Over the years, Cult of Luna have carved out a formidable reputation for the creation of dark atmospheric metal music. In 2003, I saw them play in Brighton alongside, bizarrely, Dillinger Escape Plan. Barely visible through the fog of dry ice, the set was so apocalyptic that if an announcement had been made that the world was about to end, it would have been believable. I have always earmarked “Further”, the last track of the same year’s “The Beyond” album, as the music to play at my funeral. It is appropriate, crushing and definitive. In contrast to the timelessness of some of their tracks, there have been developments in Cult of Luna’s musical output as you might expect. The trudging hopelessness has opened out over the years, while always seeming suitable for a film soundtrack – a very dark film, mind. By the fifth and previous album “EternalKingdom” (2008), the big chords had been watered down in the interests of following a story line. For me that was an experiment too far. I didn’t find “Eternal Kingdom” as interesting as its predecessors.
“Vertikal” has some of the ingredients of all the previous works. We’re definitely on another planet. Progress is patient as ever, but instead of plunging into outright doom, it is again more expansive, allowing different and interesting shapes to form. After an initial apocalyptic heartbeat, we’re off into a 10 minute chunk entitled “I: The Weapon”. Hypnotic progressions mix with insurmountable sadness. With Cult of Luna, there’s no quick fix. Like systemic medication, it’s about absorption. There is silence and then comes “Vicarious Redemption”, this time a 19 minute slab. The start is like waiting for the end. There is a tapping beat and a minimalist chord. Slow, this like “old school” Cult of Luna. Ever depressing and never in danger of being rushed, “Vicarious Redemption” plods on gloomily. It is persistent but unobtrusive. The only colour that can be perceived is black. The build-up is gradual. The sounds are not of the natural world. I have heard this before. It’s all familiar as the song, or should we call it the “mood”, cranks up atmospherically. I found it was getting a bit staid but then comes a strange oompah rhythm to match the growling and overall constancy. Unlike “I: The Weapon” before it, there’s nothing new here in the world of the Luna Cult. As it floated off into a strange sort of progressive doom, I found that I’d lost the thread. “The Sweep” then starts like something between a Kraftwerk track and a sci-fi film. This was more promising. The screaming has context as we find ourselves in the middle of an electro-industrial snowstorm. It’s just a passing storm as we march into “Synchronicity”. I thought I heard the whistle of an engine, as this dark monolith sounds as if it could be associated with a drama series. The scene expands but the military advance continues. I heard metallic sounds. The factory is in full production. The ants march on – but hang on, isn’t that another song by someone else?
Cult of Luna specialise in distance. Their music is not near and can seem far away. Sometimes there’s an explosion. It’s always the drums that set the sinister tone as they do on “Mute Departure”. In typical fashion, lingering sounds can be heard in the background as the duo of percussionists patter out their deep and patient patterns. The vocalist roars as the deep thunder emerges. Ambient gloom dominates, mixing in our mind with shadowy silhouettes appearing through the clouds and harsh blackness. All the time the beat is constant and pungent. Cult of Luna bring obscurity to the foreground. As we think it has all faded away, there’s a renaissance in the form of a short blast. I didn’t get the point of that. After a quick nerve attack using early Kraftwerk-sounding technology, “In Awe Of” starts to build up purposefully. It has classic symptoms but as a Cult of Luna track the structure is re-worked and for all the melancholic gloom hanging in the air, there’s life and energy. Distorted sound waves create a potential nightmare out there in the planets. From this soundscape a beautiful pattern appears, and driven on by imperious drumming and guitar work, one of the most inventive and compelling rhythms on the album emerges. “In Awe of” is appropriately enough for its title, exhilarating. The familiar silence at the end of the track allows us to absorb the experience, then a constant drone stands behind Cult of Luna’s ode to an eastern chant. The guitar fuzzily knocks out deliberate monotone tedium. “Passing Through” explores the depth of sound in an unconventional fashion. Above all it is hypnotic, and gives the album a mystical quality to end with.
“Vertikal” can be predictable, especially to anyone who knows the band’s work. This style lends itself to that. It’s still a very good album and far more than just a scary soundtrack. I’m glad that Cult of Luna have returned to a more industrialised state. “Vertikal” is mechanical, expansive, dark and moody, but with interesting touches of originality and forays into new areas to heighten the mood and interest. As always, theirs is a world worth exploring, indulging in, and to quote one of the album’s track titles, one to be in awe of.
(8/10 Andrew Doherty)
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