Have a Nice Life. Time of Land. 2010. 4.5 stars.

The hidden kings of the American underground return with this deeply subdued EP. Gloom spreads over the lumbering ambiance of “Wizard of the Black Hundreds” with grim, deaden percussion and yawning distortion. The droning waves of black noise rise against ghostly vocals, offering a sacrificial hymn to this menacing occult ritual. The allusions to history here are fitting, as one can picture the processes of the Black Hundred,  the anti-revolutionary forces that cast a pall of violence over the Russian landscape.

“Woe Unto Us” is a beautiful piece of post-punk art, with the gritty buzz of its bass lines, the cold melodies of skeletal guitars and some of the best singing from the band yet. The second half of the song dissolves into atmospheric synth lines that glide over the stark, minimalist drumming. Perhaps HANL’s most accessible track since “Bloodhail”.

“The Parhelic Circle” is a densely layered dark ambient piece, with deep drones, terse crackles of the electric guitar and an eerie keyboard melody that sounds like the prolonged whistles of a factory. “The Icon and the Axe” begins in dark melodic bliss, sharing the somnambulist tenor of “Mogwai Fear Satan”. Haunting voices hover in the distance, reciting sparse poetic fragments about the Devil, bodies and the deep, freezing waters.

Like the preceding Deathconsciousness, Time of Land delves inward, crafting a blackened version of post-punk, left unbounded into a void of drawn-out abstraction. The result is inspired, taking cues from material as diverse as Sunn O))) and Sisters of Mercy to fashion something that has incredible depth and intensity. These guys have vision.

You can listen and download the album here.

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