Cult Japanese black metal legends Sigh return with new album Shiki.
2022 finally delivers a nice surprise. Four years after Heir to Despair a new Sigh album appears and instant interest and excitement are unlocked simultaneously.
Right from the outset and even at only sixteen seconds “Kuroi Inori” still manages to set the tone of the album. Sigh have never shied away from being eclectic but incorporating slow riffs and synth tones whilst sounding like early Celtic frost is a combination that at first has my head exploding, but the further you delve the more you get on board with it.
Highlight track of the album “Shoujahitsumetsu” has me looking at a career in surgery as there is just so much to dissect from the fury contained within. It’s followed by the deeply atmospheric “Shikabane”, but even this still has the raspy tones flooding through. Never in my lifetime would I think I would include Rick Wakeman in a black metal review but here were are. The starting keyboards on “Satsui – Geshi No Auto” are the reason for this, alongside the traditional sounds and synths making this easily the most diverse track so far.
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The slightly industrial “Fayu Ga Kuru” has some wonderful and tranquil melodies embedded throughout while the maniacally galloping “Shouku” has solos galore. A short a brief interlude in the form of “Kuroi Kagami” leads into “Mayonaka No Kaii” effortlessly, with room for final track, the short hypnotic “Tojui No Asa” ending this journey of captivation and confusion. There is so much going on in this album that deems it worthy of a few immediate revisits to fully appreciate every element.
Dark, eclectic and shrouded in traditional eastern influences.
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Shiki is out now
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