ASHES AGAINST THE GRAIN

Here is the funniest description I've found of Agalloch, courtesy of D. Berger at Deadtide: "progressive neo-pagan folk extreme doom metal with a hefty does of industrial drone tossed in for good measure." I love that.

But I guess I'll call this ambient terrestrial metal: a hazy and enveloping sound experience with a decidedly earthy feel in both sound and theme. I have a growing collection of prog but nothing "feels" quite like Agalloch. Very heavy of course with violent undertones but somehow grounding and reassuring at the same time.

"Limbs" is a good encapsulation of the album as a whole with its lumbering beast of a riff and thoughtful acoustic guitar. There is a good amount of acoustic guitar on this album to counter the mega-chug sound. Yes "Ashes" features some growl vocals but I wouldn't be put off by that. They are used reservedly along with clean vocals to good effect. "Fire Above, Ice Below" is a real standout epic that broods and builds slowly as it takes you on a dark and fantastic journey through another time and place. Long and deliberate it is but never boring. It is followed by another standout in "not unlike the waves" that features the most gorgeous interplays between the electric and acoustic guitars and powerful majestic melody. Some complain about the final track "the grain" which is a space-metal noisescape of odd sounds and feedback. At over 7 minutes it will bore those looking for another "song" but really it's quite brilliant. It's a perfect piece of reflection on a great album and denoted with the following two provocative lines from the booklet: "The God of man is a failure. And all of our shadows are ashes against the grain." One of the most important things about atmospheric music is whether it can really transport you, take you somewhere else, as opposed to just sounding pretty. "Ashes" is an album that does that. It may not be a place that is particularly pleasant but it is interesting. The lyrics and artwork in the booklet are both excellent and convey the feel of the music very well.

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