PORTAL - Avow
Profound Lore Records
If PORTAL recorded themselves taking a dump in their recording studio cave complex. A plethora a metal media scribes would hail it as the greatest thing they ever did. Of course it would be an EP or a split release. Now I open here with that statement because I thought their last full length, Ion, was not that good.
In fact I still hail 2007's Outre and Swarth from 2009 as their best releases. I'm a huge fan of those releases. In fact I was blasting Outre the other day. So I don't see myself as not getting it while everyone else does when it comes to liking the band's more recent material. I look at it as herd mentality and a very small herd it is.
Now with that type of pre-release not so excitement I delved into this latest one with an open mind. Seriously I did. So I have to say for starters Avow is more of an endurance test of nerves then an album. When the album opened with the screams on "Catafalque" I was like cool. And in fact even though it's too long a cut at ten plus a few second in length, it was a great way to set the tone.
But then the rest of this album played through and I got bored with it. How bored you ask? Well the second time listening to Avow I remembered I needed to send some detailed emails to work. So basically this release was just background noise. And that's my big problem with modern day Portal.
When PORTAL started out they were a blackened death metal act be it in their own unique style. Then afterwards, and especially on this one, they're just a noise rock act with vocals spoken over a wall of deranged noise. And what's with the "experimental" tagline they've been given of late? Is that from idiots who never heard of No Wave from the late 70's/early 80's?
I'd say the song "Bode" brought me back from the abyss of boredom. Frankly I was about to do laundry. I gave this five listens and in the end it starts off strong and finished well with "Drain". But inbetween it's pointless noise by a band who forgot how to write songs which capture your attention. I feel sorry for em.
https://profoundlorerecords.com/
LISTEN HERE:
https://profoundlorerecords.bandcamp.com/album/avow
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