Description
2021 press on black vinyl with insert. Limited 250 copies
Black Hole is a metal band that owes quite a bit to their countrys horror tradition. Indeed, Land of Mystery sounds like a film soundtrack: the band uses a lot of repetitive, hypnotic, unobtrusive riffs and melodies as well as the classic, 70s-Italian-horror synth. So, the question then becomes: What kind of Italian horror are we talking about? The gothic-horror ambience is reminiscent of early Mario Bava, complete with homages to Hammer horror. But thats not all the album has to offer: the primitive sound seems comparable to Fulcis cinematic style and several songs verge into Goblin worship. The strong point of the album, then, is definitely its lead guitar and keyboard melodies, which are very effective in evoking charmingly corny horror movie soundtracks. The riffs really just fill out the sonic texture, playing second fiddle to the Paul Chain-esque leads. This formula can work quite effectively, particularly on All My Evil, but it also makes for some very strange songwriting. The transition between the many ambient or keyboard/organ interludes and metal riffs is obviously a bit difficult. At their best, though, Black Hole are masters of making their song intros absolutely essential to the song, something that many metal bands could learn from. The problem the band faces in this regard is that theyre effectively trying to fit the progressive, ambient feel of a Goblin film soundtrack into distinct songs written in a traditional metal structure. As a result, some of their songs give way to repetition, particularly early in the album with the song Demoniac City. Then again, that song fails because they didnt have a good riff in the first place. As the album progresses, it seems the band allowed themselves a bit more freedom in their compositions, as is evidenced by the longer songs. Hell, there are about two minutes of Land of Mystery which are carried almost entirely by the bass riff. The drums, though, are given short shrift in a move that takes us back to Hammer horror and earlier Black Hole havent really picked up on Goblins innovative use of percussion in their horror soundtracks. Land of Mystery has the advantage of being primarily concerned with atmosphere: in a way, many of its flaws help it develop an atmosphere specifically, the atmosphere of Italian horror. Its difficult to explain the unique feel or charm of an Italian horror movie to someone who is unfamiliar with the genre and, likewise, I suspect that Land of Mystery is the type of album that underground metal/horror movie enthusiasts love and everyone else will never fully appreciate. It has some notable failings but, for the sake of its campy charisma and for being a unique, clever album, I wouldnt part with it for the world.
Track listing:
1. Demoniac City
2. Land Of Mystery
3. All My Evil
4. Bells Of Death
5. Blind Men And Occult Forces
6. Spectral World
7. Obscurity In The Ethereal House