Album Review: In The Company Of Serpents - Lux
Reviewed by Paul Hutchings
This is the fourth album by the Denver based doom/sludge outfit and the first as three-piece, featuring Grant Netzorg on guitars/vocals, Ben Pitts (Nightwraith, False Cathedrals) on bass and lap steel guitar, and JP Damron (Vermin Womb, Bleakheart, Clinging to the Trees of a Forest Fire) on drums.
Grant explained that one of the central ideas behind Lux, (i.e. "light" in Latin) “is the notion of a Prima Materia, or fundamental root-essence behind everything in the manifest universe. Philosophers, hermeticists, alchemists, occultists, and all manner of different wizards have speculated what that Prima Materia, or “root essence,” is, but the three chief analogies employed in this record are: All is sound, All is mind, and, critically, All is Light”.
The album opens with ‘The Fool’s Journey’, a ten-minute song that varies in intensity, power, and pace. Utlising the crushing doom and sludge elements, the song explores the critical juncture that humanity stands at, with the image of the Fool in Tarot as a reckless young individual. Can we explore individual change for positive good? ‘Scales of Matt’ that follows is another towering beast of a song, massive slabs of riffs delivered at monolithic speed, roaring growls howling over the top. Focusing on the imagery of weighing of one's heart/soul against a feather in Egyptian mythology, the main theme considers that we are all judged by our deeds, actions, and sympathies. The closing lyrics feature guest vocals from Ethan Lee McCarthy of Primitive Man, Vermin Womb, and Many Blessings, and Ben Hutcherson from Khemmis and Glacial Tomb. ‘Daybreak’ is one of two short instrumentals (the other being ‘Nightfall’) utilising the skills of Paul Primus, of the Colorado Symphony, performing the Viola D'Amore, a type of viola which uses drone strings beneath the fingerboard to vibrate in sympathy with the other strings. Tuned to DADFAD with A=432hz, known to guitarists as the “Skip James tuning," it’s the tuning which four of the album's songs employ.
‘The Chasm At the Mouth of The All’ is next, a complete departure to the previous songs, with a Nick Cave feel in segments. It’s a dark, brooding song which employs thick, fuzzy downtuning in parts, whilst Pitt’s lap steel is also prominent as it considers the intertwined themes of sex, life and death. ‘Lightchild’ is a direct message to Netzog’s infant daughter, in terms of the broader themes of this record. As well as playing with etymology of her name (Lucia) whilst the rolling ‘Archonic Manipulations’ with its addictive rhythm is a call for us to engage directly and presently with our lives, and thus regain some semblance of what lies in our true spirit. After ‘Nightfall’ we arrive at the haunting final track, ‘Prima Materia’ which is apparently “the most simple, direct version of the overarching theme of a fundamental rootessence which runs throughout the rest of the record. It plays with the three iterations of that notion mentioned above: "All is Sound/All is Mind/All is Light" in verses that are meant, on one level, as devotionals”.
Whilst the conceptual levels on this release are somewhat nuanced and certainly a challenge to comprehend, they are intriguing and link well with the music. This isn’t an album that will appeal to all and it may be a rather slim market that looks to obtain a copy when its released. There is much to consider, reflect and absorb. An interesting album indeed.
