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Friday Full-Length: Solitude Aeturnus, Beyond the Crimson Horizon

Posted in Bootleg Theater on June 9th, 2017 by JJ Koczan

Solitude Aeturnus, Beyond the Crimson Horizon (1992)

It’s like staring into the very gates of doom itself. Solitude Aeturnus weren’t the first American doom band, but they were definitely among the earlier pioneers Stateside playing doom metal, and when it came to the second part of that equation, they offered it in abundance. With heavy influences from Candlemass, Trouble and of course Black Sabbath, the Arlington, Texas, five-piece got their start with a well-received demo in 1989 before signing to what was then Roadracer Records — soon to be Roadrunner Records — for the subsequent 1991 full-length, Into the Depths of Sorrow. From where I sit, that record is also a classic, but the 1992 follow-up, Beyond the Crimson Horizon, is widely hailed as both their pinnacle work and as a standard-bearer in US doom. Aside from the massive influence it would have on the development of metal, doom and heavy rock in Texas’ own fertile underground, it’s a record that helped clearly demonstrate that American outfits could capture the same kind of majesty their European counterparts had been bringing to the style for years in the wake of CandlemassMessiah Marcolin era, which by then had hit its peak several years before. I’ll gladly argue that not only did Beneath the Crimson Horizon prove this thesis, but it showed a path by which that influence could lead to individualized growth and progression, that doom — that slowest and most morose of metals — need not stagnate or lack energy to be effective in its atmosphere.

Not only that, but Beyond the Crimson Horizon gave outlet to influences from the NWOBHM in cuts like opener “Seeds of the Desolate” and immediately met them head on with grittier chugging in “Black Castle,” setting up a dynamic that would continue to play out across its span. It wasn’t any more afraid to thrash out in the second half of “The Hourglass” than it was to directly confront the march of Candlemass‘ “Mirror Mirror” in the preceding “It Came upon One Night,” a seven-minute highlight of the record distinguished by its epic flourish of gong and spoken vocals from otherwise soar-prone frontman Robert Lowe, who would remain a defining presence in Solitude Aeturnus for their duration along with guitarist John Perez. Both shine in these tracks, it should go without saying, but the drumming of John Covington, the guitar of Edgar Rivera and Lyle Steadham‘s bass aren’t to be discounted either, as much as the latter might be mixed down as was the wont of the era. For what was still just their second album since forming in 1987, Solitude Aeturnus presented themselves as a complete, cohesive unit with the poise and confidence to execute their material in the face of otherwise-leaning trends both in and out of the underground and metal as a whole. To listen to a song like the Trouble-style “The Final Sin” or the penultimate chugger “Plague of Procreation,” one can hear the band’s reach expanding even as the tracklist makes its way from front to back, but at no point do Solitude Aeturnus relinquish their hold on a melodic sensibility or crushing atmosphere, the latter shown by the Metallica-esque stomp in the midsection of “Plague of Perception.” They would save the slowest and most grueling nod for last in the closing semi-title-track “Beyond…” and add suitable funeral bells over a long fade that dirge-plodded the record to its finish.

Dramatic? Oh yeah. Of its era? Most definitely — but also a blueprint from which future US doom metal would be and still is derived, either directly or indirectly. With Perez and Lowe as its founding anchors, Solitude Aeturnus would go on to issue Through the Darkest Hour in 1994 before embracing more of a groove metal feel on 1996’s Downfall and 1998’s Adagio, and a 2000 EP titled Justice for All would be their final release until 2006 brought a return both of the band generally and of their classically doomed form on the righteous Alone, which was offered through Massacre Records and topped an hour of prime darkened reveries that showed Solitude Aeturnus‘ core approach was not just still relevant, but vital in Texas metal and the wider sphere of what doom had become and was about to become in the social media age. Alone was followed by a 2009 live record titled Hour of Despair and the 2011 In Times of Solitude compilation, and Poland’s Metal Mind Productions had done a series of maybe-licensed reissues of Solitude Aeturnus‘ material, including Beyond the Crimson Horizon, in 2006, but as essential as Alone found Solitude Aeturnus to be, it hasn’t received a proper follow-up in the 11 years since. Perez works as a tour manager — he’s been out with Saint Vitus and Venom Inc. and recently accompanied Candlemass on the road — and Lowe did a stint in Candlemass from 2006 through 2012 after their fallout with Messiah Marcolin, but Solitude Aeturnus has languished, their final album (to-date) a testament to what Perez and Lowe could still accomplish if they decided to move forward with a new batch of material. One continues to hope that at some point they do.

Doom on and enjoy Beyond the Crimson Horizon. Thanks for reading, as always.

This was a four-day week for me and it was still too long by at least a day. Possibly two days. My work situation has devolved to the point where in about an hour when I go to the office I’ll be bringing my cheapie tablet with me in order to spend the bulk of the day playing and maybe even finishing Final Fantasy V. I took Monday off for a doctor’s appointment and since Tuesday have basically spent the days reading downloaded Shatnerverse ebooks and listening to baseball games (Tigers vs. Angels yesterday was a good time unless you’re a Tigers fan). Sounds like paradise except for existing in a cubicle. They’re still paying me until next Friday though, so I’ll be there.

Whatever. It’s almost over.

Then it’s back to being broke. How’re we gonna pay the mortgage? How’re we gonna pay the oil? How’re we gonna feed this baby? And so on. All completely valid questions, by the way, and the only reason I didn’t include the tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of student loan debt The Patient Mrs. and I share between us is because it makes me too sad and/or panicky to think about it. So yeah. Back to that.

But at least I won’t be going to an office anymore. Losing two hours every day to a commute. Missing out on life in the meantime. More time to write. More time with the Little Dog Dio. Time with The Pecan when he arrives in October. All of that is good. Will be good.

Five workdays left.

Plenty of Obelisk stuff to keep me busy in the meantime. Here’s what’s in the notes for next week, subject to change of course:

Mon.: Top 20 of 2017 So Far; BardSpec video.
Tue.: Radio Adds; The Necromancers video premiere.
Wed.: Lee Van Cleef Six Dumb Questions; Witch Charmer video.
Thu.: Destroyer of Light track premiere; Wren video.
Fri.: Abrams Six Dumb Questions; hopefully some other audio premiere or review.

That’s about where we’re at. Put my head down, keep writing. Everything else is distraction.

I hope you have a great and safe weekend, whatever you might be up to. I’ll be in Connecticut tonight and tomorrow and then back to Massachusetts on Sunday. I have some travel coming up in the next few weeks — Maryland for a wedding next weekend, then down to North Carolina, then back up to New Jersey before finally heading back home; family stuff all — so it will be a bit of an adventure coming up, but I’m looking forward to getting through next week and getting to it. I’m sure we’ll have some fun in the meantime.

Thanks again for reading, and please check out the forum and radio stream.

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