"Liquid Magma"

I’m just going to face the facts: I suck at reviewing drone. But I don’t want that to stop the genre from having its rightful place among its more accessible peers. In any case, Mortem Obire is a drone and ambient project based out of New York. And man, is it some dark stuff. While my last drone outing took us to the most isolated reaches of space, Lux. evokes visions of obsidian and magma. The hum of distant distortion and rumbling bass are a cross between jet engines inside a hangar and calls from a demonic void. Or maybe just Hypnotoad.

Ever seen Inception? For those who don’t know, that now instantly-recognizable, blaring noise throughout the movie and in all of the trailers is actually a slowed down version of the classical song they are using as a trigger. This trick was used to further emphasize the change in time that occurs between various levels of the dream. Why am I talking about this? Well in a strange way, “Bringer” sounds like Pink Floyd’s “Time” (or at least the intro) as heard from DiCaprio’s limbo. A song about the passing of years and aging played at a snails pace? How poignant.

Of course, I doubt this was purposeful, but it still serves as a great descriptor of both sound and tone of this album. “Denier” is decidedly a bit lighter in aesthetic. Gentle strings and a somewhat loftier chord (can we even call it that?) structure are more reminiscent of this year’s popular doom release, Monotony Fields. “Earthshaker” more or less follows suit, but with the jarring introduction of drums. They aren’t aggressive in the least, but I was so wrapped up in the vortex of the music that I hadn’t even noticed they weren’t there until they were. That’s great songwriting.

Well hey, I guess this one actually turned out alright. But more importantly, this was a very positive listening experience for me. The songs are long and, well...drony, but the way in which the sounds are implemented along with the sparing use of strings and drums elevated this into something I found to be quite worthwhile. Check it out for yourself and know that these 60+ minutes of music are only $3.