Dwelling Below – Wearisome Guardians Review

By Spicie Forrest

The boys in Dwelling Below get a lot of facetime here at AMG. We’ve reviewed Hierarchies’ debut (Jared Moran, Anthony Wheeler, Nicolas Turner), all three albums by Acausal Intrusion (Moran, Turner), one by Filtheater (Moran), and we’ve done a filter piece on Feral Lord (Moran, Turner). It’s no wonder, as we tend to enjoy the angry, dissonant stuff they put out. I’ve been jonesing for something in that ballpark, so when I learned that Dwelling Below’s debut unnerved Thus Spoke enough to waive seniority, I quickly snagged their follow-up. Hoping it might hit the spot, I eagerly dug my grubby lil nubbins into Wearisome Guardians.

Dwelling Below was a filthy slab of long-form deathened doom, and Wearisome Guardians offers much of the same. Look at that cover art. It sounds exactly how you’d expect: like bathing in stagnant catacomb water. Cavernous, mad, and malevolent, Moran echoes through abandoned tombs, disturbing centuries of eight-legged architecture. On the skins, he nearly wakes the dead with frenetic onslaughts of double bass and unsettling cymbals. Turner’s guitar stillbirths an unholy union of Saint Vitus and Autopsy. Warped and abrasive riffs lumber forward, inexorable and lethal as a cave-in, while tormented leads scream psychosis from a neighboring cell (“Terminal Experiments,” “Sacraments”). Ever-so-slightly discordant basslines weave and coil around your ankles as Wheeler encourages a reexamination of your sanity. Like meeting a skinwalker, you know something’s off, but it’s hard to describe, and it’s fucking terrifying.

It’s a little oxymoronic to call 1.) dissonant 2.) death/doom 3.) metal accessible, but Wearisome Guardians is perhaps Moran’s most approachable offering yet. His aforementioned acts all shove their base genres through the same twisted, dissonant lens, but compared to Hierarchies or Acausal Intrusion, Dwelling Below is almost melodic. Between chaotic, atonal passages and vicious whammy abuse, Turner employs more traditional riffcraft learned long ago at Candlemass (“Wearisome Guardians,” “Terminal Experiments”). Leads in “Unfolding Universe” and “The Altar” reveal traces of Brocas Helm and Cirith Ungol, while “Sacraments” reaches further back, unearthing the legendary B.B. King for a solo, soulful, bright, and blue. These ancestral trappings are strung with care and shine brilliantly against Dwelling Below’s murky core. Wearisome Guardians offers these moments of reprieve from its oppressive violence, like guiding lights coaxing you deeper into the dark.

At 51 minutes, Wearisome Guardians isn’t terribly long for the genre, but with an average track length of ten minutes, it certainly isn’t a casual listen. Luckily, songcraft is not a weakness Dwelling Below suffers. Far from sedentary, Wearisome Guardians is in constant motion. Most riffs only linger a few moments before evolving into something new or reverting to a main throughline. Even when a riff tarries longer, the bass, drums, or vocals twist and shift, keeping things fresh and engaging throughout. More than this, each song seems built around clearly defined movements. Even on a first listen, I could guess my place in a song fairly well. There’s an intuitive logic to each track’s pace, allowing Wearisome Guardians to feel lean and efficient with no real fat to trim. Even the 90-second “Interlude” belongs. What initially feels like a respite reveals itself to be just as unsettling as the rest of the album. Bright and metallic, this moment’s tainted rest doesn’t let you forget what’s on the other side.

I wished for some grimy, cavernous filth, and I got it. Wearisome Guardians is a menace to experience. I honestly thought it hyperbole when Thus Spoke said their debut induced fear, but exaggeration it was not. Even with bright moments that fractionally lessen the tension, Dwelling Below is still deeply unnerving. These casket campers know what they’re doing, and they’re good at it. Wearisome Guardians is a strong success on both atmospheric and compositional fronts. Dwelling Below doesn’t just want to show you the dark. They want to leave you there without a torch and seal the tomb. This sophomore effort is claustrophobic, sepulchral, and evil. Wearisome Guardians is viscerally unsafe, and it’s here to break you if you’ve got the nerve to let it.

Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 10 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Transcending Obscurity Records
Websites: Bandcamp | Facebook
Releases Worldwide: October 31st, 2025

#2025 #35 #AcausalIntrusion #AmericanMetal #Autopsy #BBKing #BrocasHelm #Candlemass #CirithUngol #DeathDoom #DeathMetal #DoomMetal #DwellingBelow #FeralLord #Filtheater #Hierarchies #Oct25 #Review #Reviews #SaintVitus #TranscendingObscurityRecords #WearisomeGuardians

Hierarchies – Hierarchies Review

By Thus Spoke

Ultra-dissonance is so hot right now.1 Yes, dissonance itself has been a thing for a long time in metal, and in music generally for far longer, but ever since artists picked up what Gorguts threw down and ran with it, this adjective has become associated with ever-increasingly twisted and abrasive soundscapes, the dial of ‘extremity’ moving further and further. The last few years in particular have seen an acceleration of this trend as an explosion of acts offer their take. Enter Hierarchies—formed of members from Acausal Intrusion and Dwelling Below2—who on their self-titled debut, serve up some more wonky, ugly, technical death metal fun for your listening pleasure (or pain).

If you’ve heard Acausal Intrusion, or any of the artists’ other death metal projects, then you’re some way towards knowing what Hierarchies sounds like. But aside from this, the other most immediate impression I got was the similarity to two acts not associated with Hierarchies’ members: namely, Ad Nauseam and Pyrrhon. Hierarchies is sophisticated in its technicality, but naïve in its sprawling, ugly execution. Chaotic and abrasive, it is replete with jangling percussion and stomach-turning riffs, with squealing chords spliced in, and narrated by gurgling, inhuman roars. The soundscapes substitute suffocation with that uncomfortable spaciousness that makes the wild and twisting (“Consecrate Phenomenon,” “Complexity Parallels”) or uneven and creeping (“Twilight Tradition,” “Subtraction”) disharmonies stand out more obviously. It is neither grand nor groovy, but grotesque, complex in a way that wards off rather than entices easy enjoyment. That’s not pejorative, because, in this genre, you work for your enjoyment and sometimes you just witness the weirdness and grin.

Hierarchies are not easy to paint with one broad stroke. At times, there are glimpses of a more ‘accessible’3 strain of (blackened) death metal à la Gigan or Immolation (“Entity,” “Vultures”). The fact that this opens the album exemplifies one way in which Hierarchies ambushes its listener. Other ambushes would be the flirtations with the (almost) atmospheric by way of quiet, pensive strums (“Twilight Tradition,” “Abstract,” “Vultures”) and genuine slips into swooping melody, though they are caught just before they become anything resembling a refrain (“Dimension,” “Abstract”). Hierarchies play very fast and loose with structure, shifting nonchalantly between tempos, riff patterns, structure, and vibe. It is more or less impossible to tell where a song is going to go, and as Hierarchies, broadly speaking, gets more chaotic and unhinged as it goes on, the album thus walks on the knife edge between exhilarating and exhausting. A gnarly bit of guitar might come skittering down out of nowhere (“Dimension,” “Complexity Parallels,” “Subtraction”), and it might even be sort of beautiful. There might even be the thrill of a repeated pattern, before things get weird again (“Abstract”). The very turmoil and technicality of the music on display is quite arresting, often making up for any lack of structure or harmony (“Twilight Tradition,” “Complexity Parallels,” “Vultures”). Yet, as an entity formed of such compositions, flitting wildly between its elements, Hierarchies overall feels a little fickle and a little too restless, as though someone had their finger on the fast-forward button in a whirlwind tour of disso-death.

Hierarchies is helped and hindered by that spacious production hinted at above. Every jarring, smooth, quiet, and furious note, roar, and beat has a clear voice in the fracas. It makes the impressive technicality and scope of these pieces easier to appreciate than if things were denser, but it also amplifies their intensity, as one can’t help but absorb every tiny detail that encompasses every sudden and swooping switch. This is a multi-layered album that unveils progressively more of its intricacies with each listen, and this in itself is a feat. Yet Hierarchies design things neither for mind-boggling scope, nor for intoxicating frenzy, and the result is a behemoth of undeniable prowess whose vacillation makes it hard to keep in step with.

For all its trials and triumphs, Hierarchies remains a very solid slab of ‘ultra-dissonant’ death metal. Given its members’ experience, it’s no real surprise it’s as strong as it is. But in this era, where smart, mind-bending, and savage interpretations of this extreme genre abound, Hierarchies have not done quite enough to elevate theirs above the norm. If you can’t get enough of this stuff, Hierarchies will serve you well; I’m not about to pretend I didn’t have fun with it. Its stamp on the scene, however, will likely be fairly short-lived for all but the most ardent of fans.

Rating: Good
DR: 8 | Format Reviewed: 320kbps mp3
Label: Transcending Obscurity
Websites: Bandcamp | Facebook
Releases Worldwide: January 17th, 2025

#2025 #30 #AcausalIntrusion #AdNauseam #AmericanMetal #DeathMetal #DissonantDeathMetal #DwellingBelow #Hierarchies #Jan25 #Pyrrhon #Review #Reviews #TechnicalDeathMetal #TranscendingObscurityRecords

Evilyn – Mondestrunken Review

By Dear Hollow

At first glance, it appears that international death metal act Evilyn only has your demise and destruction in mind. Mondestrunken is uncompromisingly heavy, riffs pushed to their shimmering limits like oil from the collapsing god machine, hellish growls from beyond the stars, and drums funneled through warp speed directly into the collapsing horror of a black hole. It feels like a background of cosmic noise, lifeless, unfriendly, and directionless, but patience yields results: obelisks emerge into the view. Not that they were ever absent, but that our eyes could not behold them. Beneath the fray of entropy, the eyeless stars, and the unending weight of time, patterns emerge. Lifelessness itself resurrects. The dead shall rise again. We were never alone, and that should make us more terrified than ever.

Evilyn was originally founded by Coma Cluster Void’s Jeanne Comateuse, attempting to make cosmic-themed old school death metal with a substantial hit of dissonance. With debut EP Inside Shells, the template was set: devastating death metal with shifting nebulae of tempos and time signatures alongside ruthless discordance. Evilyn’s lineup has shifted,1 its sole remaining member, guitarist/vocalist Anthony Lipari of Thoren, now including bassist Alex Weber of Malignancy and drummer Robin Stone of Norse and Ashen Horde, but the emphasis is as uncompromising as ever. First full-length Mondestrunken (German for “moon-drunk”) is as punishing as it is puzzling, a relentless bombast of death metal insanity fractured and splattered across the face of infinity.

Across thirty-seven minutes, Evilyn creates an OSDM template that is splintered through the fractured light of an alien prism, the result just as chaotic and alienating as you would expect – dissonance is relentless, the tempos and rhythms are constantly shifting, and Lipari’s vocals remain in deep growl mode. Initially overwhelming in terms of utter saturation, repeated listens unearth more and more. Contrary to the dissonance-for-dissonance’s-sake screeching of Mithridatum or Scarcity, or the improvised assaults of Acausal Intrusion or Ar’lyxkq’wr, Evilyn’s palette emerges in the form of motifs. While initially an apparent clusterfuck of discordance and chugs, blastbeats, and aggressing plodding, the motif gradually reveals itself and the song suddenly makes sense – these take several forms. While the off-kilter morphogenetic riffs of “Dread,” “Limits,” “Penance,” and “Slithering” ground their respective sounds like a traditional Morbid Angel blueprint, the pinch harmonics of “Omission” and “Forgotten” are a flaying reminder of pain. “Forgotten” and “Eat the Elite” explore their riffs with careful precision, each rendition more warped and rusted than the last.

The most tantalizing tracks aboard Mondestrunken are the ones with whom only a framework or structure becomes the motif, Evilyn soaring in mood and madness. The album title is most apparent in “Forgotten,” which truly feels like a cosmic drunken dissodeath passage, deepening in intricacy as it continues – its pinch harmonics nearly a misdirect to the approaching doom – while “Interwoven” lives up to its name with a dynamic structure of growing dissonance with each worming riff. “Bloviate” approaches its sound with a “traditional” proto-chorus, a midsection of contemplative open strums that add greater monolithic weight to the obliteration surrounding it. Resounding highlights are centerpieces “Penance” and “Vacuous,” their mercilessly mechanical sound achieving a hypnotic effect. The clockwork guitar plucking in the former collapses to dizzying shredding and animalistic blastbeats that rend planets, while the dissonance achieves a distinctly dying warble. The latter’s constant shifting between 6/8 and 4/4 enacts a cosmic pendulum, swaying between destruction and creation, the clarity of its cohesive conclusion feeling more punishing than the chaos surrounding it. Overall, Mondestrunken’s viciousness is palpable, the breadth organic – continuous and relentless hiss against the breath of life – each instrument organic and audible through the alien shimmering. Evilyn embraces experimentation with just a kernel of a tenet that keeps the mind secured to mortal realms.

Don’t be surprised if you hate Evilyn’s brand of bombastic saturation off the bat. Its dissonance is unending, its vocals one-dimensional, and shifting passages feel like cosmic whiplash again and again. However, it’s a surefire slow burn in spite of its relentless attack, its revelations feeling like the solution of a difficult cosmic puzzle and the kernel of accessibility blooming into monolithic significance. Its audience is limited, but fans of Fractal Generator, Artificial Brain, Aseitas, and Asystole – rejoice! For those willing to ride Evilyn’s warped spiral of the abstract and maddening, Mondestrunken’s secrets are revealed with tantalizing fulfillment.

Rating: 4.0/5.0
DR: 9 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Transcending Obscurity Records
Websites: evilyndm.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/evilyndeath
Releases Worldwide: August 16th, 2024

#2024 #40 #AcausalIntrusion #ArLyxkqWr #ArtificialBrain #Aseitas #AshenHorde #Asystole #Aug24 #AvantGardeDeathMetal #ComaClusterVoid #DeathMetal #DissonantDeathMetal #Evilyn #FractalGenerator #InternationalMetal #Malignancy #Mithridatum #Mondestrunken #MorbidAngel #Norse #OldSchoolDeathMetal #OSDM #Review #Reviews #Scarcity #TechnicalDeathMetal #Thoren #TranscendingObscurityRecords

Dwelling Below -Dwelling Below Review

By Thus Spoke

I don’t know what exactly it is that’s Dwelling Below, but if it’s anything like whatever the cover art is depicting then I’m afraid. Beneath the surface, the music of this debut self-titled also lends itself to feelings of unease and apprehension. Formed from members of Acausal Intrusion, Hollowed Idols, and Sermon of Rot, Dwelling Below lurks in the dark and viscous slime of doomy blackened death. Where cavernous bellows resonate over slippery sinister riffage, whining guitar lines slide in and out of the gnashing, grinding chords, and bass drum rumbles with ominous severity. Combining the brutish sludginess of the ugliest of death-doom, and the hostile discordance of extreme metal’s dissonant side, Dwelling Below is about as heavy as it gets. Its mad art and pedigree calls, so let’s dive in.

Across just four songs, Dwelling Below makes good on its portentous promise. That weird synth that opens “Attraction Vulgarity” begins and I’m already afraid. And the repeating patterns of creeping scales and sudden descents from cacophonous blackened death into crawling doom that follow for the next 37 minutes continue this omnipresent feeling of unease. The particular style of gurgling bellows, cavernously echoing alongside lurching guitar, ringing with dissonance frequently recalls Defacement (“Attraction Vulgarity”), while the snakelike solos and general malevolent aura are reminiscent of Qrixkuor (“Swallowed,” “Sheltered Acceptance”). There’s also plenty of high-strung string manipulation and anxiety-inducing technicality you might expect from the affiliated Acausal Intrusion (“Emergence Sublimation”). These elements come together quite magnificently (by which I of course mean horrifyingly). Naturally slipping from speed to slowness, and from eerie—almost melodious—refrain to densely clustered mania.

Dwelling Below really succeed in crafting songs that feel coherent and parsable whilst still being chaotic, unconventional, and inaccessible. We’re not talking verse-chorus-verse here of course, but the songs each have a somewhat cyclical structure that gives you something to cling onto amidst the snafu. All songs revolve around several central patterns or theme, whether that’s a series of low panic chords (“Swallowed”); a chilling guitar descent (“Emergence Sublimation,” “Sheltered Acceptance”); or returning skids into a ringing, d-beat charge (“Attraction Vulgarity”). The music’s overall unfriendliness causes the rare moments of true melody to break the surface with thrilling immediacy. From the high, churning guitar gradually rising in “Swallowed,” to the mournful descending tremolos in “Emergence Sublimation,” and the genuinely beautiful refrain that arises in “Sheltered Acceptance.” When the guitar solos come, their high pitch, and warped, psychedelic wobble has the effect of a mad cosmic snake twisting over the churning, cavernous depths—mesmerizing (“Attraction Vulgarity,” “Swallowed,” “Sheltered Acceptance”). The whine of feedback and the echo that haunts the beginnings and ends of tracks, likewise adds closure and cohesion, as well as atmosphere, to each piece.

Extreme metal always treads the line between sufficiently intense and too overwhelming, and Dwelling Below gets this just right. It might be dissonant, and wonky, and creepy, but Dwelling Below know exactly when to pull out of the blastbeat spiral for some (equally unnerving) soloing (“Emergence Sublimation”), or haunting death-doom (“Sheltered Acceptance”). A slim 38 minutes, the album is a mad world you’ll gladly return to again and again. Yet while the whole is digestibly short, the songs feel just a bit too long than they ought to be, none dropping below eight minutes and three out of four exceeding nine. Their smooth internal transitions and gripping episodes make for a powerful force as a four. Divide the four songs into six, and these eerie specters would cast an even longer and darker shadow than they already do.

When extreme metal is good, it really makes you feel something. Dwelling Below makes me feel fear, which I believe may have been at least part of the intention. Dwelling Below’s practiced pasts are fully on display here. Its distorted themes, cavernous atmospheres, and satisfying, stomach-churning technicalities also make it very fun to listen to. Even if you are looking over your shoulder while you do so.

Rating: Very Good
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Transcending Obscurity
Website: dwellingbelow.bandcamp.com
Releases Worldwide: December 8th, 2023

#2023 #35 #AcausalIntrusion #AmericanMetal #DeathDoom #Dec23 #Defacement #DissonantDeathMetal #DwellingBelow #Qrixkuor #Review #Reviews #TranscendingObscurityRecords

Hi, I'm Beth and just joined as I'm a life-long metal fan. I bought Anthrax's #SpreadingtheDisease in the early 80s and it changed my life!

I play tenor saxophone and drums and have played in many metal bands.

Favourite genres are progressive, #thrash, and death and at the moment I'm listening to #Crypta on repeat and am really into the new #AcausalIntrusion album #SeepingEvocation.

Recently saw #Anthrax in London on their 40th anniversary tour too!

Here to make metal friends!

#introduction