Susurrus by Ophidian Forest

Hailing from Croatia, the Netherlands, and San Francisco, the three members of Ophidian Forest have never rehearsed together. Still they’ve managed to record three albums of chaotic pantheist black metal that owes a debt to Glorior Belli, Deathspell Omega, and drummer/dulcimer player Otrebor’s own plant-themed Botanist project.

Susurrus is the final full length from the band, and finds them pursuing a straight forward but clattering sound that seems simultaneously distant but full. Evocative, funereal synths meet the metallic ring of hammered dulcimer under a canopy of wildlife and birdsong, recalling the nature worship of near-forgotten pagan tradition.

If this is truly the last record from this mysterious trio then they end things appropriately, as the raging black metal fades out one final time, the sound of a forest at night comes in, reminding listeners where the real mystery dwells.

AWP022

A Bay Area based label dedicated primarily to the release of unique and original black metal with the occasional experimental or ambient release thrown in for good measure.

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