Location: Montevideo
Country: Uruguay
Genre: Feminine dark metal
Single: Encuentro/Kohtaaminen
Format: Digital
Label: Independent
Release date: October 18, 2020
Oh, Bandcamp, where would I be without you?
Not writing this for sure! What’s good everyone! I’m back and today we have a small EP to cover and even though it’s only two tracks they pack more of a punch then any two track EP I’ve ever heard!
Welcome to the 2020 release of "Encuentro/Kohtaaminen" by Upon Shadows.
So as I mentioned above we have two tracks as the title suggests. After many listens back and forth I’ve discovered the two songs are the same just in two different languages. The first track in Spanish and the second in Finnish. But as they are both identical I’m going to be reviewing these two songs as a single:
-Encuentro
-Kohtaaminen
Both mean ‘Meeting’ in English.
Let me say this, the profound energy and all around aura that these two songs present are some of the darkest and magical I’ve ever come across.
From the opening intro you can hear this beautiful piano lead you off into this scene of ‘Black Metal’ that cultivates your every sense. Those thrashing drums and guitar riffs all taking charge at once almost in a sonic race to get to the finish line.
Amongst all this brutality provided by the instrumentation, we get a constant call back to the ‘magical’ element I spoke of earlier.
It will only be in small increments throughout the whole track but certain piano keys or particular ambient sound transitions send chills down my spine (for all the right reasons).
The vocal harmonies go back and forth between:
-Death Growls
-High Pitch Screaming
-Lullaby style singing
I love how even though there are various singing styles all in one song it never feels overlapped or overused, never ‘too’ much or ‘too’ little. It’s all fits perfectly within the 7 minutes given and I love how they manage to branch out the different layers of music presented and then execute the vocals accordingly.
Although I may not understand what they are saying (in either version) I can say this has made me feel more real-life emotion than most album recommendations for sure, call this ‘Lullabies for Metalheads’ because that’s what it feels like.
The magical Ambient elements, the brutality of the Metal. The talent shift with the ever-changing vocal harmonies and the constant layering of the music to help not only make an interesting track but also provide that in-depth experience that one doesn’t normally find.
I highly recommend everyone go listen to this and feel the experience! –Corban Skipwith
Lineup:
Natalia Arocena: bass
Tamara Picardo: keyboards, guitars and vocals
Special participations:
Lucía Sena: Drums
Angela P. Coldnight: DSBM vocals
Gabriel Brikman: Guitar arrangement
Track list:
1. Encuentro
2. Kohtaaminen
This review can also be read at Corban Skipwith's Facebook group Relentless Reviews With Corbz. -DW
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