Returning with their fourth full-length release. The utterly uncompromising German outfit Mavorim unleash Ab Amitia Pulsae (“Struck by Loss”) that traverses the extremity of black metal and ambience.
Considering the anger and intent that is evident from ‘’ Ein Zerrbild aller Leiden’’(a caricature of all suffering), Mavorim flavour their music with a great sense of dynamics and melody, the vocals of Baptist sung in native German range from the clear to the unholy, all eloquently delivered with a sophistication inherent in their music. It may be memorable, but a tangible malevolency lingers at times, subtlety at others, more direct yet always surprising. “Die andere Seite deines Traumes” (The other side of your dream), with its melancholic guitar beginnings, is torn asunder by the vocals and erupts into a primal march fantastically arranged.
“Das Joch der Schande” continues the excellence, the guitars and keyboards prominent yet never fighting for dominance, both equally important in creating shades and textures, the nuances accentuated by the sense aura of the end of all things.
This flawless black metal is ever-evolving, redefining the rules of engagement.
“Erlischt für immer nun das Licht” (The light goes out forever) is a swirling descent into madness that highlights some exceptional songwriting matched only by the intensity of “Zerrinne im Nichts” (Disintegrate into nothing) dreams are shattered and all hope is lost, the production captures the essence that is Mavorim, without compromise, brutally real, unflinching, yet without a deft touch and some moments of enchantment.
‘’Ab Amitia Pulsae’’ is an album that lingers long after it’s finished its soundscapes and ideas fester in your subconscious, begging a revisit to confirm your realization that greatness comes in the form of despair and bloodlust. Poignant, moving and their greatest work to date.
Mavorim: Facebook
Release Year: 2023
Label: Purity Through Fire
Category: Album
Country: Germany
Reviewed by Sparky
