Ecferus is certainly a dedicated little project. Hailing from Indiana in the US and having released a debut album and two subsequent EPs in 2015 the world is all ready for album number two. Or is it!?
The black roots of Yggdrasil have grown strong and seeds bloom far off into distant lands but the nature of the beast remains emblazoned under an earthly strike of sheet lightening. Now welcome the dissonant Pangaea. Pangaea for all its cacophony shelters a beautiful secret. Amid the riveting parade of blastbeats, primal fills, power hits and raindrop guitar (trem.) lies an intense and articulate flurry of a creation myth that is both musically sound and optimistically adroit.
Holistically there are moments when the lucidity of the riffing takes a dive for filler content, musically rhyming like a rapper, babbling to itself rather than progressing the song. With that being said that does add more gravitas to the atmospheric breaks which offer a sinister plateau to rest any weary riff. Fighting off fatigue with some elaborate jazz reorientation.
Overall the story of the chaotic Pangaea is well suited to the medium. In sound the album shares the same fledgling mastering of when black metal was a developing genre. Alp (the sole character behind Ecferus) can consider this a monolithic triumph. Even if his plans to thwart humanity are overkill.
8/10
