Tenochtitlan - Sotvorenie Mira

This is a Russian group who play in the majority doom death material. But rather than being totally one dimensional, they mix it up with ambient pieces of music added for effect and it a good way to differentiate them from the many other doom death bands out there. The attempt is valiant but not a perfect combination when Paradise Lost and My Dying Bride mixes hand in hand with Johnny Violent on acid or something like that. The tracks are sung in their native tongue which is always going to limit your market, and the delivery whilst pleasant, often loses the listener in quieter moments of atmosphere. With such a mix you miss the little intricate passages of music designed in for effect. This is not party music people, although I can hear a genuine level of seriousness to the bands delivery, especially on ‘Nual’ which is very much in keeping with their lyrical tradition.

I endure the release and there is some interesting stuff occurring, especially the use of wind instruments. This happily takes prescience above the normal formula usually taken by artists and that usual weapon of choice is the keyboard. This album is not without its limitations though, a couple of the songs outstay their welcome, they are a little too long and don’t have enough energy to keep even the most enduring person in the world marginally going with a strong pulse. However, listen intently to this album and you will gain a sense of surprise and relief through the mind bending variation of themes used under the sub-genre of doom death, but it is not an album for the purists and I think this is where my allegiance slightly falters on ‘Sotvorenie Mira’. Thinking more about the album, maybe I am being a little too generous in my rating, but I have to commend the band for using a variation of instruments within their art form.