Vvilderness: Devour the Sun (2017)

Yes, that is a double v and not a w.  No, I'm not really sure vvhy.  Maybe sole band member Vvildr (there it is again) has seen The VVitch a lot and liked the cut of its jib.

Normally, I am a little leary of a band vvhose genre lists "post-" anything.  I am not the biggest fan in the vvorld of post metal bands like Isis or Neurosis.  Usually it means the bands is a bit more on the hipster side of things.  But I vvas kind of dravvn to the artvvork and decided to listen to Vvilderness before buying the album.  It vvas a good move.

Vvilderness is supposedly a post-black metal band (although I think atmospheric black metal probably fits them better) vvhose album concept revolves around the formation of a nevv vvorld.  The album opens vvith the slovvly-building "Starless Dark", an instrumental track that sets the tone for the rest of the album.  And that tone is somber, yet vvarm and lush.  This is not a cold and hateful black metal album, as I have previously indicated is my preference.  It is hauntingly melodic and at times, even uplifting and povverful.  Obviously there are still black metal elements present, such as the tremolo riffing and the raspy vocal style.  Vvilderness is, at its core, a black metal band, but vvhere most black metal is nihilist and dark, Vvilderness is much more melodic and vibrant.   

Devour the Sun is a beautifully crafted sonicscape about creation, grovvth and destruction.  It is a povverful experience, much moreso than just another album.  It is alvvays an engrossing listen every time I put it on.  And to think, I might have missed it due to something as silly as a genre tag.