Month: April 2013

Effigies Of Desolation is not the new Ophis record, but it is a collection, in the format of a double CD that, under the aegis of Cyclone Empire, reissues the debut full length, Stream Of Misery and the previous ep Nostrae Mortis Signaculum, which have not been available on the market for years, in addition to the very first demo recorded and some live tracks. This operation might appear all in all premature, considering that the German band does not have a particularly rich discography behind it, having to its credit only one other record in addition to the material present in this reissue; the sense of the initiative, however, can be guessed by listening carefully to the two tracks contained in the split with Officium Triste, Immersed, released last year, which showed a different face of the Hamburg-based band that seems to want to break free from the canons of death doom, leaning toward a sound that is always dark but simultaneously open to a contamination with post metal. In light of this, listening to Effigies Of Desolation constitutes a sort of plunge into a past that no longer represents the Ophis to come, but the fact remains that for a death doom fan, listening to dark and melancholic tracks such as Pazuzu or Dolor Nil Finis always constitutes a priceless pleasure. Even the older tracks show the band’s worth while simultaneously highlighting what its evolution has been in a relatively short period of time. As is the case with most compilations, it is not so much the music on it as its actual usefulness that is questioned; the fact remains that Stream Of Misery is a truly splendid record so those who do not own the original copy could take advantage of this opportunity to grab it in an enriched guise with content of unquestionable interest. 

2013 – Cyclone Empire