Bölzer is a Swiss black/death metal band, though that categorization is a bit simplistic, particularly on this album. Now, many of the Swiss bands that have come out over the years are difficult to categorize because they cross over into a variety of other genres. Just look at the bands Tom G. Warrior has been in (Hellhammer, Celtic Frost, Triptykon) and Coroner, along with Eluveitie. Just kind of hard to pigeonhole. Bölzer follows suit on this release.
The album kicks off about as well as it possibly could with the hard-driving "The Archer" which has a terrific riff and some stunning vocals. The band basically sounds like a black metal version of Mastodon, particularly through the bellowing vocals. The guitar tone has a Gojira-like heaviness and mechanical sound to it. The album more or less continues in that style throughout. The riffs are heavy and sludgy, but with some melody shining through at times.
Despite the fact that this is officially Bölzer's debut album, it caused some controversy. Apparently long-time fans of the band were not happy with a perceived softening of the band's sound. I am not sure I agree that the sound has softened (and yes, at this point I have heard both Aura and Soma, the band's prior EPs). There is more melody and the vocals are a little cleaner, but I still definitely hear the same band, albeit with more of a stream-lined sound.
I came away quite impressed with Bölzer. Enough that I went back and picked up a couple of their earlier releases. They have the kind of sound that is likely to capture some mainstream appeal, so I think it is a matter of time before they break out.
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