Chuck Schuldiner Project

Monday, February 3, 2020

Velnias - Scion Of Aether


Eisenwald routinely cranks out some of the best black metal in the game. This latest offering, Velnias's Scion Of Aether only seems to confirm this, as it is one of their strongest releases to date. This is one of those beautifully produced black metal records that has some very busy compositions that demand multiple listens to really pull apart. There is just so much going on here between the soaring guitars and truly excellent drumming that even to categorize this release as merely black metal is probably an understatement.

Even early on the record proves that Velnias have the chops to set themselves apart. The acrobatic guitar playing on Pariah Of The Infinite is exciting and unique. Meanwhile the drumming is straight up fantastic, sitting perfectly in the mix with a nice ensemble of unique fills padding everything out. The vocals are wonderfully executed, certainly not a focal point for the band but add yet another layer to a sound that is jazzy, ambitious and filled wit hthe drive to keep the band truly different and interesting. It makes for a record that is worth listening too multiple times just because there's so much going on.

This all being said at times Scion Of Aether feels a bit overambitious. Some of these tracks drag. while yes it's cool that the band has all these chops at times it feels like the guitar noodling is just there for the sake of noodling. The lack of forward momentum some of these songs suffer from is really disappointing when you see just how good Velnias can be when they are at the top of their game. There is a lot too dig into here and if you want brainy black metal then Scion Of Aether is definitely worth your time. 

Find them on Facebook!
https://www.facebook.com/VelniasCult/

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