Wreck Of The Hesperus
Terminal Dirge (Demo) 2004 None
The band's name seems to be influenced by the poem "The Wreck of the Hesperus", which was written in 1839 by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The poem is based on the tale of the schooner (a type of sailing ship with two or more masts) called Hesperus which was shipwrecked on the reef of Norman's Woe. This Irish band play quite an unusual combination of doom. The first and second track are heavily influenced by stoner. The third one is influenced by sludge/doom or traditional doom, it's rather hard to tell just which one it is. Possibly both of them. At least the vokills are clearly core-influenced. Industrial elements, spoken sections and noise aren't uncommon in the music either. The fourth track is even stranger. It's definitely the one with the most funeral doom in it. The most interesting parts are the drum & bass sections with the church choirs. And I'm talking the real deal with Latin hymns to God. To top it off there is this massive church organ which gives the music a very majestic feeling from time to time. The lyrics of the fourth track are very interesting as well. They focus on a second war between the Heavens and Hell. The first one was the one where Satan was first banished to Hell. The spoken words by a sweet female voice at the end of the track pretty much clear up who wins: "I hope you rot down there!", then there is the sound of a trapdoor shutting. The whole demo is out for free on http://www.final-experiment.net/wreck. If you're interested in hearing something out of the ordinary, then you should really hear these guys. But do note that you should be open minded while listening to this. After all, it's far from your average funeral doom band.	1. Inheritance 2. Doomed Ones 3. Ignaminious Descent 4. Prolix Approx. 33 minutes
Reviewed by: Arnstein H. Pettersen
The sunken threshold (CD) 2006 Aesthetic Death
While I discern many similarities with label mates Stumm, I can’t help finding this band much more interesting. I have been following them for a while now after listening to their outstanding demo ’Terminal Dirge’ and quite honestly, I was at first disappointed with the lack of majestic atmospheric elements like in the last track of that demo, which featured infernal choirs and chilling pipe organs along with weird bass sections and epic drum solos. I am still somehow missing these parts; however ‘The Sunken Threshold’ has managed to grow on me, burning its own, unique image of horror in my brain. Yes, the music is ultraslow, concrete-heavy and uncompromisingly nihilistic. However, the difference from bands like Stumm or Moss lies in the quite unique use of subtleties such as bizarre slap bass, hyperkinetic drums and strategically placed samples. The whole manages to breathe an atmosphere of genuine evil and limitless hate, making it one of the most extreme and uncompromising releases of 2006. From a label that has released the first two Esoteric albums one expects nothing less than releases that set new standards of sonic extremism and that’s exactly what Wreck of the Hesperus do. If you like your doom raw, evil and nihilistic, then this band will be something for you.	1. Stop the black coffins 2. Grave signal 3. The osseous tomb (echoes of winter) Approx. 42 minutes
Reviewed by: Kostas Panagiotou