Downstream

I can make this review very short indeed. Do you like the ideal of ambient doom metal? Like if Esoteric and Autechre went to the pub with an 8 track while some folk music people were there, supping their lukewarm ale from pewter tankards? Yes? Then you'll love this. 

Well the Autechre reference is probably a bit strong but it is very hard to communicate how this sounds otherwise. The tracks are generally slow burns, which is of no concern at all if you like Esoteric but might put other doomsters off, with Downstream's sound comprising the English band's chugging guitars and deep guttural bellows accompanied by Eastern folk music twinges and pronounced synthesier sections that can only really be compared to the percussionless sections you occasionally find on Warp records.

The most accessible track is Of Bone And Sinew, a mere 4:23 long (compared to some of the 10min plus epics) and is more death-doom than funeral, with a mid paced intro that collapses into a heavy mid section with high pitched synth sweeps playing off the riffs and vox. The penultimate track The Waylayer is more ritualistic, featuring a mouth harp ostinato that builds in an almost shamanistic vocal section and a synth background over several minutes before an acoustic guitar rounds out the sound, and only then does the doom come in after five minutes. But it is only a sprinkling of doom, the cherry on top of the rest of the track. The songwriting overall shows remarkable restaint, maturity and patience, demanding your undivided attention to really appreciate the music. Hence my comments about it being a slow burn, many will find it too demanding a listen and will turn to something else. The title track is a prime example; it's ten minutes long and you're waiting 65% of that time for a doom riff, which appears and then vanishes again like a ghost in the night before the final minute. Wonderful.

I have to opine about the production (and/or mixing and/or mastering, I don't pretend to know the difference). It's excellent. Very clear instrumentation and they've resisted the urge to apply too much compression to what is a contemplative work, with PLR approaching that of some classical recordings. The music is given ample room to breathe and the expectation is you turn it up if you want more volume. None of the component sounds clash, or are too loud or conversely too quiet, in short all the knob twiddling stuff has gotten out of the way to let the music shine. Technically very well done. 

Their label produced 1,000 physical copies when this was released and they're still selling them from their website. This is a crying shame for the band, if not for me as I was able to buy one ten years on. This is genuinely one of the more innovative doom albums you will ever hear.