Search - Asva :: Futurists Against the Ocean

Outstanding minimal doom

C. Quinn | County Louth, Eire | 03/01/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Don't agree with the previous review - Asva isn't particularly sludgy. Probably the most impressive thing about this record is the way it strips away the undifferentiated fuzz that passes for texture on a lot of recent avant-metal records.



Anyone who knows Sunn O))) (whose bassist J Stuart Dahlquist plays here too) will be familiar with the basic tempo and dynamic here, but Asva's sound is more minimal (yes, MORE minimal!), often even acoustic, featuring reed organs, tubular bells and non-grunting female vocals. Before you switch off, rest assured that the doom is still here, in spades. If anything Asva's sound is creepier than Sunn O))), on a par with Burning Witch (Witch drummer B.R.A.D. thumps Asva's kit) on the disturb-o-meter.



It's something to do with the surreal lyrics, the quasi-religious feel of the organs and chants, and the clarity of the sound. Let's face it, most doom/sludge is a fairly blank canvas on which you can project any thought or feeling you like - anything could be going on in the morass. Asva, like Khanate, let you hear everything. You still mightn't understand, but you know it's, well ... something *unheimlich*.



This is a welcome progression for the doom/avant-metal sound, proving there's more life in the genre than some of the more generic recent releases have suggested (step forward, Graves at Sea). Perhaps for the first time since Khanate, a doom record doesn't sound at all like Sabbath OR Earth. The only worrying thing is that the best stuff is mostly coming from the same small band of musicians."

Epicus Doomicus Metallicus

A. Mesnar | Pittsburgh, PA | 04/26/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Asva = a cool wet mellow dark cave where a droning guitar and percussion feed the dark poetry to the ears of the musical bender. A sludgy mess that mixes the haunting vocals of a lingering ghost to it Gothic embryo.



"

Stunning collection of heaviness

George Bowles | Chicago, IL United States | 11/13/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"You need this if you like slow, heavy guitar bands. This is one of my favorite doom/drone rock bands around. They change it up by incorporating a Hammond B-3 organ, instrumental genius Trey Spruance, and mystical female vocals. Long songs drone on and on at first, a heavy sense of dread ensues. Then the whole thing ties up at the end with less minimalism and more art than you can shake a stick at. Very very good listening experience, this cd actually seems like an artifact from a lost time."