Blood of the black owl-A banishing ritual

Bindrune
2010

On their third release Seattle's Blood of the black owl construct a style that pulls upon elements of drone, ambient black metal and other styles. That barely scratches the surface of their sound because they are very far from typical. There is nothing truly direct about their music because they construct their songs through long stretches. The music revolves around flute and guitars that vary between subtle and faint up to menacing and dark. The drums also run the range from being vary much in the background up to leading the attack of creating a mood of imminent terror. In terms of real metal it takes a while to get to any parts that fall under that heading and even then they are used sparingly. The echoing vocals don't start until well into the disc. This isn't the easiest album to take and those lacking patience are going to be hard pressed to take the whole thing. It took me a few listens to really appreciate what BOTBO were doing and to absorb all that they were presenting. Eventually I caught on and the swirling, deep sounds pulled me in and even had a hypnotic effect on me at times. There is a terrifying quality at times that slowly creeps up on you. Now there were plenty of other moments where the sounds and music are just slowly winding along and it's not always a trail that is easy to follow. This is probably an album that works best as background music and I can appreciate it in that respect. I eventually did take to this release, but I know it's certainly an album where I would have to be in the right mood to appreciate it. However I definitely could see myself listening to it on a stormy night after the kids have gone to sleep I might put it into the computer and listen through headphones. Of course I would be looking over my shoulder frequently too.