Album Review: Hail Spirit Noir – Eden In Reverse (Agonia Records)

Greek psychedelic prog metal band and Agonia Records recent signees, Hail Spirit Noir, will release its fourth studio album titled “Eden In Reverse” on June 19th via Agonia Records.

Hail Spirit Noir is an intriguing psychedelic prog metal band, with strong experimental and prog rock influences, recommended for fans of Oranssi Pazuzu, Ulver, Borknagar, or Ghost, yet with an identity of its own.

The band had this to say on the new album:

This is the album we’ve spent the most time on. We started off doing some experiments without any idea where they could lead to. After the first 3-4 tracks, we realized we were onto something new for the band. We were no longer in the 60s-70s zone but more in the 70s-80s. The songs sounded retro-futuristic and surreal but they were also more prog, psychedelic and challenging than ever. In the lyrics, we re-wrote the story of Eden from a surreal, Richard Dawkins-esque, Darwinian point of view. The result was Eden in Reverse.

Fascinating. Absolutely fascinating.

Eden in Reverse is an album to dive into and not surface until the final notes play out. Go deep, you’ll need too to really appreciate the unique and diverse sounds this progressive band have to show. It might be only 7 tracks long but those 7 are packed with mesmerising rhythms, peculiar twists, offbeat turns, eerie psychedelia and prog metal groove.

There is no denying it’s a challenging listen but a challenge well worth taking although you will have to get past the opener Darwinian Beasts. A bit of an off-putting start that is thankfully short allowing the real cream to come to the top with Incense Swirls and Alien Lip Reading.

However, for animated wonder that befuddles look no further than the epic that is Crossroads. The vocals are so damn strong here, commanding yet subtle and comforting.

A flurry of weird effects transitions into a memorable heavy beat in The Devil’s Blind Spot which in turn flows into the wild and madness inducing The first Ape on New Earth. To say the latter is chaotic is an understatement but credit to Hail Spirit Noir, they’re in complete control.

Finally a contender for 2020’s most unusual album wraps up with Automata 1980. All computer-style noises (whizzes and whistles) for the first 2 minutes. When it starts to ramp up it gets way more interesting. Colourfully vibrant, it is a finish that reflects the fascinating sound that is present throughout Eden in Reverse.

Hail Spirit Noir – Eden in Reverse Full Track Listing:

1. Darwinian Beasts
2. Incense Swirls
3. Alien Lip Reading
4. Crossroads
5. The Devil’s Blind Spot
6. The First Ape on New Earth
7. Automata 1980

Links

Facebook | Bandcamp | Big Cartel | Spotify | Agonia Records Shop