
Aphonic Threnody
When Death Comes
Doomentia Records
2014
Aphonic Threnody has only been around for 2 years but during this period they released an EP in 2012 and two Spilt-EPs. The band’s music style can be described as death/doom metal or funeral doom metal if you like. The members are known musicians in the scene; from other bands of the same (more or less) music genre. The band consist of Riccardo V (Dea Marica, Gallow God) on guitars & bass, Roberto M (Arcana Coelestia, Dea Marica, Locus Mortis) on vocals, Abel L (Leecher) on cello, Marco Z (Arcana Coelestia, Locus Mortis, Urna) on drums, Zack C (Tomorrowillbeworse, ex-Time Suspension) on guitars and Juan E (AstorVoltaires, Bauda (live), ex-Nibdem, ex-Subtenebras, ex-Lapsus Dei, ex-Aseidad etc.) on keys & piano. The keys & piano have been played by Kostas P (Pantheist, Landskap) on the album but he left the band later.
The band is influenced by My Dying Bride, (old) Paradise Lost, Shape Of Despair, Swallow the Sun & Saturnus among others. The tracks have a very gloomy atmosphere and the lead guitar harmonies along with the death vocals are rather good in general. Certainly they cannot escape the “ghost” of the aforementioned bands and especial MDB, which relatively defined the specific “funeral” doom sound. The sound is full and heavy – as it should be for such kind of music.
Assuredly, you won’t hear anything new here as everything has been done by the “funeral doom metal” book… and that’s what makes this album and others of this genre less interesting at long last. If you play it safe in such paths how do you expect to separate yourself from the other competitors? Moreover, those unnecessarily long tracks (the album has 5 tracks and lasts 65 minutes!) somehow bored me after a while. None can say that Aphonic Threnody is not a good band, but they need something more than that in order not to get lost in the ocean of newcomers…
The band is influenced by My Dying Bride, (old) Paradise Lost, Shape Of Despair, Swallow the Sun & Saturnus among others. The tracks have a very gloomy atmosphere and the lead guitar harmonies along with the death vocals are rather good in general. Certainly they cannot escape the “ghost” of the aforementioned bands and especial MDB, which relatively defined the specific “funeral” doom sound. The sound is full and heavy – as it should be for such kind of music.
Assuredly, you won’t hear anything new here as everything has been done by the “funeral doom metal” book… and that’s what makes this album and others of this genre less interesting at long last. If you play it safe in such paths how do you expect to separate yourself from the other competitors? Moreover, those unnecessarily long tracks (the album has 5 tracks and lasts 65 minutes!) somehow bored me after a while. None can say that Aphonic Threnody is not a good band, but they need something more than that in order not to get lost in the ocean of newcomers…