Striding through a bleak and unsettling journey through the scopes of arcane, malevolent sounds centered around Funeral Doom, Death-Doom, and Extreme Metal; In This House of Mourning releases a full-length entitled Enlèvement–(Self-Released). The album is a 34-minute journey surrounding the discourses of misanthropy and malevolence-centered aesthetics. Aside from the unfiltered, soul-baring thematic discourses, some of the quintessential elements of this album, when it comes to the musical side are the raw production and intricate exploration of a dark, atmospheric sonic worldbuilding.

It is the sense of total belligerent dread and unease that they are trying to present and envisage on this album, through the features of ambient noise, distorted guitars, and dark vocals. Regarding the lo-fi production, it was intentionally made that way in order to build a strongly unsettling ambience that the listeners would inherently feel on their first listen. The themes being explored on this album specifically centered around cruelty, violence, and a bleak, nihilistic view towards the world– are narrated from the point of view of a distraught individual; making it a bold, viscerally subversive album that isn’t afraid to initiate discourses on ideas that are considered taboo and unconventional; ones that would potentially make common people flinch– but what makes it most captivating is that they treat this worldbuilding of uncomfortable lores where they condemn human selfishness and moral decay, as a means of catharsis. Their songwriting isn’t just a harsh critic of indignation towards the decaying of humanity; it’s also their way of finding solace in what is beyond the ordinary and corrupt and having a penchant for the unconventional.

Though this album’s subgenre spectrum is more likely to be inclined towards the Funeral Doom and Death-Doom scope– as I said before, there are also hints of Extreme Metal influences on this album; boldly shown by their feature of blackened passages, intense riffs, and haunting, infernal vocals– meticulously packed with precision and genuine craft. The main objective and idea of this album is primarily to dismantle; to challenge the very minds of the listeners who, by chance, happen to be the targeted morally corrupt individuals they condemn on this album– so it’s almost like psychological warfare in the form of distorted, blackened sonic passages. 

I’ve always been a huge fan of morally nuanced, challenging, and unconventional raw ideas in works of art; be it music, movies, literature, or even visual arts; so of course, the whole idea of Enlèvement captivates me all-around. This album is the perfect epitome of unsettling confrontation that also pays homage towards the unrelenting Extreme Metal spirit at the same time.

Buy the album here:
https://inthishouseofmourning.bandcamp.com/album/enl-vement

9/10
RALKA SKJERSETH
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