Swiss black metal band Aara has maintained a steady pace since their formation in 2018, putting out two full lengths and an EP less than a year apart. Their debut So fallen alle Tempel gained quite a bit of attention from the metal underground for good reason, as it came out of the gate with the type of soaring and dense atmosphere that some bands spent years trying to achieve and infused it with some classical music tendencies. While one might initially be worried with such a quick turnaround between material, follow-up En Ergô Einai demonstrates the band has already made significant changes and pushed their sound outwards towards warmer, fuller instrumentation. If you hadn’t yet experienced what Aara had to offer before, this album should serve as a great jumping in point and showcases their knack for writing concise and engaging black metal.
En Ergô Einai opens with its longest track, and rather than launching directly into the harsh blasting and soaring melodies “Arkanum” instead begins with softer acoustic guitar work courtesy of Vindsval from Blut Aus Nord. This approach works to draw you in from the start as the way each note hovers over the recording creates a dark yet inviting tone, moving the listener forward until the blasting kicks in around the two-minute mark. From here the band rarely lets up for the remainder of the five-track album, opting to keep the tempos towards the faster side as they send a flurry of ideas at you in quick succession while still tying everything together in a way that makes it feel like each song has a narrative of its own. While So fallen alle Tempel had this dark and twisted sound that brought Nightbringer to mind at times, the sound here is a bit brighter and there’s a feeling of grandeur breaking through the darker base. It creates an interesting dynamic, as Aara is still capable of being destructive when they double down on the traditional black elements, but the fullness of the instrumentation and just how high the melodies peak creates a mystical and haunting atmosphere. Compared to some of the others out there that stretch out ideas in the name of epic climaxes Aara manages to get there in a much shorter amount of time and keeps things concise, which allows the songs to flow naturally without losing too much momentum and there are enough shifts to keep listeners engaged. In part this seems to be due to the addition of guest drummer J., who keeps the drums pummeling the listener while also regularly switching up the fills. Admittedly even with the concise nature of the songwriting I did find that by the end a few of the approaches resulted in some similar sounding passages, but when the instrumentation draws you in this much that isn’t as a big of an issue.
One of the harshest elements of En Ergô Einai is the vocal work, as Fluss has one of those shrill screams that towers over the recording and sounds like it’s ripping pieces out of your skin with each word. The Gregorian chanting from the debut is still utilized on “Aargesang (Aare II)” but for the most part the screams dominate here and Fluss sounds even more intense this time around, as though she’s shouting directly into the void with as much power as she can conjure. Where the instrumentals swirl melodies around the listener and invite them in, the vocals serve as a reminder that Aara is just as focused on the destructive and chaotic nature of the genre as they weave an abrasive edge over every song.
In two years this duo has grown significantly, as while their debut showcased an understanding of atmospheric black metal and did it quite well this follow-up finds them moving more towards an identity of their own. Some of the ideas still blur together a bit, but the writing has some truly haunting melodies and even some playful transitions that will keep listeners coming back for more. It remains to be seen whether Aara will maintain this quick release pace or slow down a bit, but either way they’ve given us three high quality efforts and are still on an upward trajectory. En Ergô Einai is available from Debemur Morti Productions.
-Review by Chris Dahlberg
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