The torsion of nihility amidst spiritually oppressive existence appears to constitute the wrenching motion applied to Paris, France-based blackened death metal quartet TOWERING as their work on this sophomore full-length album exudes the deliberation of the psyche under monumental duress. Mired yet made fluid by its stranded, oil-and-smoke slurred envision ‘The Oblation of Man‘ offers a dimmed tunneling through the band’s excitation of semi-dissonant black and death metal authorship. Though the result is not wildly characterized and reads as typical in some respects the whole of its curation should speak loudly to folks attuned to sleekly modern, sometimes technical blackened death and its dramatic atmospheric bent.

Towering were built around ~2015 or so via guitarists T.J.S. and Christnach who’d managed a quartet formation by 2016. Their first demo tape (‘Demo‘, 2016) honed in on a groove-oriented form of traditional death metal inoculated with some of the members interest in popular black/death metal, extreme thrash and speed metal. The culmination of their earlier efforts as well as a few line-up changes in the year between eventually spawned as ‘Obscuring Manifestation‘ (2019) a legitimate, if not somewhat dry fusion of modern death/black metal chunkiness within classic 90’s death metal structures. The writing was ‘ready on the wall at that point to some degree as the speed metallic push of their sound began taking on a more dramatic tone, tumbling into more technical and declarative function as the album developed its attack. Fans of both French and Polish blackened death metal of a certain era should appreciate the obscure voice of that first album, especially pieces like “Monuments to Our End” where they’d sprawled into Ulcerate-esque territory.

The face of the band we see today had only halfway emerged on the previous album and as such it might be somewhat jarring for existing fandom to access Towering‘s craft seven years removed from ‘Obscuring Manifestation‘ and find a far more atmospheric, polished and modern take in ‘The Oblation of Man‘ today. Ringing dissonance, needled exaggerative strokes, dueling lead voices and far more post-metallic surrealist headspace enacted ensure that keen ears’ll instantly compare these folks efforts to the standard introduced by albums like ‘The Destroyers of All‘ (and the evolution beyond) albeit less dense with action, certainly not as brutal and aiming for their own chasmic resounding vision. That is to suggest that each of the ~7-8 minute blackened death metal pieces here carry similar weight, voice, and gesturing in creation of a columnar exploration of tragedian darkness.

The full listen is bleak but not lightless, slow-flowing in passage and obsessive in its rhythmic churn as Towering‘s transformation greatly benefits from a singular tonal goal and familiar enough execution. As soon as I’d hit play on opener “Asceticism” it was clear where these folks were coming from in terms of musical directive and inspiration and that’d quickly beheaded any lingering inquiries on my part. I would note that the band’s work doesn’t embrace the technical side of dissonance as readily as many perceived peers in this realm but rather adapts the propulsive frontage of their death metal side to suit a more spacious, scenic command. Circularly drawn movements mill with activity, punctuate with warbling interjections and are driven by a very loud-set yet blunted rhythm section which oppresses the precision of the guitars in the mix at higher speeds.

The more active, confrontational thread of “To Die Once and Emerge” doesn’t avoid the ‘impact sprinkler’ patterned trampling introduced by the opener but does ultimately offer some breathing room for ethereal synths, additional echoic vocal layers as the general haze of Towering‘s work briefly clears within its more adventurous patternation. While I appreciate the guitar-forward production values and the competition it raises with the drums overall, the chasmic effect produced is of a certain tradition, it’d have done the album a service to allow the vocals more room to characterize the experience beyond its spongey sound design and somewhat clinical expression.

“The Devouring Presence” likewise allows the smoke to clear a bit more often as the ‘The Oblation of Man‘ begins to reach for its most entrenched miasmic hypnose over on Side B. Rasped and lower growled vocal trade-offs highlight some of the more despairing verses in the song before the pummel of their action (emphasized around ~2:05 minutes in) overtakes. This is also where I’d found the bass guitar tone most audible and active (see also: intro to “Asceticism”), embracing its station within the more mid-paced dips available without breaking from the directive of the main rhythm guitar thread. When Towering flex this type of machinery via frequent tempo shifts or riff changes they are at their most vexing, impressive in the flexion of their pact but difficult to discern in message. From my perspective the odd use of percussion beyond the ~5:20 minute mark provides one example of many where it was clear the major rhythms and riffcraft of the album were almost too solidly writ, that most any attempt to gild or expand beyond the rules of action would appear vestigial or confusing to the greater tone of the experience.

Largely writ from the first person and interspersed with indirect narration of spiritual apocalyptic events we find the lyrics for ‘The Oblation of Man‘ split between two perspectives which are either intimately defiant of circumstance or readied to succumb in supplication to the oppressive/transgressive powers that be. My initial reading of the lyrics appeared to suggest a supernatural antagonist but this appears to be analogous, or metaphorical from an irreligious perspective. A closer read reflects exploration of personal philosophy, dilemma of soul and knowledge from a despairing and/or defiant perspective. Though I’d liked to have Towering‘s vocalist featured more readily above the din I’d found the extra layer of intrigue in their lyrics helped to break the “Ulcerate clone” distinction that’d cropped up in mind immediately otherwise.

By the fourth or fifth song ‘The Oblation of Man‘ hardly requires a stele to decipher what comes next as Towering‘s collective voice continues to reach for variants within its last ~16 or so minutes. “Herald of the Black Sun” is, to me, all bluster and very little substance as they’ve managed some of their lowest impact riffcraft and the style of leads which punctuate ever action begins to wear thin in its repetitious patternation. Closer “Embraced Atonement” takes a different path to some degree, leaning into atmospheric black soaring and clashing dual-rhythmic jettison to bring urgency to their endpoint. This song also features one of very few standalone guitar leads which functions outside of the core voicing of each song. The level of skill applied is impressive enough at this point but as the final 8+ minute pieces flowed downstream I’d begin to find the whole experience bland, or, at least samey in its constructive statement throughout.

Though the lack of perceived variety available to ‘The Oblation of Man‘ harms some of its repeatable qualities from my perspective its steadfast focus and voluminous expanse creates generous immersive value per folks prone to lock in. What makes Towering stand out beyond their curation might otherwise take some digging, though I figure the detail oriented dissodeath listener with a taste for this specific atmospheric blackened death sound should appreciate the intensity and craft set behind the full listen. A moderately high recommendation.

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