Australia’s Asphodel Meadows was started in 2009 by Michael Aksenov. This year he released “I-VI” which features some of the most atmospheric and different black metal heard to date. His work speaks of isolation, depression, darkness and the afterlife which is usual of this genre but his vocals convey a different and almost terrorizing style in this album from other black metal albums. His vocals are not of this realm, distant and eerie and just plain scary even to my standards but luckily it is in a good way because it portrays more of this sound than any “edited” vocals in this genre.
Tracks like Isolation and Farewell paint a picture of true deep depression and sorrow but captivate the listener as even through the rough mixing of the guitars being static-y and everything, the album still keeps that consistency of dark, haunting and deeply trance inducing. If you want to send yourself on a trip through the afterlife, the mind of depression or just hear great black metal that is not of this world, then listen to this album alone at night. Definitely worth owning and listening to!
Overall Score: 7.5/10
Review by Neil Andersen
