the nine years that Infera Bruo has been active they have earned some strong reviews and a reputation for atmospheric extreme metal. In 2018 they have their third album. The Americans generally have been involved in New England bands, more or less. For example, Galen was in the abrasive, crusty hardcore band Trap Them, and Neutrino has done previous work with left-field extreme bands Pillory and Virulence.

Musically, a crucial piece of the puzzle for Infera Bruo music is the aura, and the means by which such aura is realized. The music, on the issue of genre, would be best approached as progressive extreme metal, coming from black metal and post-metal. The vocals are mostly raspy and shrieking, with the occasional melodic passage. It is not slow music per se, but there is a morose feel to it. There are a few additional background sounds; eerie noises here and there. The music is pregnant with introverted, inward-looking moods, and this is perhaps why listeners have often agreed to call it atmospheric black metal. It’s not catchy, it’s not happy, but it is approachable, even if it’s abstruse to a certain degree. The song “Endnotes” stands out, for it captures the best elements of the sound: the intensity, the melody and the melancholy; the tremolo picking; the guitar solo and the melodic singing is all done very well in the context of the band’s style.

Unfortunately, this particular album is weakened largely by the overdoing of the music-less segments that take up more than seven of the nearly 40 minutes. For instance, the third track is two minutes of non-music, and it comes on very soon, after only one song of music because there is a one-minute of music-less introduction. The next three tracks are music, and the fourth one, “Scorne,” is a fast, fun black metal quickie, but seems rushed and incomplete. The last track is four minutes of no-music sound vibes.

This album comes after three years since the previous one In Conjuration, a very balanced album that is substantially better constructed in form and in flow than this one. The new songs themselves generally have plenty of Infera Bruo personality, but the non-music could have been eliminated for some 33 minutes of music that would have come across less interrupted and less uneven.

inferabruo.bandcamp.com/album/cerement

facebook.com/InferaBruo