Silence isn’t always golden. In representing the five stages of mourning in musical form, Kreng uses silence to great dramatic effect. The sombre, brooding musical passages occasionally burst into heavy crescendos that jolt the listener. But it’s the silence that hurts the most. The defined absence. Not knowing precisely when the silence will be broken is uncomfortable and uneasy. With ‘The Summoner’, Kreng forces us to confront our fear of silence. And when the silence is broken, swarming strings build unbearable tension, scraping and scratching, teetering tones to set the teeth and nails on edge before storms of thunder break. Kreng is a master of suspense as he leads us on a journey that's both sonic and emotional.
Ominous drones and distant drums rumble and build to a surging swell in the darkness of ‘Depression’. ‘The Summoning’ is the centrepiece. Featuring Amenra and spanning some 15 minutes, it’s sombre, majestic and a truly epic composition. The crushing guitars grind their way through to infinity through a dirge that soundtracks a procession to the other side. The pain and anguish finally concedes to tranquil ‘Acceptance’.
|
Born out of personal tragedy, which witnessed the death of several close friends, Kreng presents an intensely personal album that’s ultimately relatable. The fact it’s extremely harrowing at times renders the calming redemption that concludes this extremely powerful work all the more relieving.
Kreng Online
|
