Mortualia – Blood of the Hermit (reissue)
The name Shatraug conjures up a cavalcade of kvlt thoughts for the black metal enthusiast; among them: Horna, Sargeist, Behexen, et al. Until Moribund’s re-release of Blood of the Hermit came across my inbox – Mortualia’s second album, reissued – I had been unaware of that particular Shatraug one-man project or its discography. Thus, for other unknowing fans of utter-misery –laden black metal, I am … er, ‘happy’ to share my experience of this amazing work of negativity with you.
Imagine waking under a pine in the woods of Finland, alone, freezing, near death. Your pulse – like the measured pacing of Mortualia’s music – reverberates slowly, never quickening, as the screeching sound of the wind, much like Shatraug’s piercing, screaming voice, cuts through your aching skull, deep into the depths of what’s left of your forsaken soul. Turning your head, you see the too-thin flank of a wolf some distance away, and know that its hunger matches the intensity of your fading. Sensing your watchfulness, the wolf’s gaze meets your own. But whether too tired to attack, or too unbelieving that such easy prey could lurk this close by on such a deadly night, the wolf simply raises its jaws to the air and unleashes a howl of sorrow and multi-layered, forlorn blackness, not unlike the dissonant, repeated, always-descending tri-tone riff-suicides that pour forth from Shatraug’s guitar, the heart of Blood of the Hermit’s sound.
Back in Northern Michigan, on this rainy day wherein the throes of Summer frivolity has temporarily retreated in favor of gray-skyed hopelessness, this sad, slow, inward-facing black metal anti-opus has attached itself to my subconsciousness with talons of polished ebony and will not let go. Mortualia’s music will meet you too, in both mood and color, wherever and whenever you need the solitude of a spirit-eviscerating quiet place. Just be sure to leave the lights on for when you’re looking for the way back. -Jim
Moribund Records
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