Review Summary: They didn't disappoint in the past, they don't disappoint now.
Australian atmospheric / depressive black metal outlet Austere have had a relatively far-reaching impact within that particular scene in the 00’s, before disbanding in 2010 shortly after their acclaimed second album To Lay Like Old Ashes. Having been brought back to life for a couple of years now, 2023 marks the return of the project with a brand new full length album that stands strong on the musical roots they set themselves two and a half decades ago, but still glimpses forward. It also consists of the same two members, multi-instrumentalist Tim Yatras (aka Sorrow) and Mitchell Keepin (aka Desolate), who has also been involved, among others, in Temple Nightside and is the vocalist of the exceptionally good Unfelled.
Corrosion of Hearts has overly slow-paced, gloomy compositions, provoking feelings of weariness and melancholy while maintaining a certain level of tearing beauty as if you’re in the process of letting yourself into sadness and you like it. The context can in itself be quite fragile, as bands that aim for such soundscapes can often fall flat if the emotion is not manifested in the music, resulting in totally dull and uninteresting albums that one might as well skip. However, Austere has had enough mileage in this already and manages a fine delivery with this record, which is generally well-thought and efficient.
The production has cleared up significantly and makes the record easier to listen to, or at least always in terms of this genre. It is by no means an inaccessible, prolific depressive black metal album that will place a noose around your neck while you’re listening. Clean vocals can be heard here and there, like in the introduction of “Pale” or the middle part of “Sullen”, with the latter also featuring short howling screams towards the end in the same manner as they were employed in abundance on previous Austere works, and I honestly miss a bit here. Apart from these two cases, the rest of the high-pitched shrieking that constitute the biggest chunk of the vocal work in Corrosion of Hearts is fine and flows well with the atmosphere created from the rest of the instrumentation.
Guitars mourn throughout the whole of the record, with a highlight track being “A Ravenous Oblivion” and especially its epic closing and even more epic vocals. Neat usage of the piano for the introductions of “The Poisoned Core” and “Pale” also stands out, and several sections of the compositions feature additional synth keyboards for a background texture that adds nicely to the woeful melodies. Austere’s wholehearted new effort presents a sound that is characteristic of them and their fans might have missed. It has been years since I last listened to the band and Corrosion of Hearts gave me a similar instinctive reaction as when listening to, e.g. Agalloch. It might also speak to more ears than its genre suggests, for it's affectionate as much as it is desperate. Welcome back guys.
