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If you don't know of the band or never got a chance to hear their debut, that's okay, we're in the same boat. It was after all, a decade ago (2005) when they unleashed their debut, Tides of Awakening on the currently defunct Firedoom Music label. Now, brought seemingly back to life via Dark Descent Records, Aeons in Tectonic Interment is here to swallow you into it's madness.
This is a two piece band from Finland featuring Lauri Lindquist (vocals, bass, keyboards) and Matti Mäkelä (guitars, vocals, samples). You may know of Matti from his other bands, Corpsessed and Profetus. I'm going to try and forgo the obvious and not harp upon the fact that this is slow, repetitive and drawn out. I mean, it's funeral doom, those are trademarks of the genre, there's no getting past that. The barrier to entry isn't an easy one to overcome for a lot of people. But there's something about this album that just might pique the interest of those that would normally be hesitant to dive in. A menacing chaotic dirge with an extra layer of grimy evilness pervades all 51 minutes of its runtime. And heck, a funeral doom album under an hour could help the impatient crowd a bit.
The lead track, "Sunless Deluge", lumbers on as you would generally expect for its first 9 minutes before weaving in a ultra heavy yet eloquent guitar pattern for its final 90 seconds, giving you a sense of rebirth and hope. But that optimism is quickly smashed to pieces once the follow up kicks in, "A Voice Given unto Ruin". To play off the album title, it feels like the plates of the earth are slowing opening, while you get sucked into its endless void. My favorite track would be "The Stygian Enclave", whose midsection just emanates a moody nothingness thanks to its use of wonderfully placed keyboards. Overall this tune seems to encapsulate the whole sound and feel of the record. Even though I'm a fan of this style of metal, most funeral doom bands don't really have these moments in songs that you can point to or remember. Aeons in Tectonic Interment bucks this trend, while staying true to what it is.