Noctambulist - The Barren Form (2021)

Noctambulist is a blackened death metal band from Denver. Their 2019 debut album Atmospheres of Desolation was an interesting and twisty take on the brutal arts, aptly reflecting its name through an onslaught of vicious vocals, shredding riffs, and relentless percussion, through a contemplative dissonant melodic template. According to the illustrious Kronos, it still needed to hone its songwriting and set out on its own non-Ulcerate-ordained path. Emphasizing atmosphere over brutality, followup The Barren Form enacts much of the same, resulting in an evocative, if not milquetoast, death metal excursion to the depths.

What makes The Barren Form so listenable is Noctambulist‘s ability to fuse heaviness and obscurity without diving headlong into the weird-ass Portal portal or the Devourment meat grinder. Shredding riffs and pummeling blastbeats appear alongside haunting and dissonant plucking, punctuated by passages of dark ambiance and jazzy complexity – with none of its various interpretations forgoing its pitch-black tone. Although The Barren Form by no means employs the cavernous tones of OSDM, Noctambulist utilizes the plodding riffs of Behemoth and the subtle semitones and wonky rhythms a la Fractal Generator with unhinged drumming, fiery vocals, and an ear for swelling ambiance to create a sound undeniably subterranean. Sunless, maddening, and haunting, The Barren Form surges and swells with electric energy. “Engulfed” enacts this beautifully, balancing angular staccato riffs that devolve into shuddering dissonance. “Contrivance” and “Dissolution” offer stinging melodies and jazzy bass noodling, followed by gut-dropping chugs and melody that hints beauty before twisting it with mechanical precision – a waking fever dream to a wailing siren.