Finally, the weekend is upon us. What better way to kick it off than with the latest installment of "Funeral Doom Friday". For those who are new to this column; each week features a new or classic album from the realm of extreme doom. Much of funeral/death doom's might comes from an oppressive emotional weight and the use of death or black metal motifs (played at a trudging pace, of course.)
Pioneers like Mournful Congregation, Evoken, and Esoteric have mastered this blend of dirge and destruction. For 25 years, they have methodically built compositions that stretch for dozens of minutes all while keeping fans enthralled. Time has elapsed since the days of Thergothon and much like the world around us, the genre has evolved. Today's modern bands contort the very construct of the genre, breeding darkly refreshing new work. Their work thankfully gives this column plenty of material to share.
Enjoy this week's post and check out prior features here. Please feel free to also share thoughts or suggestions for future installments in the comments section below or to me directly on Twitter.
The Swedish duo of Pissboiler hogs this week's spotlight. The pairing of Karl Jonas Wijk and LG are releasing their newest EP this coming July, entitled Att Med Kniv Ta En Kristens Liv. This roughly translates to To Take The Life Of A Christian With A Knife—a bit intense if you ask me. Still, this is how Pissboiler's music is: intense. Their combination of funereal dread and murky sludge is undoubtedly overwhelming. This is the case with the title track to their new effort as well.
At seven and a half minutes—all of which you can hear in an exclusive stream of below—it is on the shorter side of funeral doom's typically expansive tracks. The shortened length certainly doesn't detract from the experience. Quite the contrary, actually. The eponymous track is a dense, concentrated dose of misery. Deep bass notes and a sample of staticky female voices open the track right before a dissonant wall of guitar notes and towering crash cymbals consumes the mix. Much of this overwhelming arrangement sustains throughout the track's duration. It shares a semblance with some of what Primitive Man is doing, perhaps at a bit more of a glacial pace.
Check out the song below. Pissboiler's new album arrives July 22 from Third I Rex, Weird Truth Productions, and Dying Sun Productions.
