Review Summary: Mind-numbing Blackened Funeral Doom
Funeralium, like Ataraxie, its countrymates and also a band with which Funeralium shares its members, released a stunning debut album and has since moved towards a more minimalistic and restrained approach. While Ataraxie was comparatively more derivative, Funeralium on its debut tried to fuse Suicidal Black Metal with Doom Metal, comparable to Bethlehem but not in this level of extremity – it was a hyperbole, an astounding album that still resonates in my head. What has changed with Funeralium since, is that it’s become more staid in its approach, more thoughtful and not as hysterical. It’s a more mature effort for sure and quite ambitious as well.
This is a double CD album, much like Ataraxie’s latest titled ‘L'Être et la Nausée’ and it’s immense. There are similarities and the timing could be an issue here – both have released double CDs and music is beginning to resemble each other. The striking difference between the two is that Funeralium still adopts a wailing voice whereas Ataraxie mostly employs growls. Other than that of course, there’s a huge difference in the subtleties – Ataraxie is more inclined towards the drier form of Funeral Doom, heavier too, whereas Funeralium is more disposed towards the Black Metal style but both have progressed in their sound enough to make their music sound coherent and more cohesive.
On its own, Funeralium is a remarkable band. It’s drawn a bit of flak for its long-drawn approach and minimalism, which is something many of us wish the bands would improvise on, but taking the matter at hand, it’s a different kind of exploration – it allows the band to pour out its emotions in a coherent, seamless way, without the touch of melodrama or oversentimentality. In its own pace, it narrates its tale with effectiveness, the feelings have to be felt, some effort and patience is required, as I had to muster admittedly, and it’s rewarding. These bands are extremely talented but not very easily digested.
Disc two contains as many numbers of tracks but they are massive and it’s all an extension of the band’s sound – there’s nothing disparate notably, it’s like an epic movie, you have to absorb it and bear with it. People are too used to having everything easy for them, no one is willing to take the effort to understand art. They want ready references, influences they can pick on, but what they’re missing is that the bands are trying to meld together their influences and move in a direction that has limited appeal, temporarily.
Overall, Funeralium has released, like Ataraxie, an impeccable album where the faults lie with the listener’s ability to absorb the emotions, which are undeniably there. I can’t recommend this for casual listen, and it’s meant for tougher times, but there are hardly any parallels of bands who’re doing stuff like this whereas you find the usual My Dying Bride-esque bands and Thergothon-Shape of Despair kind of bands a dime a dozen these days. You’ve gotta give credit to these bands, especially Funeralium because it’s taking a harder route to make its point.
