I Shalt Become
Wanderings

Have you ever wondered what would happen if you took away all the angry parts from good old Burzum? Have you ever wondered where Depressive Black Metal comes from? The answer to the second question is definitely "Yes," and the names that come to mind are Abyssic Hate, Burzum, Xasthur, Leviathan. "But the answer is wrong!" as Corrado Guzzanti used to say as Quelo.

Undoubtedly, Sir Vikerness played an important role in creating the foundations of this genre (from "Det Som Engang Var" to "Filosofem"), but that’s not enough to define him as the founding father: not only is his music not classified as Depressive, but his immense fame has always overshadowed the valid compatriots Forgotten Woods and a guy overseas, who released perhaps the first truly Depressive album in 1996. The guy is S. Holliman, the mind behind the project I Shalt Become, and the CD is "Wanderings". The fashionable Black Metaller community (like any other community belonging to the Homo genre) spends its days listening to creations by Xasthur and Leviathan, acclaiming them as the leading exponents of the stars and stripes Black movement, neglecting albums like the one in question and contributing to the oblivion of those who contributed to the birth of these (let's say it as it is) followers. It’s obvious that those who, with more fairness towards fans, choose not to release sixteen Splits and nine Demos every year, even though they have in mind maybe three good riffs (any reference to Xasthur and Leviathan is purely coincidental), will go unnoticed by an audience more inclined to choose quantity over quality; I Shalt Become, in fact, is the author of only two Full-Lengths, the one I will talk about here and the more recent "In The Falling Snow".

I won’t bore you with the usual talk about Depressive Black, how inflated it is, how dubious the sincerity of the artists is, and how much guts it takes to play it well; and I won’t skip over it to avoid saying banalities, simply because there’s no need. "Wanderings" contains no ambiguous or gaudy messages and doesn’t pretend to be a depressive work; "Wanderings" Is depressive even though it’s simply an introspection that’s not clownish at all. Please consider also the year of release of this work to understand the historical-musical significance and to fully appreciate the extraordinary compositional talents of this guy.

The question with which I opened the review was not merely a literary device: I Shalt Become’s proposal could very well be a mosaic of Burzumian riffs, the darkest and most melancholic ones, devoid, however, of that epicness so beloved by the Norwegian. However, I wouldn’t want the word "melancholic" to mislead you and lead you to associate it with the sweet, decadent melodies of those groups that cross Depressive Black and Doom. This is Black metal in every sense, harsh, scratching, not at all romantic and terrifyingly egotistical: there’s no room for heart-wrenching memories and desperate laments, but only for a disturbing vision of reality more misanthropic than ever and full of hatred. Hatred devoid of regret, cold and calculated, that only certain Black works know how to express.

The songs that make up this album vary in length but rarely exceed five minutes, which distinguishes them significantly from the canons of Depressive Black; furthermore, the riffs are not repeated many times and constantly change, showcasing our artist's great creativity. More than riffs, it would be better to speak of arpeggios, disturbing arpeggios that reveal a gloomy and unsettling universe in which one roams, always fully aware and always tormented. Like in the splendid "The Funeral Rain", or in "Paintings In A Gallery" or again in "Insects", tracks that could very well serve as musical backgrounds for a Munch exhibition.

It’s notable how the themes addressed in the lyrics, so brief as to render the songs almost exclusively instrumental, are judgments concerning abstract themes, capable of bringing a subtle disturbance without ever referencing suffering. The concept of "Wanderings" is not suffering, but anguish, and its expression occurs in a simple manner, without resorting to hypnotic and confused atmospheres.

I think it’s necessary to make a small nod to the production, cold as befits a real Black disc but not Low Fi like those of many later colleagues.

In conclusion, "Wanderings" is an album that should be owned by all lovers of Black, whether minimal or depressive; an album that anticipated its time by at least five years and still does not receive the merits it deserves but can only be defined with the word masterpiece.

Ps: A reissue containing two covers of Judas Iscariot and one of Burzum came out two years ago; given our limited discography, it might be a good opportunity to hear a few more tracks.