Review Summary: While you can find many influences from bands that have come before, BMH have really captured their own haunting sound on Wyllt. They channel a dark, psychedelic atmosphere that ranges from an eerie beauty to completely oppressive.
The name Wyllt comes from Welsh folklore, Myrddin Wyllt is a legendary figure and a proto-Merlin character. The mystic nature of the character and his story merges with the album’s atmosphere to create one of the most creative sounds heard this year. “Tyrant” opens up the album with the guitar mesmerizing the listener over the slow motion drum beat of a horseman riding. Isis instantly comes to mind during this song, using the soft/loud structure. The listener will soon become entranced by the beautiful, icy voice Sera Timms. Her vocals provide a chilling sense the something bad is about to happen or maybe already has.
The track “Deerslayer” really brings to mind Grail’s “Doomsayer’s Holiday”, as do a few others on the album. It’s mainly the wailing, drunken bluesy riff at the beginning that shows up later on in the song. The drums come in pummeling displaying the talent in that department but soon everything becomes calm again. The band really shows restraint but not to the point where it is boring. The world of sound crafted by the band brings to mind an experience of being surrounded by a cold mist, where foreboding yet enticing figures begin to form. The instruments are layered masterfully and work together to bring the listener into the majestic and starling album. Scott Reeder (Goatsnake, Kyuss) really seems to capture what the band was going for here.
While the lyrics are hard to make out, they seem to have some depth. The vocals are mainly there to hang in the background, almost like some ritualistic arcane chant. The guitar work is powerful where it counts and still intoxicates the listener during the more minimal passages of gloom. It can provide light in the darkened cavern of sound or create the unnerving shadows. “Bird of All Faiths and None/ Bell from Madrone” showcase what this band is about and also feature the heaviest parts of the album. The 11 minute epic comes to the crashing climax like a great storm.
For fans of darker psychedelic music, echoing post rock and crushing doom, Wyllt will easily find a place at your top albums for the year. The more times you experience this album, the deeper you get pulled in, especially when listening to it all the way through. The post-metal/rock genre has seen a large amount of attention in the past years and some bands choose to innovate, while others follow directly in their forefather’s footsteps. While I would hesitate to fully place BMH in that genre, they are definitely finding their own path in heavy, atmospheric music with Wyllt.
