Fourth album for Slovenians Beneath The Storm, one of the first bands years ago to join the Argonauta Records roster. As always, these Slovenians give us a concept album, this time about nightmares, multidimensional doors that open between our subconscious and distant worlds. Besides being a very enjoyable album, Lucid Nightmare also marks a new musical poetics of the band. Leaving behind certain sonic asperities of heavy sludge, Beneath The Storm have sought out sounds closer to stoner sludge on this record, with a very strong grunge feel, close to that factory of music and pain called Alice In Chains. The sound is no longer melodic, it has changed from the starting point of their distorted and almost atmospheric sludge to a more organic and perhaps simpler sound, better than before, although a true comparison cannot be made as the environment has changed radically. One can speak of maturation, but I think that such versatile and capable musicians can and should change their sound when and how they want to. Out of mental habit to their previous records I expected something different and when I listened to the record I was pleasantly surprised and really convinced of the strength of this record. Beneath The Storm make a further leap for their music, which becomes something much more usable and even more fascinating than before. The record is about sleep, our daily death that gives birth to sick worlds within us, because nightmares are much more interesting and everyday than dreams. Beneath The Storm make us realise, with this heavy yet ethereal music, that the nightmare is our true natural habitat, and that there is nothing wrong with making our trapped selves scream in the waking hours. A disc poised between dream and death, a great proof of maturity for the band. (M.Argo – MetalEyes 15/7/2016)
2016 – Argonauta Records
Mournful Sounds 