Pÿlon – The Harrowing of Hell
Review By: Jeffery de los Santos
Swiss doomsters Pÿlon has return in 2012 with their latest offering – The Harrowing of Hell. But it comes with a twist. This release by the band is available only on vinyl. This really gives the listener the warmth that can only come from vinyl. Vinyl has always been a great vehicle for doom metal and this album is no exception.
Pÿlon continues their tradition of having guest musicians. Sin Starlett’s Reno Meier and My Silent Wake/Seventh Angel’s Ian Arkley provide their guitars to the album. Reno has solos on the instrumental “Gethsemani” as well as the songs “The Stream of Forgetfullness” and “Psalm 139a” while Ian has solos on “Psalm 139b” and “You Have Been Warned”. Not only that, but Nomad Son’s vocalist Jordan Cutajar handles the vocals on two songs – “The Stream of Forgetfullness” and “Psalm 139b”. Still, the whole album has the typical Pÿlon sound – slow, heavy and crushing.
The first side of the album (Side Sorrow) has four tracks while the other side (Side Doom) contains the remaining three tracks. The guitar-work of both Matt Brand and Andy La Morte blend so well with the solos by Reno & Ian that it almost seems that the guests have been with the band forever. Although, I will say that it’s rather striking to hear Jordan’s vocals on the album since his vocals are so different from Matt’s. It also wouldn’t be a Pÿlon album without some flute, but it’s actually played in a cover of Black Sabbath’s “Paranoid”. It really molds the song into the Pÿlon tradition. They even slow down the song from the normal 2;50 and stretch it out to just over 4 minutes. The album is just a great doom-fest with fantastic guest musicians to add to the atmosphere that Pÿlon provides – crushingly slow and utterly doomtastic.
More Album Reviews
6 years ago
6 years ago
6 years ago
6 years ago
6 years ago
Pylon: Psalm 139b