Depressive black metal is a genre that we don’t often deal with, a bit because there aren’t many releases that come to our attention but, above all, because those few we consider more appropriate to ignore them for the improbable quality of the recordings and for the banality of the contents. This is not the case of Fade Away Gradually, My Hope…, first work of the Roman Misere Nobis: in fact, here we are in front of a work that shows only the best part of this particular form of metal. The sounds are excellent, unlike what often happens with productions defined euphemistically lo-fi, not infrequently for the questionable choice of the musicians themselves; even the exasperated scream, with which Ø Negativ screams to the world the deep existential discomfort of contemporary man, is well balanced with the rest of the instruments. The five long tracks shine for emotional intensity, which is exactly what you expect from the depressive: claustrophobic atmospheres but, at the same time, soaked in melancholic despair, inserted in a black metal structure with slowdowns that often border on doom. A track by track description is not suitable for an album like this, which should be assimilated as a whole, each episode has elements of interest and, above all, moments that can remain impressed for a long time; surely it is right to mention a song like Mors Omnia Solvit with its beautiful melody that, although repeated almost endlessly, manages to create the desired effect annihilating. This is a debut really of absolute level: there is no doubt that the depressive remains a niche genre, so even less than those who play black metal, in a country with a poor musical culture like ours, it will be possible for Gris and members to get a satisfactory visibility. But it is clear that if, for those who undertake such a musical journey, the last purpose is to be able to attract the masses, I believe, however, that the only intent of those who pursue these artistic forms is to express the malaise creeping and widespread that grips a large part of humanity. In the case of Misere Nobis this objective is largely achieved.

2012 – Pest Productions