Olhava celebrates its tenth anniversary with a seventh album.
Since 2016, Andrey Novozhilov (guitar/vocals, Trna, Remaining Warmth), joined in 2019 by Timur Yusupov (drums, Trna), has been writing songs inspired by the nature of his country, Russia. This year, still under the aegis of Avantgarde Music, they bring us Memorial.
The album opens with Ageless River X, a soaring instrumental that effortlessly transports us back to that icy atmosphere where keyboards and rain cast a spell over us, gradually building in intensity before moving on to After I’m Gone, a long, striking composition where screams and saturation resurface to envelop us in their haunting sounds. The violence is expressed with grace, relying on misty layers to reveal its full power while remaining fairly simple and accessible, willingly allowing for breaks where the bass is brought to the fore before returning to its tortured flow and guiding us after a moment to When the Ashes Grow Cold. We see the same dynamic at work, rocking and jostling us continuously while taking us through its different waves of misty sound, granting us minimalist moments of respite before submerging us once again in its visceral softness, which sometimes even takes on almost playful touches. The hurricane stops one last time only to resume with greater force, then Ageless River XI offers us a new floating setting in which our mind regains consciousness between the noisy tones, then Memorial marks the return of oppression with dissonant harmonics that descend upon us. Unsurprisingly, the track is relatively similar to the previous ones, and although it is shorter, it willingly allows itself a long, lighter moment before flaring up again more intensely, almost terrifying us with its virulence before Ageless River XII allows us to catch our breath again. There are no surprises either in this long interlude, lulled by keyboards and a few noises, but The River Wakes brings unexpected tranquility in its shades of darkness, into which the lyrics melt, almost like a ghost haunting the place with its presence as we reach deliverance, named Ageless River XIII. Yet another moment of calm where we regain consciousness, then silence falls.
Discreet yet very intense, Olhava knows exactly how to tame the darkness and shape it as he wishes. Memorial will win over fans, but seem inaccessible to novices in many ways.
85/100
