Aphotic
(Caligari Records)
42:10min
Two years ago, four guys met in São Paulo, Brazil, to form a unit. For themselves, they chose the pretty mysterious names R, G, A and V, for their band, they decided to go as JUPITERIAN. Up to now, they released an digital only EP called “Archaic” and another digital single called “Drag Me To My Grave". From the very beginning, JUPITERIAN were one of the slower bands on the planet. Thus it would be pretty simple to file their first full length “Aphotic” under: “Funeral Doom”. Of course, this is not the whole truth, since JUPITERIAN enriched their sound with elements of Doom Death, especially V’s vocals, and ingredients from the original Gothic Death of the early 1990s, at least as the few and far between melodies are concerned. This mix is heavy as fuck, pitchblack as the darkest night and more desolate than any cold and rainy day of fall. The atmosphere is the key to get into this Doom masterpiece. Once you’re absorbed by the cold black heaviness, you can’t escape. Be it the depressingly titled ‘Permanent Grey’ or the Funeral Gothic Doom epic ‘Daylight’, the dark vibes are inescapable. The unpredictable, ten minutes long ‘Proclamation’ is another monstrous tune that in some moments even reminds of FALL OF EFRAFA. In the end we find ‘Aphotic’, the title track, that even has the same quality as a lava stream running down a volcano: thick, devastating and vicious. But in the end, this one takes an unexpected turn into a sound that reminds of Post Rock with an irresistible guitar harmony. With such a great sound, “Aphotic” is dark heaven and sweet hell at the same time for Doomsters like me. It is no wonder that the tape version of the album is released by Caligari Records, who more and more turn out to be the finest label for bands in between Doom and Death. The tape release is strictly limited to 175 copies and features the single track ‘Drag Me To My Grave’ as a special extra track. And this Gothic Doom inspired tune is another song that’s pretty hard to resist. If you still dig good old fashioned tapes, get “Aphotic” at caligarirecords.bandcamp.com or www.caligarirecords.com. And for more info on JUPITERIAN, visit their Bandcamp site jupiterian.bandcamp.com, where you can listen to their first releases, or their place in Facebook: www.facebook.com/jupiteriandoom.
Thomas Meyer