Silvaplana, Limbs of Dionysus, Augur Tongues / IARNWITH, AT-04 / IW007 cassette (2024)
In contrast to its black metal / ambient twin “Sils Maria”, released on the same day (17 July 2024), “Limbs of Dionysus” is a ferocious beast of blackened psychedelic sound art. Two long and twisting tracks take listeners through a dark labyrinthine cosmos of jangly guitar riffs and speedy thudding percussion, all overseen by a mysterious spectral vocal that appears now and again as if to guide the music down further shadowy and indistinct paths. Where “Sils Maria” is a restrained work that is light, even elegant in its execution, “Limbs of Dionysus” is feverish and desperate in tone and pace, and the music can appear very dense and convoluted in its structure as it barrels along like a wild cyclone.
At 23+ minutes, Track I is a sprawling soundscape piece of dissonant jangly black metal guitar, set in the same space as “Sils Maria” with a similar clear sound and a sparse minimalist approach, accompanied in the main by blast-beat percussion and wraith-like cries and screams in the far background. Riff after riff after riff is thrown up in the music though each does not repeat for very long and as a result listeners can have a hard time getting a-hold of anything in the music that might serve as a reference point. The one thing that does impress this reviewer is the resonant ringing quality of the guitar tones, however far deep in this dark abyss the guitars may be. The music is urgent and desperate, and listeners can feel overwhelmed by the claustrophobia such desperation produces after over 20 minutes of non-stop rush-about. Eventually a point of exhaustion or release is reached, and the heavy droning tones of church organ swamp the listener, as though God or some such other deity is pronouncing judgement on us lost souls.
Track II may be the shorter track but it is more tortured in form and emotion as the music quickly passes through many moods and the vocals, becoming clearer, reveal anguish and torment in their ranting and shrieking. The music quickly becomes just as fast and frantic, close to hysteria, as the first track as it dives and dashes about; riffs rarely settle into a particular groove before they are swept aside by another frenzied detour into yet another part of the darkness. As with Track I, the organ glides into the music in its last few moments, seemingly to offer comfort or judgement.
Like “Sils Maria”, no matter how intense or aggressive the music becomes, “Limbs of Dionysus” actually sits quite lightly on the ear and the result never becomes overly dramatic or histrionic. In their linear structures both albums turn out to be thoughtful and meditative works, perhaps contemplating the present sorry state of humankind and its uncertain future in a universe indifferent to its children. The twin albums may appear opposed to each other in style and mood, but when heard together they complement each other so well that they really have to be heard together for their strengths to be fully appreciated.