Frenzy of the Absolute, by Belgian drone master Fear Falls Burning, is one of the sparsest and most haunting collection of drones it has been my pleasure to hear. It’s big, and sinister, and oppressive, and intensely doom laden. This is the first I’ve heard of his work, and I can see that I’ve been missing something rather special. On Frenzy of the Absolute he works in collaboration with a number of drummers: Tim Bertilsson (Switchblade), Dave Vanderplas (Rubbish Heap, Ontayso) and Magnus Lindberg (Cult of Luna). Johannes Persson, also from Cult of Luna, collaborates with guitar loops.
Drone in itself can be timeless, but percussion adds a whole new dimension. It adds a heaviness and oppressiveness to the already cold supremely desolate drones of Frenzy of the Absolute. Even within the layers of guitar drones there is a cyclical looping rhythm. Riffs stretched out to ultra slow proportions, slowed to the point where they naturally seem to turn into slow looping drones. Drumming helps to reinforce the idea of time coming to an almost stand still. The drums fall away, time stands still leaving a world of pulsating drones just hanging there.
Frenzy of the Absolute could quite easily have just set a new benchmark for drone.
-Alaric-
