Stream from the Heavens

Did you think that I would prepare some crap again for April 1st? For some people, maybe yes, but in my opinion, not this time. Today we are talking about a slightly forgotten classic from Finland, which, together with Skepticism, is considered the pioneers of funeral doom metal. Here it is - Thergothon. However, the band was so respectable and interesting that in the times of its activity, even after split-up (?), it clearly went against the general trends, deciding to play surprisingly slow, with the most gallows atmosphere and sounding amateurish. All three of these elements, although seemingly likely to herald disaster, worked to such an extent that years later many bands began to be wildly inspired by Thergothon, and at the time of its premiere, apart from the debut of Skepticism, it was difficult to find more somber music from the circle of a large part of funeral doom metal. This was best illustrated by the Finns' only album, entitled "Stream From The Heavens", and interestingly, it was released after the group's split-up, in 1994.

However, it was a very specific music, which even today requires a lot of effort to be fully convinced of. The whole of "Stream From The Heavens" is extremely slow, gloomy, poorly produced and full of keyboards that smell like the cheapest Casio. The best part...there's nothing wrong with that! The atmosphere the Finns achieved in such spartan conditions came into truly quality, sincere and unique music. The riffs are very sparse (to make them sound as long as possible), and heaviness explodes out of them at every step, the drummer beats the rhythm as monotonously as possible (which is not an objection, of course), the atmosphere oozes only sadness and mourning, buzzing keyboards enhance the dense atmosphere, while the cleaner and guttural vocals give the feeling of being in touch with something akin to a ritual. Sure, at first glance it's easy to feel that "Stream..." sounds quite cheap and the vocals on it are downright funny. Fortunately, however, the feeling of embarrassment passes faster than you might think, because you can clearly feel from these sounds that despite their modest and grossly budget setting, they are completely authentic, beautifully spiritual and conveying greater depth. Try to listen to for example, "Who Rides The Astral Wings", "Elemental", "Everlasting" or "Crying Blood/Crimson Snow", and you will know how unique the atmosphere is here.

For such a short period of activity, the Finnish Thergothon has made a huge achievement in the terms of the slowest types of metal. Their only album "Stream From The Heavens" is a piece of sincere and somber music which, regardless of production and kitschy keyboards, intrigues and cannot distract you with its unique atmosphere and sense of loss. With such a sparing approach, they created a complete work in terms of funeral doom metal. Certainly difficult to understand, but incredibly unique.

Originally on A bit of subjectivism...in metal