The Invisible Mountain

This is a type of music that I think is becoming a little trendy in this realm of the music world at present. Not trendy in a “gigs invaded by broadsheet journalists and cardigan-wearing teenagers” kind of way- I suppose we can leave that to Sunn 0))), whose extremity alone provides indie chin strokers with a talking point and an artsy namedrop. But as with Relapse stablemates Culted and the last Earth album, Horseback’s The Invisible Mountain this takes a very minimalist, drone sound and moulds it into something far more accessible. This is effectively background music- using rich textures and slow burning but intense mid-tempo vamps, that build into powerful, atmospheric crescendos over the course of four lengthy songs.

Culted comparisons are intensified by the vocals, which here are a harsh, blackened rasp. Tyrant Symmetry is particularly effective, as a faded out, Malefic-like voice hisses away over a pulsating jam; a driving bass ostinato is complemented strikingly by “wild west” lead guitar warbling, again heavily reminiscent of The Bees Made Honey…. But on other tunes, the musical canvasses are closer to the post-rock ambience of Pelican, say. The Invisible Mountain starts with a vicious, scuzzy bass rumble but develops into the kind of sprawling, reverberating rhythm section buildup that populate albums like The Fire in our Throats will Beckon the Thaw. Even the electronic minimalism of Jesu or Skullflower is hinted at. These influences are certainly felt on 16 minute closer, Hatecloud Dissolving Into Nothing- a near static haze of gentle sound effects and tempo-less jangling. Extremely pretty, this- the kind of thing you would put on for the elfin romantic interlude in a fantasy role-playing game. Later, those same vocals emerge, faded even further into the background, suddenly giving the impression that this is what Burzum’s ambient era could well have sounded like given better technology and execution.

The mp3s I’ve been given with this promo come with “unclassifiable” listed in the “genre” column on my iTunes player. I’m not so sure; as I hope you will gather from this review, there are a few records on the periphery of the metal scene that this fits nicely alongside. For that reason, I don’t find this particularly exciting as an artistic statement- maybe not as exciting as the avant-garde aura surrounding it would suggest. Regardless, as a piece of ambient music that draws on rock and metal influences, this is effective and worthwhile.