Review Summary: True beauty can always be found in the most tranquil form of existence.
To be honest with you, I literally know nothing about Worm Ouroboros. They're one of those bands that the occasional user on Sputnikmusic will come across while looking at 'best of' lists (or lists in general) hoping to find something that they've overlooked, and sometimes something even more magical to go alongside their favorite albums of all time. In this case, I was looking at 'best of' lists so far from 2012 and I came upon
Come the Thaw by Worm Ouroboros. Just like everyone else who looks for music (or at least the majority), a person's interest is usually sparked by the visual appearance; the album art. The album art is quite eerie when you look at it with a deeper observation instead of a quick glance. Especially when you see sorrowful eyes on the deer who's had their antlers broken off. A personal compliment goes straight to the artist for such vivid detail that outlines the total vibe of this melancholic journey presented in
Come the Thaw.
For an album that was released back in March, it's truly hard to believe that this was overlooked that month. But then again, I'm not too surprised that they're aren't well know, so it makes perfect sense to see why
Come the Thaw isn't getting its praise that it rightfully deserves. But, it's apart of the natural process of finding beauty. You can't completely rely on others, thankfully with today's technology it's easier to find music that almost seems life changing in ones mood immediately, but it's still a rare feat.
The first song on the album may be ten and a half minutes long, but it becomes a song that slows down time upon your listen when you have your complete utmost attention capitulating towards the music. Only true beauty can capture that form of space time continuum. While the album seems like one long song all together, it respectably holds various melancholic moods presented that keeps changing in variety that ultimately holds a flow that seems to give the illusion of one song, but reality shows that it's six ethereal songs
From male and female vocal harmonies that focuses around what seems to be a darker vocal arrangement similar to Ulver's
Kveldssanger. To a broader format of depressing female vocals gives the album's mood of melancholy. With melodic guitar arpeggios and riffs that have post-rock influences that aren't consisting of the same level of climax presented in every post rock song made by God is an Astronaut, it also has a touch of doom influence as well as other genres. To compliment the guitars we also see a melodic bass that adds atmosphere rather then playing root notes, which, together both types of guitars keep an underlying layer of melody behind the female vocals. Along with dynamic drums that change consistently in mood, tempo, and style only perfect the melancholic mood that has already been presented by the other musicians. Surprisingly enough, the drums play a huge role in the music's shifts throughout the album only to prove that guitars aren't the only instrument that can add atmosphere and melody, which refrains the album from being monotonous. With all of these characteristics,
Come the Thaw becomes a wonderful journey within the melancholic realm of music.
Personally, I would go to the lengths and recommend this album to any post-rock, prog rock, and prog metal fan out there. If you can somehow spare fifty-one minutes of your free time, and listen to this album in complete silence and solitude. Then by all means sit back and relax, and enjoy.
Come the Thaw is truly a work of art that has been overlooked this year, and probably one of the best albums this year as well.
