Review – Woods Of Desolation – “As The Stars”

Artist – Woods Of Desolation

Album – “As The Stars”

Genre – Black Metal

Rating – 9/10

Woods of Desolation are an Australian black metal band that blend the cold nature of black metal with elements of post-metal. The band was founded by guitarist D. “As The Stars” will be released on Valentine’s day, you can pre-order it here – http://woodsofdesolation.bigcartel.com/
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Australian black metal band Woods of Desolation have returned with their third full-length, a melancholic and hauntingly blissful experience known as “As the Stars”. This is an album that can soar in many directions and remain interesting throughout its 34 minutes due to the variation in the instrumentation and captivating song-writing. Although this is an album that has many twists and turns, it does a great job of staying on track and at the same time, not getting too repetitive.

The first thing about As the Stars that becomes evidently clear is its sense of isolation. “Like Falling Leaves” introduces many of the mainstays throughout this experience, some being very common in black metal such as obscured and wretched vocals, eerie and desolate rhythm guitar-work, and lo-fi sound quality. Not only that, but at the tail-end of the track there is a brief melodic guitar passage that will be very common throughout the rest of the album as Woods of Desolation showcase As the Stars’s post-metal influenced nature. Tracks such as “Unfold” and “This Autumn Light” provide some intense melodies that lead the song into some very breathtaking moments. “This Autumn Light” applies a strong sense of dynamic as somber moments to breathe come in, only to be swept away in a matter of seconds by a large tidal wave of beautiful melodies and the abrasive and cold rhythm guitar-work.

The best example of the interplay between guitars would have to be one of the two instrumental tracks, and the final track of As the Stars, “Ad Infinitum”. This track has many phases to it, and despite its roughly five minute length, it makes use of every single passage in a way that overshadows almost every other moment on the album. The lead guitar takes the song into moments that offer myriads of emotions as the rhythm guitar and drums march on along. The other instrumental track, “Anamnesis” offers a bit more of a straight-forward feel, with its own sense of melody hidden behind the bleak rhythms, much in the same way as the aforementioned “Like Falling Leaves”.

One of the biggest factors that contribute to the atmosphere of this album is the drums. They don’t ever provide anything too in-your-face or flashy, but they make every beat count as they elevate some of the build-ups to places that the guitars couldn’t have by themselves. Many of the fills help to keep the dreamy and dark vibe of the album alive and make sure that the listener is paying attention as they soak in every second of the music. The drums take the already astounding and brilliant atmosphere unleashed by the guitars, and manage to build it even higher.

As the Stars is a bleak album that has a lot of beauty residing in its unwelcoming and melancholic realm. The greatest way to experience this album is to make sure that you have no distractions, and let every sound move you. This album goes beyond being a standard black metal album, and brings itself to many emotional heights without forgetting to carry the listener with it. It does a solid job of staying entertaining, and can actually provide the listener with a sense of sorrow that almost feels comfortable when they’re willing to completely explore it.

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Review by Arden Collier.