Every now and then, we get something that’s fucking weird. I don’t mean something that’s a mild oddity or an album that just barely sits apart from the rest of the style. I mean something that’s its own fucking entity from top to bottom with there not being much of an apt comparison in the wide world of metal for us to liken it to, and it takes so much to fully comprehend what exactly it is we’re hearing. I wasn’t expecting to hear something like that until possibly the impending new Inter Arma, but it’s from the depths of the underground that Drofnosura has given us something to both drool over and cower in fear from.
The widely unsung art of being different in a successful manner in the seemingly endless underground of metal music, and I simply find that to be a grand crime. While human beings tend to be afraid of change on some scale, even in a genre of music that’s constantly experimenting with itself, many tend to ignore lesser acts that try something new and fresh that really grasp the attention with an iron fist and demands to be heard. Some acts have found success, fortunately, like YOB, Portal, Howls of Ebb, and Inter Arma in a very respectable capacity. Yet, should you put in the legwork to go deeper than those bands and find something that a very small amount of people have actually heard, you can stumble upon greatness. By no more than mere chance, I came across the debut full-length from Drofnosura tonight and let me tell you, this is the horrors of our minds come manifest while simultaneously bewildering us with astounding soundscapes that are equal parts gorgeous and intimidating.
If it’s not obvious enough, the cover art for “Voidfever” should give an idea of just how unnerving this record is and how much work it puts in as the ensuing material crawls deeper under your skin. There is a very active effort in these five tracks to really make you shudder, and it makes a brilliant success time after time as Drofnosura takes all of their clear sweat, blood, and soul to only pour it all into “Voidfever”, and that’s the shit you can really feel. Each track of this record has its own flavors to it with haunting soundscapes draping over every moment for us to soak right up, and with most tracks stretching over ten minutes, Drofnosura shows a clear mastery of the applause-worthy skill that is keeping the listener listening. There’s not one part of “Voidfever” that’s to sleep on as this band manages to pull together pieces from styles all over metal be it from the territories of sludge, post, doom, and even black to metal for a truly chaotic listen that also somehow feels immensely cohesive despite all the moving parts that are never still for too long to allow for a reprieve of the mind. Drofnosura moves like a wraith through the blackness constantly in order to make this debut as vicious as it could be while also allowing for moments of macabre beauty to sneak in amongst all the horror, and I couldn’t have asked for anything better.
No matter how great and impactful this album is, it’s clear to me that when you burn it all down, “Voidfever” is but one thing: a foundation. Yes, this record is the glorious result of years and hard work that ranges from straining the imagination and sheer instrumentation to the final execution, but it’s but one step in the road that Drofnosura has started carving out for themselves. And it’s a massive step, to say the least. Given time, I can’t see anything from Drofnosura except sheer grandeur that takes everything from “Voidfever” and turns it up so much higher. I try to stay away from making predictions like that, but I can fucking feel it with Drofnosura and I can’t help but implore you to check out this little terror from Ontario in order to prepare for the oncoming slaughter that’s to come from them in (hopefully) the next few years.
LISTEN to “Voidfever” on Bandcamp here.
LIKE Drofnosura on Facebook here.