Tunnels of Ah — Thus Avici

Following his 2013 debut, Lost Corridors, Steven Burroughs once again teams up with Cold Spring to release a droney, looped, fuzzed out dark ambient album. Showing a lot of growth since his first release, Tunnels of Ah have upped the ante on the musical front. However, the common pitfalls of looping and emphasis on creepy vocals and lyrics are still present, and, much like Pitfall Harry, Steven still times his jumps improperly from time to time, and lands fully in the alligator's mouth.

 

From the opening salvo of dizzying, swirling loops of "At the Error of the Stars," one can feel the enveloping presence of of Tunnels of Ah's scope. Standing on nice, rumbling lows, and blanketed by thick, vortexes of bell like, distorted mids, the distant cries quickly build a full, claustrophobic atmosphere. Deep, bassy pulses add texture to the encircling drones and give the track an extra, chthonic depth. The thickness and depth of layers on "Error" is eschewed on the following track, "Akeldama," and not necessarily to Tunnels' benefit. Missing the safety of extra layers and interference, loops become more obvious and less interesting, which makes it tougher to sit patiently through the 8+ minute runtime. "Locusts Have Broken" takes on a ritualistic, cavelike vibe. Chants are the vessel in which the lows and crackling whispers are brought forth. This hypnotic rhythm draws the listener in, but is broken by the unnecessary vocals. "Eating on locust and honey" is looped, and the listener is taken out of the enjoyable trance. "Saint Peter Ha-Satana" plays more like "Akeldama" with the visibility of loops. Interestingly, the witchlike vocals really work on this track. One is treated to images like the blind crones in The Beastmaster plotting their next horrific crime. "Perpetual Holocaust," unfortunately, has Tunnels of Ah returning to its core of distracting vocals and exposed loops. Textural swoons can only do so much, especially when the fairly bloated runtime is based on so few. Closing out the album is "We Are His Burning Ones." Filled with vocals that try too hard and annoying looped phrases, the music takes a back seat, and the song suffers for it.

Tunnels of Ah has improved greatly since its debut, but still falls victim to its reliance on vocal phrases and looping to get its message across. While this is the standard M.O. for most bands on the planet, some restraint must be shown when it starts to take away from the music itself. Distracting vocals aside, the transparency of the loops and dependence on them for extended periods of time hurts Tunnels quite a bit. However, seeing the improvement from the last release, maybe the next one may hit the mark it intends.