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INFESTUS
The Reflecting Void

Debemur Morti Productions (2014)
Rating: 7.5/10

The enigmatic Infestus are back with a new album, a prolific one-man band if ever there was one. The Reflecting Void is the fourth episode in the discography of Andras, who formed this German band back in 2003.

I am not familiar with the previous works of Infestus, but expected this to be a routine grim black metal experience. Thankfully, I was way off the mark with this one. This album boasts eight tracks which while clearly having a black metal influence, also inject traditional metal doses with occasional cosmic meanderings. While there is a stark quality about this composition, there are so many different moods and emotions cast out from the blackness. This always showcases the remarkable talent of Andras, who has painstakingly put together this interesting piece.

It’s not an easy album to describe – despite the often fast and furious black metal assaults – because there are also many segments of slower tempo too where Andras combines doomier passages with spacious vacuums that are driven by cavernous drum thrashes, melancholic guitars and those effective rasps.

Judging by the three year gaps between most of his albums, Andras clearly takes a good amount of time piecing together his soundscapes, resulting in tracks of darkness and – above all – depth where the usual expected strains of enveloping blackness are contrasted by some intriguing subtleties.

This is apparent on the likes of the seven-minute ‘Spiegel der Seele’, which leads us into some truly murky territory that effectively marries more haunting chambers of thoughtful solos with faster sections. On the equally epic ‘Devouring Darkness’, meanwhile, there is a cold, melancholic air as Andras lurches into a fully blistering attack of scathing guitars and hyper drums until we’re dragged unexpectedly into an almost enchanting chamber of whispers, where – unbeknown to us – we are then throttled once again by the burst of speed.

The nine-minute ‘Cortical Spreading Darkness’ forces us to trudge further into the pitch black and chilly passageways where the riffs are baked harder and edgier – forged from the fire of Hell’s flickering flames. Andras sounds even more pissed off in spite of the distant melody hidden behind the wall of freezing fog, and this theme continues with the lurking menace of ‘Constant Soul Corrosion’ and the gloomy aggression of ‘Origin’.

The Reflecting Void is a very good black metal opus boasting underground, esoteric flavour and enough pace and passion to deter the light from seeping through the cracks.

Neil Arnold

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