Unattainable firmament sits on high, a beauteous celestial dispersion far out of reach as our protagonist scowls at the souring spittle of secured limitations drying in mouth. The peak of revelation has been had and the realization poisoning from within as transcendent knowledge stretches further away from their grasp with every attempt. Embittered by fading idyll and the mocking distance of the inconceivable unlit chambers beyond Aarhus, Denmark-based esoteric occult death-metallic doomed atmospheric black metal trio Tongues speak to the disillusioned self, the draining sensation of willful spiritual fortitude in recede. Sovereignty found in the meditative loft of dreams and nightmarish scenarios alike, the outstretched hand of doom and psychedelia-imbued relief within marks ‘Formløse Stjerner‘ as a deeply enriched and lunging stride beyond past works. With every step the gloom of their muse grows deeper set in mind as the threat of detachment from purpose hums in ear, nearly as loudly as the lull unto the fish-eyed blur of infinite introspection.

Tongues was conceived circa 2012 by Thorbjørn and Qvortrup, two folks who’d built some history within various black metal spheres since the late 2000’s and each capable of wearing many hats in terms of composition and performance. Their first release, a very substantial mLP (‘Thel​é​sis Ignis‘, 2014) arrived at a high standard, well-formed by the duo into a release which was appropriately aggressive yet meditative for a year where Bølzer and Morbus Chron were hitting with their (arguable) biggest waves yet. As a first strike it’d been a storm of ever bending riffs, cold yet caustic tension which reeked of kicking-fast atmospheric black metal accost and shamanic doom beats but with a skronking layer of erratic guitar noise to lay obfuscation upon their intent. It’d been one of the more intense debut releases of 2014 but one I wouldn’t discover until later on since I don’t think I’d truly dug through I, Voidhanger‘s roster until Skaphe‘s second LP released; As I built my own imaginary hierarchy of potential ‘psychedelic’ black metal artists in the mid-2010’s Tongues were one of the more interesting outliers, capable of blustering black/death metal just as well as dissonantly flailing obsidian wares and spaced out ‘ludes (see: “The Will of Fire”) which I appreciate even more today.

For Tongues‘ second official release, their debut album ‘Hreilia‘ (2017), the duo would now include A. Lovmand, a relative of Thorbjørn who is also a member of their long-running black metal band Hahn Kult (inactive since the first Tongues release). His inclusion would end up rapidly evolving the band’s sound as quite a big part of that second album having painted the cover art, acted as primary vocalist, provided additional guitars, and likewise handling the mix, master and overall production. It’d serve as an even more ambitious recording beyond their first mLP, pushing the band’s sound beyond the raw, abrupt feeling of groups like Hic Iacet and Suspiral into something uniquely atmospheric, an unusual shade of blackened death and abstract doom. I’d eventually reviewed that record during this website’s infancy but left it off my Best of 2017 list per its early December release that year. The sleepiness of psych’d atmospheric death metal and the menace of black metal built nightmarish shapes and dreary melodies that still enchant today, even more than they had back then. I still regret not rating the album higher and digging into it a bit deeper, so, I’ve some hype surrounding this new release which appears to push deeper into that world and speak with a well-clarified voice.

In the distance, seething. — In amplifying the psychedelia-tinged depths of their original sound Tongues had wriggled under the skin back then with ‘Hreilia‘, an especially choice sort of anomaly which gave no promise that they’d ever iterate or expand upon that idea. ‘Formløse Stjerner‘ doesn’t necessarily deliver the exact same distention of the spirit but its lyrics do examine the mind-body connection from a spiritual perspective, by way of a similar philosophic voice. In terms of the music the keen-eared atmospheric death metal fandom will appreciate the loft of this new record in particular though these folks don’t approach death metal straight-on, nor do they treat black metal in any sort of standard statement and… the doom metal portion of their affect is perhaps even more debatable. The holistic effect of these modes allows for a format which is dynamic, matured in its years yet still frightfully disturbed in its voice, an act who show great confidence in the design of their own earthen tones and shadowy rhythms who read as cerebral to start by frequently threaten to detach from reality.

The nearly sixteen minute closing piece/title track on the album, “Forml​ø​se Stjerner”, does in fact debride itself from the moment ~5:25 minutes in, disconnecting itself from the main build of the song as if a reclining and momentarily redirecting itself to climb back in and reach for a The Ruins of Beverast-esque moment of return while haunted humming and distant drums gear a slow return via the core doom metal riff which guides the piece. The nearly breathless vocals that push through that transition and return growling deep do well to illustrate a moment of respite, a collapse of the body that’d spurned a groaning yet inspired return. There is a hymnal quality, a persistence at the dais that is illustrated in that closing piece which does well to speak for the lilt and the genius of the full listen as Tongues leave the most electric reveal of their work for a grand finale. While I will admit they milk the final set of mid-paced droning blackened riff progressions for about a minute too long in the outro but that final piece does such a fine job of tying off the experience; Now, I suppose I’ve pointed to the end rather than starting from the beginning for the sake of reassuring the listener that there is a payoff here which comes not only in riffs and meandering ~7-8 minute songs but in the glowing theatre of the full listen.

Thinking-man’s doom, feeling-man’s black metal. — The bulk of ‘Forml​ø​se Stjerner‘ appears within three fairly involved, meticulously crafted pieces which are appreciably ambiguous, or, amorphous in their style. The folks behind Tongues go where they will, crafting each moment around frequently shifting tides with an entheogenic effect to their movement and this gushing rhythmic headiness is evident from the start of opener “Elder Fire”. Shades of orthodox black metal might potentially still fuel some of this movement yet elements of progressive rock’s tangential states of reveal factor in just as heavily leading to run-on heavy rock moments directed by lead guitar narrative rather than mere runs. The conversation is continuous as the album begins, sewing the building flood of “Elder Fire” into the jogging eerie of “Awake in the Macrochasm” seamlessly. We get some of the more technical riff jabs on the album in the latter, perhaps momentarily pushing their tides towards a nigh progressive form of black metal without the usual performative derailments into self-indulgence that’d entail. As they strike upon a bopping bassline beyond the break ~3:23 minutes into the piece the steadiness, or, performative confidence of these folks begins to warm in mind as they craft one of many transitional moments which come to define the illustrative style of the band which does well to color the overall gloom of the full listen with a variety of modes and textures throughout each piece. The second half of that particular song should do well to convince many listeners of the lasting value of sitting with this piece regardless of your propensity to analyze or simply feel the moment.

At the crest of the wave “Mouth of the Deep” is the most active, aggressive song on ‘Forml​ø​se Stjerner‘ while also featuring some of the most blurring psychogenic breaks. The choking shriek and blasted-forth intro which gear the listener up for the moment quickly meet with a Virus-esque turn, first toward harmonic pinging irregular rhythms and blackened guitar runs toward a sleepier atmospheric bridge which overflows in its segue, eh, longer than expected ’til the third act of the piece can pick the pace back up. The progression of this song bends time a bit and left my mind wandering about for the first few listens and I think there is a larger takeaway to be grasped here in that much of what Tongues do on this album might blow past the listener for the sake of its effect. The nightmarish character of the full listen isn’t without is dreamlike, ethereal bumps but the majority of the full listen feels like a set of moody rants which are most often directed by impressionistic rhythm guitar work and detailed, occasionally gripping lead guitar voicing. I’d only wished the bass guitar found similarly prominent voice beyond a few spikes in presence and I could leave similar comments for the vocals, though they present quite a range of emotional outburst along the way, enough that I’d felt this work was well in line with what the vocals on ‘Hreilia‘ had done.

Without being ruthlessly jagged in statement, or overtly gimmicked in presentation Tongues present a sophomore record worthy of their contemplative themes, dissonant in its overarching mood but trudging through within an inspired showing. The mastery of their work, a certain level of finesse, speaks loudest to me as a fan of their prior releases though I’d understand if one went in expecting a harsher, more aggressive experience versus this sleepier headspace which balances its most severe swerves. There yet is plenty of tension left in this unique admixture of forms and this translates to a mature level of expression rather than the usual ceaseless barrage of focus which underground black metal tends to produce. Subtle as some of its most ingeniously set moments are ‘Forml​ø​se Stjerner‘ did eventually leave a satisfying enough crater in mind, sinking in rather than battering away at the senses. A high recommendation.

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