Album Review: Hell is Other People – Moirae (Transcending Obscurity)

Canada’s post black metal band, Hell is Other People, will release their new album, Moirae, on October the 11th via Transcending Obscurity Records.

Based out of Windsor, Ontario, Canada, the band produces blackened hardcore with an emotional edge. Initially beginning as a post-hardcore act with their first demo in 2014, over time the band gradually added more black metal influences leading to the album, Embrace. Those influences are cited as the likes of Oathbreaker, Altar Of Plagues, Celeste, Wolves In The Throne Room as the band’s evolution settled on a post-black style with hardcore touches and atmospheric flourishes. Hell is Other People’s long-form songwriting is inspired by artists such as Gaerea, Isis, Amesoeurs and Agalloch. That’s a serious and exciting list of influences!

Moirae is Hell Is Other People’s second full length and aside from a split release with My Lonely Sea in 2019, means fans have had a long 7 year wait for this follow up.

Speaking about the new album, Hell is Other People state:

 Moirae’ is an Ancient Greek term referring to three figures that are personifications of destiny. The role of the Moirae is to ensure that everyone lives out their destiny as assigned to them by the laws of the universe. We explore this necessary human process of birth, proliferation and death through these songs, couched in metaphor and esoteric meaning so the listener can interpret them as they see fit.

Hell is Other People are Nathan Boots on guitars, James Ditty on drums and Nathan Ferreira on vocals and bass.

Moirae is 5 tracks long and weighs in at a hefty 44 minutes long kicking off with the title track Moirae. If you aren’t familiar with Hell Is Other People, this track will do a very good job of introducing you to their sound over it’s 7 minute runtime. Delivering really full and intense blackened guitars over a slower, moody tempo with the drums and bass delivering a punch of aggression, the atmosphere pulls you in quickly. As a sombre and haunting melody layers itself over the top, I found myself quite hypnotised by the overall soundscape.

Vocals are used sparingly, but when they do come in they are really harsh and bedded nicely into the sombre tones of the song making them appear like another instrument in the mix. The song does transition through phases, often led by either the drums when the intensity ramps up considerably, or by the guitar when the melody takes over. It’s a stunning introduction to the album and where Hell Is Other People are at right now.

The quality, and darkness continues with Fates and then Degrade. The former delivering a more aggressive sound with more in the way of vocals. The vocals are still viciously blackened but hit with a nice mix of pitches still. The drums are intense and fiery, the riffs thick and murky. The extra pace on the drums in particular will make your head move but the strong sense of atmosphere and emotion is still very much at the forefront. That emption is amplified massively during the guitar solo/melodic layer that joins the heavy sounds later in the track.

The latter, Degrade, sees Hell Is Other People take a slow and steady approach building up with a gentle but foreboding melody that lulls you in before delivering a punch of full guitars and a steady drum beat. It’s dark, it’s heavy but more in terms of emotional weight than aggression. The vocals continue to impress remaining gravelly, black metal in style but with variations in tone and pitch. There is a real sense of a band working in perfect harmony as you once again find yourself becoming one with the sounds.

Loss is our penultimate track, and delivers another sombre masterclass. The speed is ramped up in the early passages of this near 9 minute long beast. Reckless drumming and vicious vocals attack your senses all the while the riffs deliver speedy, yet still gloomy riffs. The tones in use across the whole of Moirae really deliver for the band and add such heavy weight to every track. There are moments where the rhythm settles a bit and has a touch of rhythmic groove to it, moments where the drums lead a bit more of an assault on the senses and of course moments where the serious melody takes control and leads you by the hand towards your pain and anguish. The repetitive and slightly chaotic ending slowly settles into a fading melody, giving you time to reflect before we are led directly into the final track.

Moirae concludes with Atropos. A song of mammoth proportion coming in at 13 and a half minutes long though as both Loss and Atropos are connected, you could put these down as a single 24 minute long beast. Stylistically, by now you know what Hell is Other People are delivering and are capable of. The only real difference n Atropos is that with more time available, they can pull you deeper down the rabbit hole. It’s true to say that the 13 minutes passes by in what feels like seconds as you so easily get lost within the song. Heavier moments a deliver barking vocals and harsh growls with electrifying drum pace and power, all while the riffs deliver aggression, and gloom by the bucketload.

Melodic slow downs see the band ramp the atmospherics up further creating a mesmerising sound that benefits form how sparse the overall soundscape is. The slowest of drums, the gentlest of sombre melody, all coming off of the back of the heaviest verse on Moirae creates a glorious contrast. As expected, we then need to go back from that sombre section to the heavier edge of the band. A thump of drums, a wretched growl and emotive riffing brings us back up, but manages to hold on to the emotional threads and keep us within their puppeteer grasp. More transitions to probably the new heaviest verse on the album so far come before steady rhythm takes over for a bit, then . It’s a lot to take in and a long journey to reach our destination but worth every second and every step on the way.

Hell is Other People deliver a bit of a masterclass here with Moirae. An album that oozes eerie ambiance across guitar driven tracks, contrasting instrumental layers and evocative moods. The drums are exceptional, the guitars and bass, mesmerising and the vocals are powerful. I think you can very easily here when a band have hit a sweet spot. A place where they are just in the right space as individuals, and as a band. Confident in their approach and knowing what their end goals are. That is what I get when I listen to this astonishing release. Moirae sounds like a band in perfect harmony where every note has it’s place and every instrument blends to become a single sound. Atmospheric, evocative, ambient, heavy – Moirae has it all and is one of the best post black metal releases I have heard this year.

Hell is Other People Links

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