_ _______ _ ...:... _ _______ _ ___ / .:::::::::::. \ ___ | / .. (:::::::::::::) .. \ | | . .:::::.`:::::::::::'.:::::. . | | .::.. `:::.::':::`::.:::' ..::. | _ _______ | .::' ::::':::::`:::: `::. | _______ _ \\ | | :: `' ::':`:: `' :: | | // \ | | `:. .::' . `::. .:' | | / . | | .::::::..::::' ... `::::..::::::. | | . | | `:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::' | | .... | | `:' `::::: :: :: :::::' `:' | | .... | ' | : `. ': :: :: :: :: :` .' : | ` | |.....: . .......: :: :: :: :: : ...... . : ....| . ...................: : :: :: :: :: : : ................. . _____________:_____________ _____________:_____________ _ ___\` __ /_\` _______/_\` __ _/_\` /___ _ // __ / (/ ___/ (/ _ (/ /_______/\ _ _ /_________ ___________ ______/\ _ ______________/\__/_ _ \\\\\_________\__/\_________\__/\_____/\_____/\____________/ /// - -\-\-----------\__/----------\__/-------\_____/---------------/-/- - - -------------------: : :. ..:: :: . :------------------ - : : :......: :: :` ': :: : .....: : : ___ _ | | : ` ' : | | _ ___ _\---------- : | -------- : B E R C : -------- | : ----------/_ /_\ . : . ..:.. ..:.. . : . /_\ /// . . : : . . \\\ /: :\ /:: Artist :: Gaerea ::\ :: Album :: Coma :: :: Year :: 2024 :: :: __ _ _ __ :: -:--\\-----------------------------------------------------------------//--:- :: \ / :: :: . Genre :: Black Metal Source :: CD . :: :: Label :: Valhall Music R.date :: 2025-03-21 :: _::__ Cat.nr. :: VLH082 S.date :: 2024-10-25 __::_ ::// \\:: ::/---------------------------------------------------------------------\:: :: :: /: Encoder :: LAME 3.100 -V0 :\ ..: Bitrate :: avg. 253kbps :.. . Quality :: 44.1 kHz/Joint Stereo . . Size :: 96.72 MB . . . http://gaerea.bandcamp.com __ __ _ . : _ ____ _ _ ____ _ : . _ __ __ .\\\\------- : | ---\ /---------------------\ /--- | : -------////. +/ -\------- | | ----\ tracklist /---- | | -------/- \+ /: . : : . :\ /:: ::\ :: 1. The Poet's Ballet 7:39 :: :: 2. Hope Shatters 4:05 :: :: 3. Suspended 5:02 :: :: 4. World Ablaze 3:29 :: :: 5. Coma 5:19 :: :: 6. Wilted Flower 5:50 :: :: 7. Reborn 3:51 :: :: 8. Shapeshifter 6:24 :: :: 9. Unknown 4:24 :: :: 10. Kingdom of Thorns 4:45 :: :: :: :: :: :: ------- :: .. >> 50:48 .. __ __ _ . : _ ____ _ _ ____ _ : . _ __ __ .\\\\------- : | ---\ /---------------------\ /--- | : -------////. +/ -\------- | | ----\ release notes /---- | | -------/- \+ /: . : : . :\ /:: ::\ :: :: :: Gaerea is a case in point for why you ought never to dismiss a :: :: subgenre of metal.1 People rageùin varying degrees of :: :: jestùagainst what gets dubbed ôatmo-butt black metal,ö as :: :: though all black metal that incorporates atmosphere into a :: :: non-raw melodic template is for overeager, moist-eyed poseurs. :: :: While I happen to disagree with the sentiment in general, :: :: Gaerea is certainly in the upper echelons of this maligned :: :: group. The way that they have continued to develop their sound :: :: has taken them outside the confines of what can :: :: straightforwardly be called ôatmospheric black,ö but one thing :: :: has remained consistent: their emphasis on emotional :: :: expression. With Unsettling Whispers and Limbo representing :: :: anguished, hopeless groping in the existential darkness, 2022Æs :: :: Mirageùmy album of that yearùsaw that pain sharpened as it was :: :: channeled through a series of individual human struggles. Now :: :: Coma sees Gaerea again use separate stories of sorrow to evolve :: :: a little more, presenting a new and more vulnerable side to :: :: their distinctive intensity. :: :: :: :: As a conduit for ardent emotionality, Coma is just as :: :: (melo)dramatic and steeped in affect as anything Gaerea has :: :: created, but it is not the same. Expanding their range, their :: :: music is now (more) hopeful, uplifting, and poignant. The :: :: jangling, sinister tremolo refrains, the swoops and surges of :: :: blastbeats, the roaring, theyÆre all still there, but theyÆre :: :: no longer simply parts of an exercise in catharsis. There is :: :: now a great deal more balance to compositions, as Gaerea leans :: :: the furthest yet into the introspection thatÆs haunted their :: :: atmospheric tendencies since their inception, reaching a :: :: gentleness that brilliantly complements the contrasting :: :: heaviness. If thereÆs one thing I was never expecting to hear :: :: on a Gaerea record, it was cleans. But on Coma, cleans are not :: :: only used relatively extensivelyùand theyÆre lovelyùthey are :: :: the first vocals to appear, warm and chiming above the resonant :: :: chords that open ôThe PoetÆs Ballet.ö Soft, harmonizing :: :: melodies that belie the blackness surrounding them. I said that :: :: Mirage felt like ôthe culmination of everything Gaerea has been :: :: so far,ö and with Coma, Gaerea has redoubled their uniqueness, :: :: progressing in a natural, but unexpected, direction. :: :: :: :: ItÆs GaereaÆs growth, which broadens and deepens the feelings :: :: the music evokes, that makes Coma so effective. ItÆs not only :: :: the outright force of the pathos in the blackened rushes of :: :: both despair (ôThe PoetÆs Ballet,ö ôWilted Flower,ö ôKingdom of :: :: Thornsö) and triumph (ôWorld Ablaze,ö ôComa,ö ôRebornö). ItÆs :: :: also the fact that I could have swapped those track examples :: :: and the point would still stand because each song is a :: :: standalone journey. I am reminded of KardashevÆs Liminal Rite :: :: in the way that Gaerea conjures dark storms of battering :: :: percussion and heart-rending screams, only for the clouds to :: :: part for an impossibly delicateùin comparisonùpassage of :: :: thrillingly reverberant notes (ôComa,ö ôUnknownö), singing :: :: (ôSuspendedö), or whispers (ôWilted Flowerö) that lead that :: :: torn-up heart to stop. This is the kind of melodrama that rubs :: :: off on you. But it isnÆt just a pure emotional ride; because :: :: Gaerea writes compelling songs. Coma is loaded with rhythms :: :: that create space and anticipation (ôComa,ö ôWilted Flowerö), :: :: irresistibly developing crescendos (ôThe PoetÆs Ballet,ö :: :: ôKingdom of Thornsö), and immensely satisfying, infectious :: :: grooves (ôWorld Ablaze,ö ôWilted Flowerö). Refrains bleed :: :: melancholia in quivering notes whose rises and falls accentuate :: :: each songÆs drive. Like water rushing into a waterfall, the :: :: drive of the music pulls you on relentlessly. :: :: :: :: Despite ComaÆs compositional brilliance, Gaerea has not :: :: addressed the main thing that held Mirage back: production. :: :: With a compositional palette that reaches further again into :: :: the atmospheric, and a musical raison dÆΩtre dependent on :: :: immersion, the compressed master hamstrings the musicÆs :: :: effectiveness. Coma still is immersive, and powerful, but it is :: :: beyond frustrating that the band chose to produce it as they :: :: did because it causes one to pine for what could have been. :: :: Beautiful passages of fragility (as in ôThe PoetÆs Ballet,ö and :: :: ôWilted Flowerö), and layered climaxes (ôComa,ö ôUnknownö) :: :: would be jaw-dropping with more space to breatheùand the :: :: dynamic power of volume differences between the albumÆs peaks :: :: and valleys. As it is, they are simply very good. :: :: :: :: Nothing stops me from loving Coma, though. GaereaÆs writers are :: :: perfecting their craft, writing songs that cannot fail to send :: :: you deep into your feelings, and which pack a serious punch :: :: besides. Coma finds Gaerea at the top of its game, delivering a :: :: black metal utterly unique and compelling. Naysayers be damned. :: :: :: :: . _ _ . :: \: :. \\ ___________ . ___________ // .: :/ __\____ :: ____ ___\ _ / BERC : 2025 \ _ /___ ____ :: ____/__ \\\f3! :: \\\ __ _/_________i_________\ /___/ /// :: cRO/// \ :: :\-\___________\_ ___ / _ _/___________/-/: :: / :: | . . _ _ _/ __/ . \_ _ _ . . | :: : :::::::: | | \\\\\/ _______\____|\ \///// | | :::::::: : :: | | -\-\/____/-------------\____\/-/- | | :: :: | | \ :|: / | | :: : : | . ` ::: ' . | : : . . | : ::: : | . . | :::....:::....::: | : ::::::::::::::::: : . :::''``:::''``::: . : ::: : . ::: . .:. :