Review Summary: When keeping it kvlt goes wrong.
US Black Metal gets a lot of undeserved *** thrown its way. Bands like Wolves in the Throne Room, Grand Belial's Key, and Nightbringer have all shown that the United States can be just as grim as Scandinavia. Sure, not every band is top notch, but even Europe has its fair share of abysmally bad Black Metal acts (I'm looking at you Nifelheim!). Unfortunately, this stereotype exists for a reason. That reason is Xasthur.
All Reflections Drained is the latest effort (and I use that word liberally) from Xasthur's sole member, Malefic. Much like the rest of Xasthur's releases, it attempts at a more atmospheric sound than its predecessors. The result is fifty-seven minutes of mind numbing haze with each track more monotonous than the last. "Dirge Forsaken" starts off
All Reflections Drained at a snail's pace. The repetitive dissonance of the guitars and the horribly mixed drums would almost be bearable if it wasn't for the overtly kvlt production that drenches the album in a bottomless pit of reverb, making everything blend together into an ungodly cesspool of indistinguishable buzzing. This hits its worst on "Damage Your Soul" as it makes the buzz saw tremolo picking sound like a hive of bees attacking a marching band drummer. The production also relegates Malefic's vocals to nothing more than background noise. The overuse of reverb and delay on his barely audible screams makes him sound more like field recordings of wind. I'm sure the original intent was to add to the "depressing" atmosphere of the music, but in the end it's just pointless.
All Reflections Drained is a sprawling adventure into boredom that further reinforces the belief that the only worthwhile release with the Xasthur name was his split with Leviathan some five years ago. Furthermore, the overuse of cliche' songwriting ideas and its gimmicky production place
All Reflections Drained at the bottom of the barrel when it comes to US Black Metal.
