Aurora Borealis – Prophecy is the Mold in which History is Poured

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“AURORA BOREALIS has been around for years (going back to as far as 1994 and it has mostly self-released their albums. Underground fanatics might remember the band reaching out to promote its music on forums back in the day and tracking its progress, each album was a large improvement over the earlier ones. “Prophecy is the Mold in Which History is Poured” is an accomplished effort, where the band has used its almost three decades of experience to make sure it’s as potent as ever, probably better.” The album has 11 songs.

“God Hunter” is the first proper track, following a short intro of harrowing spoken words. The guitar work is the best part of the song. It moves in and all around, barely stopping on one particular sound. The vocals are high pitched screams, and the drums are faster than you can comprehend. “The House of Nimrod” is another feverish paced song, with a lot going on in the guitars. However, it sounds similar to the previous song, save for the heavy breakdown towards the end. “Serenade of Designations” has a similar sound, although the pacing is varied a bit, keeping the listener on their toes. There is also some psychedelic elements present, though they are subdued.

“Founding Fathers of Deception” features more complicated guitar work. It’s almost Progressive in the way they are presented. Of course, Progressive Black Metal is a thing, though I would say they mix in more Thrash elements than Progressive ones. “Khafres Mark” begins with a slower, more discernable groove, that eventually branches out again in the guitar work. The rhythm work is more within the Death Metal genre than Black Metal, especially with all of the fast picked work. “Awakening” is really the first song we hear with any variation to it, at least in the beginning. The harrowing sound that the band begins to develop however is quickly dashed by dissonant riffs and more vocal screams.

“Hymn to the Archfiend” feature some very frightening elements, and the cadence of the vocals is lightning fast. “Cosmic Control Mechanism” closes the album. A plethora of dissonant riffs reign down like hammers on your head. Again, stagnation is not in the band’s vocabulary, and if you listen close enough, you can hear the connections. Overall, you will find an album with a constant shifting of sounds, and a combination of several styles of Extreme Metal. I have to hand one thing to the band…the overload of riffing is evident here, and the band are very good musicians. It was just enough to counterbalance a similar sound from song to song, my only real criticism of the album. Here you will find an album with a constant shifting of sounds, and a combination of several styles of Extreme Metal.

Songwriting: 6
Musicianship: 8
Memorability: 6
Production: 7