If you follow the Australian metal scene closely you might just know the bands Cryptal Darkness or The Eternal, which in this case are a few of the past bands Terry Vainoras, the mastermind of Subterranean Disposition, has played in. Subterranean Disposition was initially a follow up to the music Mark Kelson had written for his and Terry’s collaboration on the Insomnius Dei album, 'Illusions of Silence', but somewhere along the way Terry bailed and this project became his own personal undertaking.
As it turns out I do have some experience with Terry's past bands. I remember buying Cryptal Darkness', 'They Whispered You Had Risen' a million years ago based purely off of the fact that Marin Powell of My Dying Bride fame contributed violin and keyboards to it and being quite the fan of MDB's old stuff it was interesting to see Mr. Powerll doing doom again, likewise back in '04 Firebox records sent me The Eternal's debut, 'The Sombre Light of Isolation,' which I should probably re-review some day since I recall it being totally decent. I guess that still leaves me a bit behind in Terry's more recent work, but I'd best get back to the main subject of this here review.
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| Subterranean Disposition |
It would appear doom and gloom is Terry's way because that's exactly what is presented on this five track fifty four minute debut. So, were talking death/doom here, specifically at first I'm reminded of 90's My Dying Bride material, but in a way a lot of this feels much more oppressive than MDB and although probably not as dark or melancholy it is still quite strong with these sentiments. The album sort of feels like one long song, sometimes linked together by ambient tidbits and samples, though each song also has their own identities. 'Between Apes and Angels' opens with some odd samples while a simple acoustic guitar melody runs alongside it, when eventually a gloomy repetitive riff enters before diving into the main portion of the song. Massively growled vocals and totally bleak music continue the journey as well some cleanly sung parts are also present, which tend to really remind me of Aaron from MDB's voice, though it could just be my own thought on this one. Curiously the song takes a more upbeat almost stoner doom approach mid-way through, but brings the agony back fully before ending. Speaking of which, 'Prolong the Agony' keeps the mood going well. I especially enjoy the little acoustic break and female vocals that are included in this number, which are handled by, Pheobe Pinnock, whose voice has this unusual childish sort of vibe to it that seems to go entirely too well with the music. Generally though I'm most passionate about, 'The most subtle of storms,' which is the albums epic at over fourteen minutes, it also has this progressive jazz saxophone fragment that seems quite unusual for doom/death and seems like something Ihsahn might use on one of his albums, though I'll admit it works quite well here too.
'Subterranean Disposition' isn't the sort of album that instantly grabs the attention, but rather seems to take a few listens before it all sinks in. Generally though through its oppressive nature and occasional tendencies to be a bit different you've got a solid release on your hands which is just in time for the gloom outside my window. I wouldn't chalk it down as a modern classic or even a mandatory sort of release, though if you have an affinity for all things death/doom metal you'll probably appreciate this one even more so than I would.
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