My friend Alfredo has told me about Anima Morte and I've heard a few tracks in the past and meant to listen to more. The problem I always have is too much music and not enough time;
things fall through the cracks. Alfredo is not one to give up easily, since he and I have the same (great) musical taste. So he alerted me to the fact that the new album from Anima Morte was coming out and they were asking if anyone wanted to review it. YES! This is one of the best decisions I've made.
"Upon
Darkened Stains" is very much in line with what I've heard before from the band:
'70s Italian horror movie music with its roots in progressive rock. Honestly, it goes well beyond all that. The band uses old-school keyboards like mellotrons, organs and electric pianos, which is about as prog as it gets and I always love that. They use them similar to the way that King Crimson did back then:
very moody and almost evil, yet there's such a beauty to it all. The album has pieces, like the opener "Blessing of the Dead" and "Interruption," that feel very much like something from a scary movie
- very cinematic. This is how you construct sonic landscapes.
Tracks like "Illusion
Is the Catalyst," "Wakeless" and "The Darkest Pattern" are my favorites because they have very memorable themes and are quite hooky. Elsewhere, "Fear Will Pass Over Your Mind" sounds flat-out
demonic, which should work for any metalhead, even though this is far from a metal album. Anima Morte are a
very gifted band who use their music to paint mental pictures. You also feel like you are being transported somewhere else, perhaps an alien world.
"Upon Darkened Stains" is a wonderfully rich, dense album that sounds amazing with headphones on. Alfredo was right about Anima Morte and I'll be looking for their back catalog. I can't recommend this album enough,
especially if you enjoy the darker side of progressive rock.
