(written by Islander)
The Scream!
Despite the fact that black metal has warped in ways that never would have been foreseen by its young first-wave and second-wave progenitors, certain tropes still tend to define the genre in the minds of many bands and listeners. One of those is the screaming — the harsh, high-pitched, rasp-edged vocal volatility that has contributed to both the raw aggression and the supernatural aura of the genre.
What happens when there are no screams? And not just no screams, but reputedly no vocals of any kind, not even the kind of deathly gutturals and possessed wails (among many other vociferous manifestations) that have found their way into the genre?
Well, the answers vary among the small range of black metal projects, usually one-person formations, whose music is entirely instrumental. In the case of the Chilean project I Proélefsi, what happens is a range of experiences that include both atmospheric and avant-garde elements, drawing inspiration from, the likes of Emperor, Setherial, Abigor, and Limbonic Art, as well as Dark Ambient music.
You’ll discover the initial results of I Proélefsi‘s creative visions (near wordless but not entirely so) in the band’s self-titled demo that we’re about to premiere. But before getting to the music, we’d like to share what the band’s solo creator M. has to say about it:
The origin, the beginning of ancient knowledge, the power of the mind in close contact with the universe. Music is everything and Black Metal is one of its purest forms, like alchemy. It connects our spirit, conscience and wisdom seeking with nature and our surroundings. Is the vehicle like the Philosopher’s Stone, the central key of alchemy, that symbolizes perfection at its finest, illumination, and bliss. Join me on a journey set by the ancient ones: Mind, heart, music… I Proélefsi.
Delving a bit deeper into this debut EP, I Proélefsi also explains that it is made of five steps: “The void or starting point must be filled with strength, likewise, the strength must be contained, channeled through introspection and contemplation. Then, with the gathered energy, we must awaken and rise to open the doors to liberation together with our connection to the universe.”
The five tracks on the EP musically take these steps in the order described.
The sequence begins with “Κενότητα” (Kenótita, meaning “Emptiness”), a relatively brief but immediately attention-grabbing amalgam of strangely writhing and hard-hitting guitar work, deep droning tones, soaring synths, and bursts of percussive explosiveness. It creates an amalgam of moods too, moods both ominous and anxious, both surreal and daunting.
From there the music moves to “Δύναμη” (Dýnami, or “Strength”), a song marked by furious, hyper-fast drumming, expansive sweep, and electrifying guitars, but a song that also shifts into slower and more dismal frames marked by a guitar solo that grieves — followed by another solo that’s an eye-popping fret-burner. From there, the song does seem to gather strength. Its melody sounds defiant — but doesn’t completely lose its lining of sorrow.
The EP’s songs flow into each other, and the changes continue. As you might expect from its name, “Ενατένιση” (Enaténisi, or “Contemplation”) isn’t as exhilarating as the first two tracks. It’s more inner-dwelling, more dreamlike, but its ringing guitar melody is also soulfully distressing. There’s a prominent bass melody in the song too, as well as shining sonic radiations that become more blinding (and also distressing themselves), and a frantic solo.
You may think there are vocals in this song — not the first time on the EP when you might swear you can hear wordless voices rising — and there might be, though M.‘s facility in causing instrumental accents to mimic voices is one of the reasons why the near-absence of human vocals doesn’t leave a longing void in the songs.
“Ενέργεια” (Enérgeia, or “Energy”) comes next, and it builds the intensity of the preceding music’s distress, but also climbs to glory, through crazed guitar convulsions, a wildly swirling melody, and jet-fueled percussive turbulence.
None of the songs on the EP is very long — they really just function as segments of one long piece — but the closer “Απελευθέρωση” (Apelefthérosi or “Liberation”) is the longest (and most surreal) of them all. It’s almost languid, near celestial in its backdrop, and melodically exotic.
But it too features blazing lead-guitar work, forlorn piano keys, and something that sounds like the distorted abyssal growls of a monster (surely these really are vocals?), as well as the demented burbling of symphonic horns. It is a very strange kind of liberation, a very chilling kind of transcendence.
As a first strike, the EP on the whole is a fascinating and multi-faceted musical excursion, and we hope will be followed by further expeditions and experimentation from this Chilean project. It could clearly go in many different directions.
The self-titled I Proélefsi EP will be digitally released tomorrow (July 4th). M. was responsible for all the instruments, orchestral arrangements, programming, artwork, recording, mixing, and mastering.
PRE-ORDER:
https://iproelefsi.bandcamp.com/album/i-pro-lefsi