Reviews
Dcwebzine "Mysticism"
11/13/2009
Khors — Mysticism
Helg — Rhythm & Acoustic Guitars, Lead Vocals
Nort — Rhythm Guitars
Khorus — Bass & Whispers
Khaoth — Drums & Percussion
Saturious — Keyboards
Wortherax — Lead & Acoustic Guitars
Michael “Maiden” Smirnoff — Clear Voices & Whispers
Khors is a bit of an all-star project, containing a cross-section of pretty much the entire Ukrainian scene. As such, it should surprise no one that they play atmospheric pagan black metal. Still, there's plenty of room for diversity in that sub-genre and Khors is closer to doom metal and gothic rock than most of their peers. Reminding me most of Nokturnal Mortum's Twilightfall demo, Mysticism sounds at times gloomy, epic, mystic or nostalgic, but remains mostly upbeat with a smattering of rocking leads, lush keyboards, catchy rhythms and harmonies and snappy mid-paced drumming. Gruff and clean vocals, clean bass guitar and plenty of acoustic guitar round out the sound. Every instrument is played to perfection and the production is impeccable. It's practically redolent with mystical atmosphere.
Ukrainian pagan black metal is usually not the most ear-unfriendly metal around, but Khors' latest album takes that one step further by being so unutterably pleasant to listen to. Now, normally my grim self would balk at making any positive associations with metal that is this easily digestible and nice to hear, but Khors really manage to make emotionally resonant and meaningful sounding music. I won't even call this a guilty pleasure, because this is so amazingly well-crafted, honest and artistically significant that its general accessibility becomes a strength. You can keep listening to it over and over, which is made even easier by its somewhat regrettably short running time of 38 minutes. I want more of it! It's also nice to have something to bring along to friends or significant others who aren't into the extreme metal underground, but who'd appreciate softer metal like Moonspell.
Ukraine will remain a bastion of impressive and diverse folk tinged extreme metal if it can keep producing gems like this. Anyone who isn't put off by atmospheric keyboards and generally relaxed guitar-playing, or conversely occasional heavy riffing and harsh vocals, will probably find a lot to like in Mysticism, since it so expertly manages to balance accessibility with artistry.
Rating: 8.0
Helg — Rhythm & Acoustic Guitars, Lead Vocals
Nort — Rhythm Guitars
Khorus — Bass & Whispers
Khaoth — Drums & Percussion
Saturious — Keyboards
Wortherax — Lead & Acoustic Guitars
Michael “Maiden” Smirnoff — Clear Voices & Whispers
Khors is a bit of an all-star project, containing a cross-section of pretty much the entire Ukrainian scene. As such, it should surprise no one that they play atmospheric pagan black metal. Still, there's plenty of room for diversity in that sub-genre and Khors is closer to doom metal and gothic rock than most of their peers. Reminding me most of Nokturnal Mortum's Twilightfall demo, Mysticism sounds at times gloomy, epic, mystic or nostalgic, but remains mostly upbeat with a smattering of rocking leads, lush keyboards, catchy rhythms and harmonies and snappy mid-paced drumming. Gruff and clean vocals, clean bass guitar and plenty of acoustic guitar round out the sound. Every instrument is played to perfection and the production is impeccable. It's practically redolent with mystical atmosphere.
Ukrainian pagan black metal is usually not the most ear-unfriendly metal around, but Khors' latest album takes that one step further by being so unutterably pleasant to listen to. Now, normally my grim self would balk at making any positive associations with metal that is this easily digestible and nice to hear, but Khors really manage to make emotionally resonant and meaningful sounding music. I won't even call this a guilty pleasure, because this is so amazingly well-crafted, honest and artistically significant that its general accessibility becomes a strength. You can keep listening to it over and over, which is made even easier by its somewhat regrettably short running time of 38 minutes. I want more of it! It's also nice to have something to bring along to friends or significant others who aren't into the extreme metal underground, but who'd appreciate softer metal like Moonspell.
Ukraine will remain a bastion of impressive and diverse folk tinged extreme metal if it can keep producing gems like this. Anyone who isn't put off by atmospheric keyboards and generally relaxed guitar-playing, or conversely occasional heavy riffing and harsh vocals, will probably find a lot to like in Mysticism, since it so expertly manages to balance accessibility with artistry.
Rating: 8.0