Release date: 26th June 2020
Acoustic black metal is the subgenre I didn’t realise I needed in my life before listening to Finnish one-man project Nobody (Tuomas Kauppinen). Atmosfear is Nobody’s debut album and it’s a fascinating and intriguing piece of art.
The thing that works best is that snarled harsh vocals are juxtaposed against gentle acoustic melodies and soundscapes, and the combination just works. It makes the genre a little more ‘accessible’ for those who aren’t a fan of being faced with an immediate wall of aggressive noise whilst still staying true to the style’s heavier roots.
The only issue with the piece is that there’s not much variety. Some songs sound very similar to one another, and with seventeen tracks to contend with, there’s a lot to sink your teeth in despite the album only racking up a 35-minute run time. The music is good but it feels like it could be taken further due to song construction being fairly similar from one track to the next.
As a whole, Atmosfear a great listen and unique bit of work. There’s a lot of potential to be found, so it will be interesting to see where Nobody goes from here.
7/10
