__________.____ ______________________________ .__ _______ ________ \______ \ | \_ _____/\_ _____/\______ \ |__|\ \ / _____/ | | _/ | | __)_ | __)_ | | \| |/ | \/ \ ___ | | \ |___ | \ | \ | ` \ / | \ \_\ \ |______ /_______ \/_______ //_______ //_______ /__\____|__ /\______ / \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ artist: F├╕sphene title: F├╕sphene year: 2025 genre: Black Metal type: Album label: Independent language: English rel. date: 2025-05-03 source: WEB/MP3 quality: CBR 320kbps / 44.1 kHz / Full Stereo runtime: 00:38:46 size: 96.75 MB rip date: 2025-08-04 source url: https://www.deezer.com/album/751297211 tracklist: 1. F├╕sphene 4:16 2. Eden 5:30 3. Memento Mori 6:37 4. Horizontal Ambient Cry 8:03 5. Apostasy 3:44 6. Prevenient 10:36 release notes: You might have difficulty trying to guess about the nature of the music based on the cover painting by Winslow Homer ("Watching the Breakers," 1891). The music turns out to be as intriguing as the choice of artwork. It may be the power of suggestion at work, but I came to think of the music as a kind of black metal Americana. On the one hand, F├╕sphene inflict corrosive riffing and blasting drums, music that's raw and ruinous, coupled with cut-throat snarls. On the other hand, the guitars also brightly ring and vividly swirl (only lightly coated in grit or very clean), the drums rumble and pound, and the bass seems to muse. On the third hand, F├╕sphene create magnificent musical panoramas. On the fourth hand, they use softly spoken words and a gentle piano melody to open the long closing song (while a storm seems to blow in the background). Even when the rapidly whirring riffage roars and cuts like a sandstorm, and especially when it pierces with relative clarity, it carries discernible melodies that channel discernible emotions and get stuck in the head - moods of yearning and desolation as well as moods of anger, wonder, and jubilation. F├╕sphene describe what they're doing as "Brandishing American nihilism", but to my ears they wear their hearts on their sleeves. Especially for a debut album, the songwriting is very strong. All the performers are given a lot of freedom in the often elaborate ways in which they embellish the songs, but every part beautifully interlocks in the creation of atmosphere and emotion. F├╕sphene clearly had elevated ambitions for this album, and for the most part they beautifully achieved them.