The Ukraine-based label Ashen Dominion is in radiant shape and is gearing up for this autumn with numerous high-quality gs, amongst which are Ezkaton. This is a rather young depressive black metal project founded in 2018 with already two EPs and a full-length album to their credit. They are pretty reserved about their details such as their line-up but the band being from – oh surprise – Kharkiv, there may be some of the usual suspects within.
Although I haven’t picked Sheen And Misery for its post-apocalyptic themes which are simply not my cup of tea, I definitely stayed for the music. As proven before, you can generally trust Ukrainians when it comes to raising a proper atmosphere to their black metal and Ezkaton are faithful to this gratifying tendency. “Altar of the Flame” is a splendidly well balanced song be it for its brilliant evolution as for the emotional rendering.
“Weave Your World” is another solid composition in the second half of the album. The delicate acoustic parts and the further orchestral approach in the intro edify this unexpected beauty of the depressive side, a touching melancholy. More straightforward songs find their place during the album as well, just so one doesn’t make himself too comfortable there.
This is, to me, a band I would typically see live at the Art Zavod Mechanica in Kharkiv among the likes I discovered there during Ragnard Reborn. So, this is another accomplished production to add to the pile and there will hopefully be more to come.
Sheen And Misery is out on September 2nd.
