Picking up where Leprous Daylight left off, Advent of Wounds opens with an fast and furious assault of pummeling percussion and shredding strings, welcoming in the blackened death to come. Although a bit cleaner sounding than the previous album, this doesn't take away from the oppressive, gloomy structures presented by the band, but rather gives the listener a bit more detail into the dark and grim cavern before it closes around them. Where the previous may have obfuscated the edges to add atmosphere, Advent thickens the lines and layers, melding the mix into a heavy, unavoidable onslaught. Advent of Wounds is very similar in tone to its predecessor, but one can clearly hear the evolution of the band through their arrangement, songwriting, and production. Stepping away from the more lo-fi aesthetic of Leprous Daylight, this album opens up a bit toward the progressive, further reaching layout that incorporates a bit more dissonance instead of just a flattening assault. Fossilization uses this approach well, allowing the new tones and styles to add depth and dimension, letting the songs thicken naturally, and provide the same amount of dark, fuzzy, mystery that the lower fi blur handled before. 

 

Sophomore albums are tricky beasts; on one hand, the magic of "where has this band been all my life" is gone, but hopefully, fans get to enjoy a matured, more nuanced album that showcases the band's growth. Fossilization's Advent of Wounds follows a nice trajectory of growth, experimentation, and confidence, allowing the amazing songs on Leprous Daylight to serve as a springboard for this well done follow-up. Much like their last LP, Fossilization is taking to the road in support of this release, with a European tour planned alongside Canadian death metallers Phobocosm. If you liked Leprous Daylight, you will like Advent of Wounds, and if you're lucky enough to catch them on tour, please raise your horns for me.