Sombre

Bands like Veil intensely annoy me. I’m sure we all know at least one band of a similar nature. You know the type, so come on, share in my hatred! The one’s which create material in year X and sit on that material like its some sort of egg with life inside it, preparing and waiting to hatch. Veil’s debut full-length, ‘Sombre’, was written between the years 1997 and 2006, but for some reason, it wasn’t released until as recent as 2008. According to the bands profile, they weren’t even established until 2003, so this two man band had been sitting on material for a long time before they finally decided it was worthwhile taking the chance and recording it for the ears of the public. The annoyance arises from the fact that Veil are actually a band with two good musicians, one’s which are evidently capable of competing in the local and worldwide market for accolades that are only dished out to the very best. The glaringly obvious fact that Veil is a band consisting of two well informed musicians who know the black metal style in-and-out makes them a potentially brilliant prospect, but until we have a substantial amount of material to dissect, we will never know whether this potential is unfounded, or whether it was rightly highlighted.

With the release of ‘Sombre’, we become one step closer to knowing the truth. This is a stunning record made with Velvet Cacoon in mind, is the debut full-length, though there was a belief that ‘Dolor’ was the original debut, an opinion I myself held for many years until an update of the main page stuck, confirming ‘Sombre’ as the debut full-length record, released through established label, Stellar Winter Records, a label home to a number of well known Eastern European bands such as Branikald and Walknut, very much so a well loved band. The abilities of this band were obviously noticeable to more people than just myself as ‘Dolor’ was highly rated and the band were picked up by a successful label who, as previously mentioned, are home to a number of Europe’s obscure elite. As I’ve already mentioned, this record seems to be made with fellow American band Velvet Cacoon in mind. I wouldn’t rate this record as highly as I do ‘Genevieve’, a record I wouldn’t rate most others higher than, though it is made in likeness to it, or so it would seem.

If ‘Genevieve’ is God, then ‘Sombre’ is Jesus Christ, a man made in the image and likeness of God himself. This record does differ however, so don’t go expecting a carven copy of Velvet Cacoon’s hypnotic masterpiece, one which epitomises the wall-of-noise sound very few black metal bands can pull off. Though this record may consist of a number of similar elements, like the distorted hypnotic base, I would consider ‘Sombre’ a lot more adventurous than ‘Genevieve’, a record which stuck firmly to a monotonous sound, one which depicted a fine frenzy of wintry imagery and vast desolation with a sense of beauty intermingled between ideas. Songs like ‘Mater Maternis’ are fine examples of how the similarities are adopted into this piece and how the differences force the two to sound varied. The vocals, which come in the form of a whispering rasp are buried deep inside the guitar distortion and repetitive bass section, but unlike Velvet Cacoon, Veil are not content to continue this trend throughout the entire duration of the record and, instead, they mix it up with some innovative techniques.

These techniques, which become pivotal to the record and sustaining a sense of individuality, which helps maintain that Veil are their own creation, not merely a clone of the mysterious Velvet Cacoon, a band shrouded in far more uncertainty than Veil. The similarities mean that Veil also like to depict a cold wintry sound, but as with songs like the enigmatic ‘Resilience’, Veil separate themselves by introducing what sounds like a clean keyboard based atmosphere and a outside influence from the one and only Burzum. This song shows a different side to Veil, though most would have initially expected something similar to what we eventually get, though the addition of distant clean vocals which remind me of the haunting voice of Joy Division’s Ian Curtis transforms this from a standardised hypnotic black metal beast into a unique and slightly surreal song with hidden depths, though this element is a sparse quality from within.

The fact that ‘Sombre’ exists as a record you need to hear numerous times to fully appreciate and understand every elements individual task makes it a one-of-a-kind in the industry. A lot of black metal records are easy to figure out from the get-go, but not this one. The keyboard based synths add a subtle beauty to the face of desolation which comes in the form of the distortion guitar, audible tremolo bass lines and repetitive drum patterns all alongside the integral vocals, the voice of mystique and intrigue. Usually, the problem with bands in this style is that the main guitar riffs, the central point and most important factor, aren’t the symbol of longevity. This isn’t a problem that exists for Veil who’re the masters are making mesmerising and affective black metal songs that transport their ideas straight into the long-term memory, skipping the short-term memory as it is not needed. Hopefully, this won’t just be a flash in the pan and Veil will stick it out. I hope to see a sophomore soon, though it is easy to imagine one not appearing until five or more years down the line, such is life when dealing bands of this nature.