‘Healing Grounds’ wafts into the consciousness, vocalist Chelsea Murphy gossamer, almost too light for air over ethereal jazz that imagines Johnny Mercer doing a set in the outer reaches of the cosmos. When the metal shows up (and it does), it’s ultra-melodic and equally of space, but this is more a testament to the instrumentalists’ skill and ability to conjure a mood than anything else. Murphy’s siren song becomes shriek, the Baker/Thomas guitar duo displays a familiarity with their craft many could take a lesson from.
Don’t think you’re in for some fey ride through lightweight lands for long, though, as ‘Testudines’ rends to ribbons, almost surgical, yet losing none of the inherent musicality present in DAWN OF OUROBOROS, the outfit possibly the more dangerous for it. I’ve been noticing drummers a lot more of late for some reason, and Ron Bertrand is one moment a veritable turret-mounted machine gun, the next – as in the opening moments of ‘Iron Whispers’ – feather-light in his execution. There’s at least one jazz fan in this band, mark my words.
While ‘Iron Whispers’ is more built around a low-slung, churning riff (thereby giving bassist David Scanlon the opportunity to shine in the darkness), ‘Rise From Disillusion ‘ kicks in from 0:01, Murphy’s throat-shredding delivery both understandable and overwhelming, the band moving in synchronicity, the tune rising, falling, airy and awesome, but again, never ever losing sight of the song itself.
After a ritualistic intonation/incantation, ‘Cephalopodic Void’ is likely the most blatantly “progressive” offer to be found on DAWN OF OUROBOROS’ second, and also the most dizzying all in the space of just over four minutes’ playing time yet remains listenable and – somehow – memorable.
I’ll go ahead and say it – I haven’t been this impressed by an album in this style since Void from LUNA’S CALL in 2020. It’s rare I get to use such a term when describing anything remotely related to metal, but Velvet Incandescence is positively exquisite. Fall into it…rise into it, it doesn’t matter. Just listen…
Review By: Lord Randall
DAWN OF OUROBOROS
Velvet Incandescence
Prosthetic Records