The sun shines this morning; the warmth hits me and makes me feel like hope is within reach. There’s a brief moment of joy in this peace and calm. Wouldn’t it be awesome to ruin all that with some Stoner/Doom Metal straight from Albany, NY? You’re right, that’s exactly what we should do, which is why today, we’re going to talk about Carnwennan – Lotus, an album that promises to burn down any feelings of happiness you were planning to have today. I know you like pain, so let’s just stop the nonsense and judge if this debut (yes, another one) breaks us or not.
Lotus is slow and I don’t mean it in the Sleep way, I mean it in the SLOW way—you know, that band that every time it releases something, it sends a hundred people to therapy. Lotus sounds crushing and dirty! But I must say that for 75% of the album, I enjoyed that pace. Most of the tracks (“I”, “II”, “III”) pick up the speed in such a rewarding way that honestly, it makes you accept the first five minutes of whatever reverberating wanking the band wants to present. It does make it feel deep if you have the patience or if you’re consuming substances that enhance your life quality (we all know what I mean, right? Hehe…).
The production decisions are interesting here. Yes, it’s dirty and unpolished, but make no mistake, Lotus isn’t cheap or careless. This is clearly intended to create a depressing atmosphere that will remind you of when your goldfish died or a bunch of carcasses rotting—same thing in the end, I guess. Those desperate vocals will remind you a bit of Amenra at the same time that those cemetery riffs will bring back the good times of Monolithe (Monolithe II and III, of course!). But how about the things you should be wary of? After all, this is Stoner/Doom and you’re not on substances when reading this article wink wink.
How can I say this? “IV” is a track that you honestly have to be going through something to properly enjoy. It’s mostly a deep sound game that, though interesting, is way too contrasting and abstract to finish up this album, which had excellent pace until that point. You might be thinking, “but what’s wrong? It’s only one track”. You’re right, it’s one 16+ minute-long track—a short reenactment of Dopesmoker; an album legendary for being basically a trolling endeavor (or at least I like to see it that way, because otherwise, why!). I’m not on enough medication to enjoy this material, and I sincerely hope you’re not either. There are other minor issues, such as the length of “I”, or we could argue about how much new ground Lotus is exploring, but that’s being annoying. I do think overall there’s something conceptually fresh here.
Fine, you like your music with addiction challenges, that’s awesome! But you also want it terribly depressing? Excellent! Then Carnwennan has what you need. You just need to be ready to have the patience of a parent after their kid asks them to look at them jumping off the sofa for the 200th time (except you’re not that blinded by love here). Regardless of my words here, just go and try it out! Nothing like regret to cheer up the day.
Label: Darkest Records
Release date: 31 May, 2024
Website: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558104848170
Country: USA
Score: a beautifully dead rose, or 3.0/5.0 for you nitpickers
Metal Eclipse Reviews 