Firmament

I recall the first time I heard this band. It was a warm summer's evening in early September of 2011. I was listening to as much ambient black metal that I could get my hands on at that time, and this demo came up on my playlist. I immediately felt drawn to this magnificent piece of music. However until only recently, I haven't given this band the attention it deserved. Midnight Odyssey is a band that can seemingly do no wrong. After putting out the ever so amazing demo "The Forest Mourners" in 2008, Midnight Odyssey returns the very next year with its next demo tape, "Firmament". Evolving ever so slightly in terms of production and atmosphere, Midnight Odyssey has proven that it is among the elite in atmospheric/ambient black metal. This demo showcases what ambient black metal should sound like and the near perfect production for the perfect atmosphere.

As with every release Midnight Odyssey has put out to date, the keyboards are the main attraction of the album. They are brought out to the front in every song and are the most prominent instrument in the mix, such was also the case with "The Forest Mourners". Songs like "A Host for Ghosts" and "Storms of Fire and Ice" are pure ambient keyboard tracks that separate themselves from the metal tracks, but not so much as to cause the album to completely deviate from the musical ideas. The closer of the album "Beyond the Eighth Spere" is also a pure ambient track, but instead of being in the five to six minute range of the other keyboard tracks, it is an eight and a half minute song full of captivating beauty that almost reminds me a bit of the ambient side of "Filosofem" era Burzum. The melodies are freezing cold and when completely immersed in the music, you can literally feel the chill rushing throughout your veins. This has to be one of the most captivating and emotionally driven demos I have ever heard. In all honesty I really can't consider this to just be a demo. It works more like a full-length but because it is classified by the band as a demo, then a demo it is.

While the guitars are pushed back in the mix once again on this release, they are not as drowned and muddy as on the previous demo. They are more in the foreground and the melodies work extremely well with the keyboards. My favorite guitar riff has to be the tremolo intro to "Nocturnal Prey". It is extremely spacy and pretty fuzzy, but audible and clear at the same time, giving a razor sharp edge. Like I previously stated about this band on my review of the first demo, this is not music to headbang to. The guitars are repetitive making it easy for the riffs and melodies to get stuck into your head. For me, this is the most black metal release made my Midnight Odyssey. There have always been elements of black metal in the music up to the brand new masterpiece "Shards of Silver Fade", but here, they are far more prevalent, mainly due to the guitar work. "As Dark and Ominous as Stormclouds" is another example of this, although most of the black metal influence follows the path of depressive black metal, a perfect example being the slow and painful "Salvation Denied".

The production, as aforementioned, is near perfect for this music. The mixing of the demo is a major step up from the last, and the instruments become more clear and are easier to segregate from one another. The drums still sound artificial due to the mixing of the drum machine and while they are more clear and a tad louder, they are still somewhat drowned out in the mix. This is a small flaw but overall doesn't take much away from the music. The vocals remind me a bit of Burzum or maybe Xasthur but there is a bit of variation to be heard. There are your typical hateful black metal screams, but also as with all Midnight Odyssey's releases, epic clean chants. This also adds to the overall atmosphere and experience.

A demo that acts more like a full-length, "Firmament" is a near perfect release from Midnight Odyssey. It is an epic experience with a run time of over one hour. That is plenty of music to enjoy and immerse yourself into. Dis Pater sure knows how to use minimalism to his advantage and create a sound that is very pleasing to the ears.