Amenra recently unleashed not one, but two EPs upon the world. Of these two, De Toorn is typically what can be expected from the Belgians for the past few years: acoustic music that digs into your very core, just to explode right in your face with a wave of melancholy that is hardly ever found in metal. With Fang and Claw is also familiar, but the style is a bit different. So, as far as I am concerned, splitting the two was a good choice.
Forlorn makes it clear right away that this record may be half as long as De Toorn, but that it will be filled with powerful and melancholic sludge right from the start, so the whole thing comes in strong. Not that Amenra doesn’t incorporate breaks; it’s just inherent to this band and that’s also how Forlorn’s storm subsides at certain points. The repetitive song sounds like a swirling storm you’re pulled into by Colin Van Eeckhout’s desperate cries. At the end of the track, the dark layering of the guitars also takes on some touches of Mono at the time of Requiem for Hell. Salve Mater also falls in line with the older Mass material, with a religious theme and lyricism revolving around pain and suffering that anchors itself into your soul through the repetitive pounding and deep melancholy.
In brilliant fashion, Amenra shows us that the original sin is still alive in humans. This EP is presumably an appetiser for Mass VII and the emotional impact of these two songs is already there. Magnificent artwork too.
Label:
Relapse Records, 2025
Tracklisting:
- Forlorn
- Salve Mater
Line-up:
- Mathieu J. Vandekerckhove – Guitar
- Colin H. Van Eeckhout – Vocals
- Bjorn J. Lebon – Drums
- Lennart Bossu – Guitar
- Tim De Gieter – Bass, vocals
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