ITP REVIEW: ESOTERIC : THE MANIACAL VALE

BAND: ESOTERIC (UK) GENRE-FUNERAL DOOM RECORD LABEL-SEASON OF MIST RELEASE DATE: 6/16/08

PREVIOUS RELEASES (CATALOG):The Maniacal Vale (2008-Season Of Mist), Subconscious Dissolution into the Continuum (2004-Season Of Mist),Metamorphogenesis (1999-EIBON)The Pernicious Enigma (1997-Aesthetic Death records), Epistomological Despondency (1994 Aesthetic Death), Esoteric Emotions - The Death of Ignorance (DEMO-1993)

BEST RELEASE (s): SUBCONSCIOUS DISSOLUTION INTO THE CONTINUUM (2004), METAMORPHOGENESIS (1999), THE MANIACAL VALE (2008)


ESOTERIC (UK) "THE MANIACAL VALE"
TRACKLISTING (The Maniacal Vale:) CD 1

1. Circle
2. Beneath This Face
3. Quickening
4. Caucus of Mind

Disc 2

5. Silence
6. The Order of Destiny
7. Ignotum Per Ignotius


ITP RATING: ****
PRODUCTION: **** 1/2
SONGWRITING: *** 1/2
PERFORMANCE: ****

"What life, I've got no life, I'm in the dark here, you understand, I'm in the dark!" ESOTERIC-"Allegiance"-From The Pernicious Enigma

I've had friends whom have tried to turn me on to ESOTERIC's awesome, atmospheric funeral doom for years now, with my "I'll get around to it" response. I just happened to be tuned into to local college radio station (WVKR in Poughkeepsie, NY four years ago, a rarity that ESOTERIC get airplay with such long, epic, atmospheric tunes) as an enterprising DJ played a track from ESOTERIC's "Subconscious Dissolution into the Continuum". ESOTERIC segued perfectly into THERGOTHON, blew my mind, and changed my life. ESOTERIC are a unique funeral doom band, and perhaps a band that deserves my rabid fan worship as this band made me feel SOMETHING in their bleak, pathological, psychedelic soundscapes of human despondency and decay. If not uncomfortable at first, ESOTERIC (specifically within previous releases) are unsettling, but beautiful in dark introspection.

Combining brutal, funeral doom, with ambient drone/noise, beautiful wandering guitar solos, reverb effects, DENSE production, with growled and screamed vocals, ESOTERIC lay waste to bands like OPETH and MY DYING BRIDE, making them sound vanilla in comparison. ESOTERIC experiment with ungodly sound textures to create a mesmerizing and SUFFOCATING wall of sound that would devastate AND captivate even the most seasoned, brutal extreme metal listeners.

ESOTERIC, an extreme funeral doom band from England had the freakiest musical effect on me. My eyes watered up and I swear the serotonin levels in my brain dropped, and I honestly felt the apocalypse was going to happen, as I almost had a panic attack. With gritted teeth I listened, as if I were sinking under water with no life jacket as after the end of their epic song, I feared nothing. I feared not the end of the world or humanity.

ESOTERIC are the the darkest recesses of your mind, the soundtrack to a post 9/11 apocalyptic society, as if you watched a tornado, in utter horror and trauma ravage your town.

A fair musical comparison to ESOTERIC? Think NEUROSIS vs. THERGOTHON. However, ESOTERIC are more brutal, with down tuned brutality and very moderate use of beautiful synths to balance out the slow, and I mean slow, plodding repetitive riffs. ESOTERIC conjure moments of psychedelic, hallucinogenic psychosis, brutality and utter beauty.

Here we have another epic ESOTERIC (2 CD) release, "The Maniacal Vale", and this is alot to digest.

ESOTERIC's latest release seems more melodic than the bands previous offerings.."The Maniacal Vale" is slightly more varied in it's approach, less brutal, more progressive and the psychedelic moments are more ambient, as if the sun is rising above humanities desolate downfall.

The Maniacal Vale opens unassumingly enough with the epic 20:45 track "Circle" with it's twangy guitar picked riff, soaked in reverb guitar effects conjuring images of old western movies. Repetitive to the point of mesmerizing the listener, this is just the beginning. Eight minutes into "Circle" the song morphs into a challenge of dynamics with acute use of Chandlers death and scream vocals.

ESOTERIC's main man/growler Greg Chandler has to be one of premier vocalists in this obscure sub genre (funeral doom) employing intense growls with frightening screams.
One, two and three of a few synth chords as "Beneath This Face" proves itself to be ESOTERIC's best tune on "The Maniacal Vale" with it's morphis of awesome, swirling guitar solos, and effects. Four minutes into "Beneath this Face" the song takes a dive of again dynamics at a quicker mid pace, then the floor drops into plodding funeral doom seven minutes into the song. "BTF" gets dramatic 9:00 into the song with a chugging almost orchestral riff.

"Quickening" may well be ESOTERIC's most beautiful song this side of "Blood of the Eyes". An ambient synth riff crawls out of a fox hole at a snails pace as 3:40 into the tune, the rest of the band draws into the riff for a beautiful, anthem of depression, spiced with light keyboards, and great, sloow, chord progressions.

"Caucus of the Mind" brings a more varied approach to ESOTERIC material, old school mid paced death metal.At 2:30 into "Caucus", the song drops into a slow funeral doom pace, hammering your coffin closed, one nail at a time.

"Silence" with it's lightly picked guitar progresses into the most simple but REGAL, and dramatic guitar riffs (4:39). If these riffs weren't so repetitive, perhaps the effect would be more intense.

"The Order of Destiny" is a more varied example of ESOTERIC's arsenal. "The Order Of Destiny", integrates melodic prog/rock elements with good solos, repetitive riffs, and plodding, brutal funeral doom.

The Maniacal Vale closes with the 22:42 "Ignotum Per Ignotius". Light guitar picking, backed with Chandlers unholy background growls, segued nicely into prog/rock guitar leads, as this song builds on lighter instrumental moments,..UNTILL 6:40 minutes into the song when "Ignotum" expands into familiar funeral doom territory, with (9:42) a loud/ heavier dynamic.

As always, when bands write long 12 to 20 minute songs, it easy to fall into the trap of repetitiveness or pretension, which would essence make the songs boring.The great bands KNOW how to change riffs, structures, pace and time signatures to make it interesting, therefore when one listens to ESOTERIC the listener does not FEEL they are listening to a long song.

While it's obvious that ESOTERIC are adding progressive elements and are more varied in their approach on the "Maniacal Vale", some of the riffs are too repetitive for my taste, making the CD lag in parts. However, "Beneath This Face", "Silence" and "Quickening" are worth the price of the CD alone from funeral doom pioneers ESOTERIC. While I prefer much of ESOTERIC's back catalog for their atmosphere of apocalyptic dread, depression and beauty, "The Maniacal Vale" is worthy in ESOTERIC's catalog. However, It is suggested that fans or newcomers to ESOTERIC go backwards and listen to the bands previous releases, turn out the lights, light a candle surrounded by mirrors, and let the music take you where it may, and confront those..emotions..........
Now look at your self in the mirror......... Yes, ESOTERIC are the soundtrack to this pending apocalypse, and in our misery and desolate isolation, we're enjoying the funeral.

ITP RATING: ****
PRODUCTION: **** 1/2
SONGWRITING: *** 1/2
PERFORMANCE: ****

BAND REFERENCE POINT: Fans of THERGOTHON, NEUROSIS, WORSHIP, SKEPTICISM, COLLOSEUM, DISEMBOWELMENT, AHAB, SUNN 0))), UNHOLY
(YES! in my top 10 of 2008)
Thanks-Stay Metal, Stay Brutal -l- \m/