Style: trance, atmospheric black metal (harsh vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Kaatayra, Trhä, Sadness
Review by: Andy
Country: Brazil
Release date: 1 June, 2023
“Rhythm is everything” Caio Lemos asserts as a motto of sorts. While the man/forest spirit releases under several names–Bakt, Rasha, Kaatayra, Vauruvã, and Bríi–his annual high profile releases, coming as either Bríi or Kaatayra since 2020, have captured my heart each year, securing two albums of the year and one runner-up. On each album, rhythm has been a key factor for its success and uniqueness. Caio Lemos composes like the pulse of the Earth or the more gently percussive winds and waves. Só Quem Viu o Relâmpago à Sua Direita Sabe augmented the possibilities of black metal with purely acoustic expression, relying on the natural rhythmic percussiveness of guitar playing; Inpariquipe’s minimalist folkiness used rhythm to make the whole product a dreamy affair; Corpos Transparentes upped the ante by making every instrument a rhythm one of sorts, creating a layered tapestry of perfectly interacting beats. That stretch achieved a level of insurmountable greatness. However, I won’t be coy: Último Ancestral Comum, Caio’s first major main project full length since Corpos, eschews several of the qualities that made the previous albums so miraculous.
Every Caio release out there has had overt trance influence, but Último Ancestral Comum takes that up a notch. Lemos, who feels an overwhelming similarity between the nature of the blast beat and of the continuous kicks prevalent in black metal and electronica, respectively, explores that relationship. Lemos has balanced this delicate interplay, but in Último Ancestral Comum, as the styles mingle, the beats of one often become lost in the other. During the first few minutes of “Viajante Universal,”for instance, ambient trance beats pleasantly dominate until a sudden burst of blasts segue into a black metal section. Although the trance beat continues underneath as a simple throughline, the impact of both is lost. Other sections don’t quite feel like they belong like the strange throwback synth sound after the brief spoken intro to “Ecos de Imaginação.”
Holding this album back more than anything, though, is the intentionally muddled production. Intended to obfuscate the lines between the continuous kick and the blast beats, the production simply veils everything behind a drab fog. I swear I can hear Caio’s beautiful droning clean chants underneath the maelstrom in the black metal section of “Viajante Universal,” but they don’t come through as clearly as I’d expect or desire, especially for Caio’s ridiculously complex, layered songwriting style. Bríi sacrifices so much to bear this sound.
While I am severely underwhelmed with what I thought could potentially–potentially–dethrone the musical perfection of Ne Obliviscaris’ Exul for my album of the year, I still must applaud Lemos and Bríi. He remains uncompromisingly true to his vision, shrugging off mine–or anybody’s–expectations in favor of what he feels the need to create. And in typical Lemos fashion, flashes of his sheer musical brilliance still shine through the muddled production. The lead at 7:30 in “Viajante Universal” sounds like classic Caio in an appropriate way; the wobbly synth sound during the heaviest moments of “Ecos de Imaginação” is wonderfully unanticipated as is the transition to the marching riff at around 5:45 in the same song.
Heck, if this came before the other projects, I’d likely be enthused by what’s to come, but as it stands, this is Caio’s first significant swing and miss in his short, but prolific, career. I concluded my Corpos Transparentes review last year–still my highest rated album for the blog, mind you–with the line “I can’t wait to hear how the next release impossibly tops my expectations.” I admit that right now I’m looking a little silly, but I do believe that Caio Lemos will turn it around soon (or at least decide that good production is greater than bad production), but if he doesn’t, his legacy still includes three of the greatest black metal albums to ever be released.
Recommended tracks: Viajante Universal, Ecos de Imaginação
You may also like: Bakt, Déhà, Vauruvã, Cicada the Burrower, Rasha
Final verdict: 6/10
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Instagram
Label: independent
Bríi is:
– Caio Lemos (everything)
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