Vertebra Atlantis - A Dialogue with the Eeriest Sublime
A chaotic trek across a phrenic tundra
The Italian blackened death outfit return for their second release in a chaotic haze of overbearing riffs punctuated by powerful grooves, further cementing I, Voidhanger’s leading position in curating some of the best experimental black metal the Mediterranean has to offer.
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Babar Moghal, the Pakistani painter behind the cover, has asserted himself only recently as a spectacular creator of album artwork. Currently, he has four metal albums under his belt, three of which are for I, Voidhanger. I have no doubt in my mind why he was sought out when holding up his work alongside those of other bands on the Italian label’s roster. Delivering fantastic cosmic horror, he fits perfectly alongside I, Voidhanger’s chosen of his contemporaries.
Adorning the albums cover is a towering crystalline castle, its softened edges invoking a feeling of peering a great distance through icy haze. A lonely wanderer wades across a cerulean plain towards the towering monolith, setting one up for a journey through a frozen hellscape. In a Tolkienesque fashion, ruins lay along the trek, giving the idea that maybe this dead world once harbored life, but no longer. We are only seeing what remains.
Upon taking in the cover art, an instant question is begged: does it match the sound? Stepping forward with such a clear statement of cosmic horror mixed with fantasy elements, it would feel quite out of place to not follow-up on it audibly.
Boy, oh boy - does it match the sound indeed.
Upon diving into the lyrics, it becomes evident that this is a journey through the abstract, not a tale of adventure to be taken literally. However, it is a journey nonetheless. The ice castle of the cover art even finds a direct reference in the second track, Frostpalace Gloaming Respite:
Here I stand
An imposing crystal palace
Among its mazes I wander
Splendid, frigid icy as frost
The journey the hero of the album is embarking on is conveyed even more clearly via the musicianship. It’s not uncommon for blackened death metal to keep a relentless pace, pushing continuous blast beats, tremolo power chords, and visceral screams in a overbearing wall of sound. On the other side of the spectrum, there’s a strong tendency for blackened death to veer permanently into the realm of melodic death metal, not unlike the trajectories of Dissection or Necrophobic. Vertebra Atlantis expertly slides across this spectrum in a balanced back-and-forth that brings you along for the journey that the protagonist is taking through an icy dreamscape.
As the phrenic wanderer proceeds through the chaos of their mind, it becomes clear that this a search for a hidden truth within. Every moment of chaos is a trial to be overcome; every moment of atmosphere is a obstacle surmounted, bringing with it a greater realization of the protagonist’s self. Moments of internal conflict are portrayed with powerful dissonance and chaotic riffing, slowly moving into grooves overlaid with atmospheric riffs. This dichotomy of death metal paints a picture of the wanderer being overwhelmed at times, only to overcome and ride the wave of internal power found within these trials. Wielding the satisfaction of a catchy riff as symbolic for the protagonist’s own moments of clarity is a very clever use of death metal clichés.
Eventually, the continuous sonic whiplash prevalent in the first two-thirds of the album subsides. It’s at this point the lyrics shift towards conveying an inner peace that has finally been found deep within the recesses of the wanderer’s mind. Where there were overbearing guitar riffs before, melodic fretwork appears instead. Classical instrumentation makes an appearance later in the penultimate track, Desperately Ablaze, From The Lowest Lair, as a flute played in a bard-like fashion invokes the heroic tones of medieval or epic black metal. With this more adventurous sound, an indication is made of a newfound power to be wielded towards the certain completion of the wanderer’s quest.
The closing lines of the album, delivered via strong clean vocals typical of melodic death, indeed indicate a close to the tumultuous journey:
And here I glimpse a stone
Inscribed with two worlds
I'm wide awake inside
The dreaming mind of a lonely god screened in a dark chamber
...And it's blissful
But it doesn't feel like home
This final meditation leaves off on an unsettling note at an oxymoronic place of simultaneously finding peace and discomfort. The sheer mental exercise of such a notion perfectly caps off the protagonist’s quest for forbidden wisdom. It can be found, but only upon adopting a new cursed state of existence: the Eeriest Sublime.
I don't usually go for death, but damn I loved this album's journey. You're spot on with the flutes- it feels like earning the master sword and embracing the hero that was inside all along. All that purpose and the exciting buildup before it makes the ending especially bittersweet. This was beautifully crafted.