Bloodway — A Fragile Riddle Crypting Clues
Opening track Not Whom, But Where is a atmospheric soundscape which acts as an appropriate intro, building slowly before a spoken word section about The Cult of Iron breaks the ambience. First track proper is The Startling Grotesque, one can’t help drawing comparisons to early Opeth in terms of the progressive nature of the music, mixing odd timings with superlative melodies. Vocally, Chioreanu has an unusual style that is quite unique. I find it unconventional and am undecided how I feel about it. Don’t Wake the Void is up next, and whilst those progressive elements remain they are less prevalent and the whole song feels quite different, mellow verses with intense punky choruses. The vocals are notably different in style to the opener, this cleaner style seems to suit Chioreanu well. Midlight Scout is up next and sees the return of the blast beat, something that was missing in large from the previous track. The song breaks down at various points into something much less intense and feels almost reflective in nature. The unusual time signatures are back and once again one is reminded at points of bands like Cormorant or Opeth at their heaviest. There is also a Mercyful Fate influence that creeps in from time to time and has been evident in each of the tracks thus far.
The second half of the album kicks off with Prison Paradise, a song whose progressive qualities are evident from the opening bass riff, there is barely a hint of black metal anywhere within the track, this is pure unadulterated progressive rock, and the only hint at the band’s black metal roots comes from the vocals, but even then, they are toned down. The Incident is up next, and provides an unusual mix of styles, clean vocals, melody and black metal riffs play off one another and the whole thing has an unusual feel, almost as if the vocal melodies and the riffs are juxtaposed against one another to create something that is dark like black metal but with a more upbeat sound to it. Some of the riffs are reminiscent of some of the better post-metal bands, Isis sprang to mind, particularly during this track. Encounters to Pray For follows down the post-metal route and as the album grows and develops it has become evident that the term black metal is only loosely involved in this record. Progressive post-metal is probably a more accurate term. The title track A Fragile Riddle Crypting Clues brings the album to its culmination and works beautifully almost as a snapshot of the whole album in miniature, blending heavier sections with more melodic passages to great effect.
The musicianship and songcraft at work on A Fragile Riddle Crypting Clues is simply astonishing, this is a band at the peak of their creative powers, melding styles beautifully and with ease. The production is not too slick but is crisp and clean and works well. As the album progressed I became more acclimatized to the vocal style on display and whilst it didn’t work perfectly for me, by the time I reached my second listen it had become much less of an issue for me. Overall this is a very good record that should keep fans of progressive metal interested whilst also appealing to fans of the post-metal scene.