Ceremony of Silence unveils its second album.
Formed in 2015 in Slovakia by Viliam Pilarcík (guitar/bass/vocals, ex-Nevaloth, live for Porenut and 777 Babalon) and Matúš S. Durcík (drums, ex-Nevaloth, ex-Porenut), the band delivered a debut album in 2019. Five years later, and accompanied by Neplex (vocals, Porenut), the band renews its partnership with Willowtip Records for the release of Hálios.
Primaeval Sacrifice, a complex, hellish composition inhabited by howls and ominous harmonics, but above all by that oppressive drum roll. Everything about this track is designed to make us feel uneasy, whereas Serpent Slayer tends more towards a heavy aggression sprinkled with a few fascinating but very dark touches that capture our spirit while the rhythmic crushes us. The sound ceases briefly before Moon Vessel unveils its mysterious quietude, which quickly transforms into torrential riffs that rain down on us non-stop before an almost ritualistic final, leading to Eternal Return, a strangely short track where only a few strikes and murmurs persist in this mist. The silence is broken by Light Runs Through Light, which picks up on the codes of the previous tracks, adding technicality and power to the chaos, and then with Perennial Incantation, the band speeds up to adopt a few Old School patterns that obviously reinforce the trio’s striking force. Complexity is not forgotten, as on the long King in the Mountain, which closes the album with a sort of culmination of each of the elements of the band’s musical identity, but also more imposing moments that easily remind us of majestic occult sounds before the final conflagration.
With this second album, Ceremony of Silence brings to light an oppressive and suffocating dissonance that easily recalls the big names of the scene. Hálios has developed its own identity, and from start to finish, it’s sure to suffocate.
85/100