Derrière Nous La Lumière is the album from new project, Throane. Its unique sound is being compared to the likes of Godflesh, Neurosis, and Blut Aus Nord. The album is largely instrumental, with any vocals kept as merely another subtle addition to the mix. The resulting black metal pit of despair is the work of one man, Dehn Sora, graphic designer (Ulver, Blut Aus Nord) and musician behind Treha, Sektori, Sembler Deah, & Ovtrenoire. Clearly hanging around all this darkness has taken a toll on him.
How does one describe the very flames of hell? There's probably not much more I can add beyond Dante's Inferno, but I'll give it a shot. The production has a certain vastness to it, as if the recording space stretches into infinity. Each foreboding, doomy drum strike echoes into a vacuum of malaise. The guitars ring out in a layered, dissonant manner like Ulcerate in super slo-mo. Listening to "Aussi Féroces Que Nous Repentons" or any other part of this album is an act of masochistic emotional abuse.
The plodding hopelessness of the record's sound does an exquisite job of really gut-checking the listener every time the vocals do kick in. You may be minutes into an arrangement, just settling into the hypnotic, dark ambience. Then all of a sudden, a depraved wail...indecipherable whispers...chanting. Did I just hear that...or is this some sort of nightmare? Pinch me, but maybe not just yet. I'm just starting to get into it.
I'm not sure if I'm picking up some antisocial personality traits, but Throane had me hanging on to every second of these 30 minutes. Even as I listen to the album once more as I type, I get the sense that something is wrong with me; like I should be deeply disturbed or at least depressed by hearing it. But all I feel is numb. And there's a strange comfort in it; like I am hiding in a deep well where past traumas can't find me. Shadows pass through the light from above...it's safer to stay down here.
If you are into the depraved soundscapes of bands like Primitive Man or Gnaw Their Tongues, this is just one more stop on your descent into madness. The album is out now via the prestigious ranks of Debemur Morti Productions.