Album Review: Gaerea - Limbo
Reviewed by Paul Hutchings
This sophomore release from Portuguese outfit Gaerea follows their 2018 debut long player ‘Unsettling Whispers’. Black metal chords echo from the darkness as the opening to the first track To Ain begins. A demonic intro provides the listener with an atmospheric build up that changes into a firestorm of brutal riffs, anguished howls and roaring growls and blast beats that can blow down gates made of iron. This is an explosive opening and at just over 11 minutes in length, the middle change of pace which drops to an atmospheric, harrowing soundscape provides some respite from the maelstrom circling but only leads to another darkened place. This inevitably leads to a further bout of crushing riffage which merely demonstrates the intensity the band possess. A combination of Rotting Christ, Behemoth and the more angular ferocity of bands like Damin all combine.
The following five tracks are of similar vein. Punishing levels of drumming and riffing push the boundaries, the snarling vocals simply scream against the night. These are lengthy tracks, the shortest being ‘Urge
at just shy of five minutes but alongside that we get’ Conspiranoia’ at over nine minutes and the epic closing track Mare at over 13 minutes in length. But before reaching that the rest of the album is something of an intensive experience. Pulverising in its brutality, the sheer power of ‘Glare’ could clear paint from the walls. Although the track pans out into more traditional style towards the end, the onslaught is relentless.
Challenging it may be but dig deep and explore undeniable nothingness. It’s full of despair, and for 52 minutes the devastating challenge to the archetype black metal sees the Portuguese quintet overwhelm with a melancholic texture dripping with emotion. It is, as the band says, a nihilistic abyss in which to lose oneself. Bleak and black, the band’s image of hooded menacing figures simply enhances the overall feel of one of the most intensely harrowing albums of the year.
