If you’re even the slightest bit into dark art, as in illustrations with dark themes to them (no Harry Potter jokes here), you know the name of Beksiński at the drop of a hat. It’s all but iconic to where we have many newer and younger artists who reciprocate his style like Mariusz Lewandowski, plenty of people throughout all forms of media using his work as massive influences, and even a prime source for loads of ambient music that stands on par with H.P. Lovecraft as one of the biggest influencers of the genre. Eighth Tower Records clearly understands that and, much like what they did for Lovecraft, have created a tribute to Beksiński that damn near perfectly embodies the ethereal tapestries.
If you’re somehow not familiar with the work of Beksiński, it’s all incredibly monolithic with various figures or even structures put in a very menacing light where you can also appreciate the macabre beauty amongst the gorgeous detail that is consistent with every single piece. To be able to invoke that without words but the pure ambiance is a task that I couldn’t even fathom, but Eighth Tower had managed to find eleven acts who were more than happy to try their hand. What ensued is the creation of “Decay, Death and Darkness” that ended up being the single greatest musical tribute to Beksiński that I’ve witnessed. From acts that I recognize to Sonologyst and Nihil Impvlse to fresh to my ear acts like Stigmate and Dēofol, the eleven slices of abyssal darkness that we get with this compilation are absolutely astounding to witness. The only way to make “Decay, Death and Darkness” better would be to listen to the album and marathon different Beksiński pieces because then you can see the visual influences while getting the influenced audio to result in an aural vision that’s all but entrancing. Each track is a testament of love, adoration, and respect for a revered artist by young acts that wish to speak their love for the work that they and many more have been so enamored with, and it’s an absolute joy to experience “Decay, Death and Darkness” as it progresses through the dark realm that Beksiński has crafted from one piece to the next.
I wish I could go into depth about each act in question here as they all do a phenomenal job at bringing this art to life in audio form in a way that I never thought would be created much less so faithfully. Everyone involved here knows how to create a solid tribute without even having to think about, and if “Decay, Death and Darkness” has anything to gather from it’s that these artists and Eighth Tower Records know just how to pay tribute to someone who has single-handedly become one of the biggest influences of the ambient genre.
LISTEN to “Decay, Death and Darkness” on Bandcamp here.
LIKE Eighth Tower Records on Facebook here.
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