At this point, it would probably be redundant for me to open this review by reiterating what big fans we are of Folkvángr Records here at the Vault. If you follow this site at all, you know we love pretty much everything the label puts out, and the remarkable winning streak that they’ve been on thus far in 2017 is set to continue with a hella impressive slate of releases from now until the end of the year. The point of this piece, however, isn’t to expound on the blossoming bromance between IMV and Folkvángr, which has probably reached the ‘Facebook official’ stage, but to discuss the label’s latest release: Tucson-based Suicide Forest’s Descend into Despair, a compilation of the band’s emptiness and Indifference demo/EPs.
Suicide Forest is the solo project of A. Kruger, who creates a particularly anguished, lo-fi brand of depressive/suicidal black metal. According to the notes on Bandcamp for Indifference, he does so without the use of drum samples, amp simulators, or MIDI programming. As a result, there’s a pleasant rawness to the music not unlike the early Leviathan records or Xasthur demos. The quality of the recordings may vary a bit from track to track, but that really just adds to the despondent charm of the record. At his best, Suicide Forest sounds a bit like early Shining, before Niklas Kvarforth’s baggage started to overshadow the music.
Of the two demos on the comp, Indifference is probably the more consistent with the stellar “Woods of Indifference” and “The Pain of Existence,” but the strongest track is emptiness’s “The Embrace of Solitude.” From the clean guitar arpeggios that open the track to the subtle keyboard accents once the distortion kicks in and Kruger’s sorrowful howl, the track is DSBM at its finest. The vocals are also clear enough that the lyrics are intelligible, and they’re petty heartbreaking, especially as the song nears it’s conclusion: “I embrace the roots beneath/as the soil falls through my hands/I close my eyes/as if for the last time/I press the cold steel against my vein/break the flesh as blood streams to the ground.”
So if you’re a fan of DSBM, this one is well worth checking out. Suicide Forest also has a new EP coming out this week called Apathy, but there haven’t been any sample tracks posted anywhere yet. Still, if its of a piece with the material on Descend into Despair, I expect it will be quite good indeed.
Descend into Despair will be available on cassette on July 7 via Folkvángr Records.
Thank you for the kind words!