Atramentus - Stygian



On the 21st of August, 20 Buck Spin is releasing the debut album 'Stygian' by extreme funeral doom band Atramentus. 




Tracklist:
1. Stygian I: From Tumultuous Heavens... (Descended Forth The Ceaseless Darkness)
2. Stygian II: In Ageless Slumber (As I Dream In The Doleful Embrace Of The Howling Winds)
3. Stygian III: Perennial Voyage (AcrossThe Perpetual Planes Of Crying Frost & Steel Eroding Blizzards)

Atramentus formed in 2012 by Phil Tougas the guitarist in death metal band Chthe'ilist and 'Stygian' is his epic tale of eternity, loss and memories. The word stygian means related to the river Styx, the river in Hades, over which Charon ferries the dead to the underworld according to Greek mythology and mythology plays a big part on this record. It tells the tale of an unnamed knight that makes a pact with the gods to grant him immortality. The knight witnesses the death of the sun and passes out. When he wakes up from a terrifying sleep plagued by sleep paralysis, he finds an empty earth, covered in ice. Every person he ever loved is gone. He is totally utterly alone. 

Written seven to eight years ago in a dark period, the band was dormant for a while. Then in February 2020 Atramentus signed to 20 Buck Spin, a record label that cannot do anything wrong when it comes to releasing great metal albums. On the 29th of June they announced that the album cover is a painting by none other than Mariusz Lewandowski, the phenomenal painter who painted the cover for Bell Witch's 'Mirror Reaper'.

Speaking of the genius of 'Mirror Reaper', 'Stygian' is on that same level of geniousness. With its haunting atmosphere and glacial momentum, Atramentus create fear, sorrow, grief, exaltation, sadness, despair and love in just three songs that last 45 minutes. 

The special effects created by François Bilodeau are so frightening it's utter nightmare fuel. The solo's and vocals of Phil are out of this world. He grunts, screams, whispers and sings with this baritone voice that sounds like a hymn to a deceased knight on the epic 23 minutes long last song. 

Stygian is a piece of art and here's why. It is pure raw emotion. It is drenched in grief, anxiety and fear, every chord is a painful memory that resonates through the body. Because the unnamed knight keeps walking. With all his pain. For eternity. 

Best songs: All of them. 


Bandcamp
20 Buck Spin


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