Bedroom Black Metal bands are a dime a dozen these days. Everywhere on the web, you could find links to new "underground" Black Metal bands that are "brutal" and "kvlt" and laughably "innovative". In most cases however, these bands are worse than the cliched descriptions they use to define themselves. Luckily for world of music though, Beyond Light, a Black Metal project consisting of sole member Belfalas is a guiding light, for the often misguided genre. Combining elements of Ambient Black Metal, with Avant-Garde influences Beyond Light's first EP
The Scars of Daylight is a brief, yet interesting journey into a world of atmospheric experimentation.
The Scars of Daylight while minimalistic in instrumental technicality, perfectly utilizes Ringelberg's keen sense of simple melodic passages. For the majority of the album, the guitars take a much softer role than most other Black Metal releases, but make up for their lack of brutality in intense, claustrophobic swathes of clean guitar strumming. Haunting harmonies such as in the intro of
The Scars of Daylight III help the record stand out from the pack, being truly memorable and catchy. When the guitars do kick in the distortion however, they are fairly reminiscent of Darkthrone, not through tone or sound quality, but through the sheer hypnotic qualities of the riffs. The drum playing on this album, are mostly simple patterns that could be played by anyone. While it is nothing special, the lack of technicality adds impressively to the atmosphere of the record, perfectly intertwining with the other instruments.
The vocals on the album are scarce, but when Belfalas uses his hoarse rasp it is quite apparent how excellent it is. His delivery is supremely emotive, his pain and hurt easily conveyed throughout the album. He even takes a few risks, using his Black Metal screech during clean picked guitar sections, (like during some parts of
The Scars of Daylight II) and surprisingly,they work amazingly well. The production on the album is actually very well done, a difference from other bands of the sort. All instruments (even the rare inclusion of bass) are heard without struggle. Although Belfalas vocals are somewhat buried under the other instruments, this once again adds to the bleak atmosphere, making it perfectly acceptable.
While Beyond Light may not be outstandingly new and fresh, they do a damn good job of creating such unique and enjoyable atmosphere that it really doesn't matter anyway. Wearing his influences on his sleeve, Belfalas combination of Black Metal, Avant-Garde and even Soft Rock traits within his music help make for an EP that never lets up on interesting moments. Whether you're forte is soft, serene instrumentals or Darkthrone worthy drone guitars,
The Scars of Daylight has something everyone can enjoy and without a doubt, should be picked up by anyone searching for new, exciting music.
