Amun - Spectra And Obsession (Self-released)

This year has been replete with longform records from established figures in underground metal. Between Sól án varma ’s collective of Icelandic mystics and Mutant favourite Asthâghul ’s middle finger to fickle curmudgeons , it feels like big and operatic is back in vogue. More exciting, perhaps, this trend isn’t for proven scenesters alone. The Ohioan dreamers in Amun have been flying under the radar for five years, forging their own legend of progressive black metal (BM) behind the scenes. This formidable sophomore effort, Spectra And Obsession , appears unfortunately to be their last, but that doesn’t mean they haven’t layered the glitching resonances of their “electro-organic death music” and left listeners with a genuine epic. Amun’s members each hail from disparate musical backwoods, but they’ve leveraged this diversity to romanticize BM’s vast gothic soundscapes, resulting in a work of art not only coherent but fiercely ambitious. Relying on BM’s ability to swerve into a multitu