Album: Aeonian (2014)
Genre: Psychedelic Rock (Stoner/Doom Metal) / Ukraine
Don’t judge a book by its cover. An old idiom, but one that could be similarly applied as “don’t judge a band by their name”. Well, in the case of Ethereal Riffian, their name gives you a pretty good idea what to expect. On the Ukrainian experimental metal quartet’s second full-length offering Aeonian, the listener is bombarded with just shy of 45 minutes worth of grandiose sonic landscapes that range from ambient to crushing without ever losing a prevalent focus of the almighty riff. Spread across four songs all breaking the 10 minute mark, Aeonian demonstrates a matured display of songwriting and proficiency impressive for a band that’s only been around since 2010. It can be difficult to maintain listener focus with such gargantuan pieces, but Ethereal Riffian succeeds more than falters. There are certainly some areas that feel like filler here and there, but one could argue that they’ve been strategically placed to give more breathing room to the infectious riffs and melodies that really shine. Speaking of riffs, this record is positively filled with ones that will stick in your head for days. The crushing groove in the latter movements of “March of Spiritu” will bore right into your skull, and “Wakan Tanka” is bolstered by some equally powerful string mastery. Thankfully, the band never wholly relies on this unabashed heaviness and allows plenty of atmospheric repose and even some surprising but welcome elements of world music permeate the calmer sections of the album. Occasional guitar solos that rear up are equally impressive, delving into bluesy territory on the two aforementioned tracks but shifting into a more menacing tone on the epic closer “Anatman“. It’s a shame that the only major blemish on this record is the vocals. While not egregious enough to fully turn the listener away, they just don’t exhibit the same forward-thinking nature as the instrumentation. The hypnotic moaning is executed well, but just becomes ultimately monotonous and distracting. There is a fleeting glimpse of harsh vocals on “March of Spiritu“, which really made me wish that had been revisited elsewhere on the record to give a bit more dynamic and vibrancy to the performance. As with most bands within this sub-genre, the crooning is few and far between, bringing to question whether the band would be better off as an instrumental outfit. Daunting song lengths aside, it’s impressive for a band to cover so much audible ground over the course of just four compositions. Ethereal Riffian should be commended for crafting a coherent piece that’s frequently engaging and still feels like a complete experience despite a short track listing. Sophomore blues definitely aren’t anything these Europeans need to worry about. Review by "Adam Cutler" (http://nefariousrealm.com).
RATING: 7.5 / 10
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Genre: Psychedelic Rock (Stoner/Doom Metal) / Ukraine
Don’t judge a book by its cover. An old idiom, but one that could be similarly applied as “don’t judge a band by their name”. Well, in the case of Ethereal Riffian, their name gives you a pretty good idea what to expect. On the Ukrainian experimental metal quartet’s second full-length offering Aeonian, the listener is bombarded with just shy of 45 minutes worth of grandiose sonic landscapes that range from ambient to crushing without ever losing a prevalent focus of the almighty riff. Spread across four songs all breaking the 10 minute mark, Aeonian demonstrates a matured display of songwriting and proficiency impressive for a band that’s only been around since 2010. It can be difficult to maintain listener focus with such gargantuan pieces, but Ethereal Riffian succeeds more than falters. There are certainly some areas that feel like filler here and there, but one could argue that they’ve been strategically placed to give more breathing room to the infectious riffs and melodies that really shine. Speaking of riffs, this record is positively filled with ones that will stick in your head for days. The crushing groove in the latter movements of “March of Spiritu” will bore right into your skull, and “Wakan Tanka” is bolstered by some equally powerful string mastery. Thankfully, the band never wholly relies on this unabashed heaviness and allows plenty of atmospheric repose and even some surprising but welcome elements of world music permeate the calmer sections of the album. Occasional guitar solos that rear up are equally impressive, delving into bluesy territory on the two aforementioned tracks but shifting into a more menacing tone on the epic closer “Anatman“. It’s a shame that the only major blemish on this record is the vocals. While not egregious enough to fully turn the listener away, they just don’t exhibit the same forward-thinking nature as the instrumentation. The hypnotic moaning is executed well, but just becomes ultimately monotonous and distracting. There is a fleeting glimpse of harsh vocals on “March of Spiritu“, which really made me wish that had been revisited elsewhere on the record to give a bit more dynamic and vibrancy to the performance. As with most bands within this sub-genre, the crooning is few and far between, bringing to question whether the band would be better off as an instrumental outfit. Daunting song lengths aside, it’s impressive for a band to cover so much audible ground over the course of just four compositions. Ethereal Riffian should be commended for crafting a coherent piece that’s frequently engaging and still feels like a complete experience despite a short track listing. Sophomore blues definitely aren’t anything these Europeans need to worry about. Review by "Adam Cutler" (http://nefariousrealm.com).
RATING: 7.5 / 10
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