CoC : Flegethon - Behind a Side of Times : Review

Flegethon - _Behind a Side of Times_
(Marche Funebre / Stygian Crypt, 2008)
by: Quentin Kalis (8 out of 10)

Once upon a time, a time not too long ago, I would have described compatriots Comatose Vigil as doom stripped to its bare bones. A little later, bands such as Beyond Black Void and The Ethereal forced a rethink of this position. Now Flegethon again force a reconsideration of what it really means to lurk at the fringes of doom, providing even more minimalist and oppressive material than any of the aforementioned, stripping away any more layers, leaving nothing left but the very essence.

A rhythm guitar is used, but its subterranean rumblings can easily be mistaken as part of the ambient textures, which are an integral component of his (one-man band of Oden) sound whilst a lead guitar provides slow, drawn-out arpeggios. The album's lyrics are centred on HP Lovecraft's mythos -- but he could he reading his shopping list for all I know; deciphering his drawn out and low-pitched growls is impossible.

At times dropping metal in favour of ambient, but never losing the overwhelmingly oppressive and claustrophobic atmosphere, Flegethon has delivered an album that is nearly a nonpareil amongst those lurking within doom's outer extremities.

Contact: http://www.flegethon.narud.ru

(article published 22/1/2009)