Nothing "Silence Came Back In, Filling Jagged Spaces" CD
[Eibon]
I've been looking forward to hearing more from Nothing for quite some time now, and I think this is possibly the project's best work to date in my opinion. If I'm not mistaken this disc is in some way based on or inspired by Stephen King's "The Dark Tower" series, which I've not read any of since I was quite young, but the odd track titles do seem to suggest a certain connection. I'd call this a nice middleground between the structured and musical side of earlier works like "The Grey Subaudible" and the more aggressive and experimental "The Spine Overshadowed by the Rope". Opener "Chapter V: Todash" quickly gets moving with a few carefully mixed musical elements and some of the more "aggressive" (by contrast, in reality nothing here is decidedly harsh) textures of the disc in the form of light midrange distorted buzzings, all droning together in what is probably the most consistently thick and "loud" (again, not too loud) composition herein - later calming down to a far bleaker passage that similarly combines synth notes with noisier mid-ground experimentation. "Chapter V: The Line of Eld, The Ka-Tet of 19" frequently displays an openly rhythmic industrial edge that still flirts with tangibly melodic elements of musicality, later bringing in scattered and unusual whispered vocals and more straightforward dark ambient passages; whereas "Chapter V: 30 Days to the Wolves" opens with a synth passage (I think?) mirroring the sound of strings, giving way to monk-like chanting and tribal percussion. "Chapter I: Territories" (which is actually the fourth track, after three installments of "Chapter V") is far more ethereal and subdued, picking up slightly in volume as melodic synth tones and a very nice little beat/bassline come in towards the latter two minutes of the track - quite fucking stunning, really. "Chapter Extended: Feather of the Opopanax" plays off of that with a flowing loop of synth melodies with an odd grate of bass chords, as well as later bringing back the vocal stylings of "The Line of Eld..." (briefly). Later in the track percussive sounds come in against a strange melody line whose character I'm not into at all, really the only minor drawback on the entire CD - I can get past it without much of a hitch as thankfully the "problem area" is quite succinct, but it's certainly something that rubs me the wrong way compared to the excellence surrounding it. "Chapter V: The Final Argument" ends the disc with sinister rumblings softly fading across subtly melodic synths that create more of an atmospheric sort of film score quality, again with very concise snippets of those odd vocal smatterings. I quite like the layout here, which largely consists of dark purple and black textures with subtle yet suggestive abstract black and white photography. There's not much text at all, and none within the pages of the booklet, creating a pretty powerful visual presence. Very nice work overall. Another professional effort from Nothing that points to even more impressive progressions in the future. Well worth the wait, and recommended for those interested in a more intricate and thought out take on dark ambient styles. (8/10)
Running time - 46:30, Tracks: 6
[Notable tracks: Chapter V: The Line of Eld, The Ka-Tet of 19, Chapter I: Territories, Chapter V: The Final Argument]
Eibon Records - http://www.eibonrecords.com

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