Fen - Ancient Sorrow

\r\n"Ancient Sorrow" is the first release from the British Fen featuring a mixture of black metal and dark instrumental sound. An EP with three songs that last about a half hour play time producing images of the foggy and dark grey bearing rain cloudy scenery of eastern England over a heath landscape, isolated shrubs and crippled trees stand out from the fog creating an unreal, perfect and mystic surrounding. Without the borders of the extremity to determine the limits of their music Fen delivers a sound, which is neither particularly frosty, nor particularly fast, but with a charming uncomfortableness that sets on a slow rhythm, with extensive midtempo passages and an oppressing atmosphere in addition with some clean, dreamy singing, acoustic guitars and numerous influences from folk (very few though) and ambient which at first reminded me of the American Agalloch. The songs are predominant with a hypnotic, sluggish atmosphere held in a really doomish midtempo. First track "Desolation Embraces" is drawn by a hard, sharp-edged melody, hypnotic guitar riffing while the resonant, usual black metal growls work almost with a theatrical manner and there are also some post-rock influences that develop an even more ambitious musical amalgam. The second song "The Gales Scream OF Loss" showcases their hymnical aspect sounding clearly after Alcest, although with a more black metal sound, as well as a downbeat metal like Katatonia in their better days and the undertones of the bass are also good in this song. The last track "UnderThe Endless Sky" seems to connect all facets of their two preceded songs and with an emerging bursting part just before the end of the track. Finally some random choir sections incorporated in all the tracks grant a slight elegist effect to the output along with the sad, dreary and mournful perception of the sound.
\r\nNow to the prons and cons of this release. First of all the black metal vocals sound really good, infernal and grim and with a delicate ghostly effect at times. The ambient keyboards are generally good and the guitars are mesmerizing with a really narcoleptic grasp but their sound is rather thin and at some points more pushed back than it should be. The drums from the other hand sound really weak and the few blowing parts are not so convincing either. Overall this release is not something that will make you lose your sleep but if you are fans of Agalloch, Alcest, Primordial or even Burzum you can hear some of Fen’s work in their MyspacePage. \r\n

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\r\nVaso Prassa\r\n

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