Who could resist “seven tracks of classic black metal replenished by cold wave melancholy and depressive-catatonic doom metal”? On top of that Cién are from Poland. The description of these seven hefty tracks doesn’t do them justice. There are of course plenty of dark shadows and not much light, yet in the midst of all this intensity and deep undercurrents there’s often a galloping melody which makes you want to thunder alongside the horse of death which takes us to all sorts of places. The vocalist hisses and growls, yet the opener “Rebellion” is hooky. The trend is set.
A recurrent plus point of this album is the band’s ability to mix expansiveness with total intensity, and then make the skilful transition into gloomy and thoughtful passages. ”Betonowe Królestwo” has these qualities and manages to spread its wings and end in death or glory fashion, culminating in a grumbly bass and heartbeat. It’s black metal in the sense of the absence of hope, but stylistically it goes further as Cién explore places and worlds in a kind of progressive way. After brief respite, the fire is rekindled with the carefully controlled and compact “Lustfulness”. Juices flow like the blood pouring out of raw meat. It’s pungent, powerful and hard hitting, driving forward darkly, twisting and turning. What we have here are layers of darkness and technical virtuosity, somehow finding a melancholic pendulum at one point and always demonstrating this band’s creative imagination. “Lustfulness” was my favourite of all the tracks. We’re then taken on another exciting ride as “Slave of Life” kicks in.
The only disappointment of this album for me was “Unmarly Krzyk” whose furious assault lacked the subtlety and sophistication of its brutal counterparts. It’s proof that you miss something when it’s not there. Normal service is resumed with the title track. “Ecce Homo” is another carefully developed romp. It’s more measured than some as the picture is built up carefully. It draws us in and carries us along a wave of satisfyingly dark metal. There’s gloom in the air but at the same time the music is tangible and rides roughshod above the gloom before bursting forth into ferocious and fiery soundscapes. A calming passage like you’d get on an Opeth album leads us into “Silent March”. As ever it’s powerful, mixing black metal devastation with sophisticated patterns. The movement keeps taking us to new places but Cién have the ability to string diverse moods together and make it all sound natural and coherent. The progression is logical. “Silent March” gallops towards its close, stringing us along and making us wanting to hear more before going back into its shell.
“Ecce Homo” is impressive. Layers of dark metal atmospheres are interwoven and result in a series of transforming and fluent musical statements. I look forward to entering the world of Cién in the future.
(8/10 Andrew Doherty)
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