CONTINUUM 2

Steven Wilson and Vidna Obmana did such a wonderful job on their previous collaborative release that they decided to release a second part, Continuum 2. Any music fan can tell you that news of a "part 2" to a highly enjoyable album often creates both excitement and worry, and for good reason. The previous installment of this series is a terrific, terrifying ambient industrial soundscape exploration that is sure to incite at least a small instance of panic for the listener, especially when paired with an appropriate physical setting such as a dark room or, ideally, a cave or abandoned factory. This continuation of the series is a bit overdone and comes off of a kind of ridiculous at times.

In the same way as the previous album, the tracks here are simply labelled as numbered constructs starting with IV, and the music begins in the familiar uneasy ambient drone - so far so good. But suddenly a heavily distorted doom metal guitar chord and steady hi-hat tapping breaks the ambience with severe gusto, entirely ruining the atmosphere. On the first track, the doom guitar is ever present, completely dissipating the effect of the shifting industrial dronescape that faintly looms in the background, which is upsetting considering that the track is almost 23 minutes long. Subsequent tracks follow suit, using varying degrees of emotionless doom metal and drowned industrial audio scenery, creating an hour of disappointment.

Continuum 2 is essentially a copy of Lustmord's work on Juggernaut, being primarily dark ambient with disruptive and distracting doom/sludge metal guitar. While I do find doom metal in general to be enjoyable, it does not work well with what would otherwise be a beautifully disconcerting dark ambient soundscape. I'm sure this album provides a good crossover opportunity for fans of doom metal into ambient electronic territory, but as someone who already enjoys both genres individually, I'd say this execution is unfortunately mediocre.

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