(written by Islander)
The maestro Paolo Girardi painted the stunning cover art for Unviâr’s forthcoming debut album Disglaç. As you can see, it’s out of the ordinary in Girardi’s vast catalogue of works — no monsters, no demons, no writhing horrors or glaring eyeballs, no visions of the world ending. Instead, it’s naturalistic and beautiful, though also ominous and haunting, rather than paranormal and nightmarish.
The artwork may raise a question in the minds of listeners about whether the music of this Italian black metal band, as reflected on Disglaç, is in line with the visuals. We have an early answer today, through our premiere of the album’s title song in advance of the record’s November 28 release by ATMF.
ATMF explains that the album’s concept “revolves around the complex yet unavoidable relationship between man and nature,” that the music was “born from a dark naturalistic romanticism,” and that “[t[he ancient voice of the land, the innate call of natural theophany, forms its universe.” That begins to explain the album’s cover art.
And then there’s the music itself. As manifested in the song “Disglaç“, which asks for nearly 10 minutes of your time, Unviâr create a dynamic and emotionally powerful experience, one that’s colossal in scope but also soft and poignant, both dazzling and daunting, a changing spiral of dark moods that’s completely immersive in its effects.
At the outset the drums vividly rumble and the music flows in vast, indigo waves of sound, pierced by wildly flickering fire-bright tones. The drumming is electrifying, and so are the lead-guitar ecstasies, but those dominating musical cascades are daunting and bleak.
Soon enough, Unviâr prove that they intend to lead listeners on a changing excursion (which they do from beginning to end). Those expansive waves suddenly vanish; glinting notes mysteriously reverberate; and bounding beats and a growling bass get their own hooks in a listener’s head. High above, gleaming tones swirl and wail, yearning and even hopeful in their mood.
The changes continue, revealing deep growls, inflamed howls, and a resurgence of the dark, expansive tremolo’d riffing, and then the drums explode in blasting, the riffing boils in pain as it frantically ripples, the bass (and the guitars) vividly throb, and the vocals go wild in torment, all caution thrown to the winds.
Near the song’s mid-point the band again recede from their ravishing spectacles, this time making room for acoustic instrumentation (and maybe an accordion?) that generates an ancient influence and a melancholy mood. But the ravishing extravagance of the song is never far away, and back it comes again (bringing to mind both Panopticon and Agalloch), engulfing the listener in extravagant audio panoramas and unhinged vocals.
The whirring riffage and those vocals are distressing to hear, like some combination of desperation and fury, all the while undergirded with fast-changing work by the rhythm section that’s viscerally captivating.
ATMF will release Disglaç on CD, vinyl LP, and digital formats, and they recommend it for fans of such bands as early Ulver, Drudkh, and Agalloch. Find pre-order info below, as well as a stream of the first advance song released from the album, “Ritîr“.
PRE-ORDER:
CD: https://metalodyssey.8merch.com/product/unviar-disglac-cd-pre-order/
LP: https://metalodyssey.8merch.com/product/unviar-disglac-lp-pre-order/
Digital: https://atmfsssdtp.bandcamp.com/album/disgla
UNVIÂR:
https://www.facebook.com/unviarband
https://unviar.bandcamp.com/