Style: Progressive Black Metal, IDM, Folk (mixed vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Enslaved, Opeth, Igorrr, White Ward
Review by: Zach
Country: US-OH
Release date: 26 May, 2023
Last year, I reviewed an absolute disasterpiece of an album. The great Simulacra incident left a permanent stain on The Subway as a whole, and me as a person. The one-hour, forty-minute musical equivalent of a runny shit is quite possibly one of the worst things I’ve ever had to sit through. It made me wary (warier than I already am) of trying an album over an hour and change. So, when I took the rec of a random comment found on a rival blog (you can probably guess who), I decided to check them out. Only to find Amun’s second album is a whole nine minutes longer than Simulacra’s. The trepidation only set in further when I saw the album was a not so measly six songs long.
I did some digging, and found that Amun are relatively local, only two hours away in Columbus, Ohio. I found out they supported IATT in a show that I missed in April, and I unfortunately found that they split up after the release of this album. The choice of the word “unfortunately” may give away what I think of this album already. Short version: this is the anti-Simulacra that cruel fate hid from me for just a little too long. However, much like Spectra itself, let’s get into the lengthier version.
I started the twenty-minute opener, ‘The Father’s Foundation’, expecting generic, reverb-laden atmoblack that wouldn’t hold my attention, and found myself transfixed for the whole runtime. The vocals are up front, atypical of black metal in general, and they’re immediately understandable. The song has all kinds of swells and dips as I expect of an epic of this size, and each one sent chills down my spine. Think White Ward, with a dash of Igorrr-esque electronic insanity thrown in.
But that was only twenty minutes of this behemoth of an album. One song is great, sure, but how do the others stack up? The answer is, well, surprisingly good. ‘Forevermore and Always’ slows the pace and ‘Watch for Ghosts’ starts as symphonic black metal and ends with just as much grandiosity as it began with. The songs, again, surprisingly, never get boring. There’s always some kind of riff or fantastic drum beat to latch onto. Even the bass doesn’t get neglected in the admittedly shoddy production job.
The title track is what truly elevates this album for me. Starting like something from a later Ulver record, Joseph Snodgrass’s chant-like clean vocals build with the addition of drums. The song masterfully crescendos back into black metal at the four minute mark in a way that makes you hold your breath and wait for the drop.
In a similar way to Opeth, when the songs feel ready for a transition, it comes just as I expected it to. The riffs feel like they never stay too long, and Amun makes sure to squeeze every bit of life out of the sections they write before moving onto the next. It’s what keeps them from being boring, and the sheer talent of every musician in this band is on display at some point during these songs.
I’ve been singing this album’s praises a lot, and all things considered, this is a really good album. Especially for such a small band. However, the production, frankly, sucks. I can hear you say now, “ITS BLACK METAL, JACKASS”. Dodheimsgard came out this year, and has immaculate production, so quite frankly, the only thing that can excuse this is DHG have been at it a lot longer than Amun had. Some parts, especially with the keyboards and noise sections, can be harsh on the ears, which can make Spectra an exhausting listen with its runtime.
And boy howdy does this album have a runtime. This thing is fucking massive. If the production weren’t an issue, I wouldn’t see the runtime as much of a problem as it is. That being said, Amun knew how to write a song, and knew how to write an epic that holds my attention. Now onto the part of my review that I was dreading, because I’ve gone back and forth on a score about twelve times now.
This is probably the most difficult score I’ve given. I would love to slap a 10 on this album, I really would. This has the makings of a 10 in it, and with a third album that will never come, I can only settle on the score I give now. Amun were a special kind of band that doesn’t come around too often that I didn’t know about until they were gone. This album is beautiful and anxiety-inducing all at the same time, but it has blemishes that cannot be ignored. However, Amun should feel proud of this. They’ve left a lasting mark on some random guy in Ohio, and I wish them all success on their next musical endeavors.
Recommended tracks: The Father’s Foundation, Spectra and Obsession
You may also like: Pensées Nocturnes, IER, Tomarum, Aquilus,
Final verdict: 8/10
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Instagram | Metal-Archives Page
Label: Independent
Amun is:
– Joseph Neal Snodgrass (Vocals, guitar, bass)
– CJ Yacoub (Drums, vocals)
– Simon James (Electronics, soundscapes, noise)
– Aidan Robinson (Guitars, vocals)
– Johnathan Nunn (Guitars, vocals)
0 Comments