Terminus Episode 111 - Candlemass, Grave Upheaval, The Funeral Orchestra, Mournument

If you're wondering why today's installment of Terminus took a while to get to you, it's simple: episode 111 is all about doom, so it moved a little slower. Amidst all the high energy death and black metal we've been covering this year, we've been waiting for the opportunity to cover records a bit more... lethargic. Call us Type O Negative, because today we're going slow, deep, and hard. First up: a mini review of the debut record by Chilean epic doomdeath purveyors Mournument, which fuses romantic funeral doom with Peaceville riffing and all the wistful sorrow you could ask for.

Next up: the 13th full length record by Candlemass. Typically while writing these descriptions we try not to spoil our overall assessment of an album, but in this case, it's unavoidable: it's a rough one, folks. Somewhere in a murky realm between stoner rock, bad Manowar, and a hint of actual doom lie the remains of Candlemass, who present a record composed nearly exclusively of terrible songwriting decisions and musical theater cheese. Those negative nancies who appreciate us at our most critical will undoubtedly enjoy this episode nearly as much as we despised the record in question.

Following is a record that makes its listeners miserable for the RIGHT reasons: the newest split between Grave Upheaval and Terminus alums The Funeral Orchestra. This came out back in August but it was worth the wait: this is a split that's more than the sum of its parts, feeling like a truly collaborative effort between the artists. Grave Upheaval slows way down and explores the dismal fringes of caverncore to great effect; TFO strips back their buzzing lurch to something more minimal, grumbling, and unsettling. The result: a record so empty, dismal, and harrowing it would make Mutiilation blush.

0:00:00 - Intro

0:06:08 - Mournument - Smouldering Into Dust (Ardua Music)

0:26:05 - Candlemass - Sweet Evil Sun (Napalm Records)

1:14:00 - Interlude - Reverend Bizarre - “The Devil Rides Out” fr. II: Crush the Insects (Spikefarm Records, 2005)

1:20:12 - Grave Upheaval/The Funeral Orchestra - Inexistentia (Parasitic Records)

2:06:53 - Outro - Lycia - “Ionia,” fr. Ionia (Projekt, 1991)

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