Skamz's Almostopster: Vessel of Iniquity - The Doorway

skamz try to rate albums coherently challenge (impossible)

In trying to come up with my reliquary, I had to reconsider what it meant to rate an album.

An album that introduced a new sound or style, that was, perhaps, monumental - how does this compare with one that was less innovative, but I actually enjoy listening to more?

It can feel unfair to exclude such groundbreaking material. For example I totally dig the gorenoise of Last Days of Humanity’s Putrefaction in Progress, but is this a good “album”? Honestly, no. They basically came up with a sound (and by “sound” I mean this literally, because there are no comprehensible riffs on this album) and repeated it for 41 tracks straight. Similarly, I love some of the electropunk sound presented on Wulfband’s eponymous album, but the album as a whole can come off as a bit cringey if you’re not in the right mood.

Contrast this with The Strokes’ First Impressions of Earth. Hardly innovative in any sense, but it has 14 tracks and literally all of them are good poppy rock songs. Not an album I’ve chosen to listen to in a while, but I still respect it as a great album (edged out by Linea Aspera nonetheless). AFI’s Black Sails in the Sunset is the same, though that got edged out by Absu.

There’s also the question of quality vs quantity. No Doubt’s Tragic Kingdom - do I actually think this is one of the best albums of all time? Yes. But at an hour long and with numerous filler tracks, I can barely make it through. In the same vein is US Girl’s experimental pop album Half Free. With 5 banger singles and 4 filler ones, how does one even rate this? It’s probably arbitrary, but is it a 8+ album? Signs point to no.

Am I rating the “sound” the band presented, or the album as a whole? What about more ambient / atmospheric pieces, which blur the line? For simplicity’s sake I just went with more traditional albums on my reliquary.

Which leaves, for my Almosttopster piece, an album coming at you like an ancient horror emerging from the hollow earth, spewing blackened grime from the gaping chasm, enveloping you in dust of negativity - Vessel of Iniquity’s The Doorway.

I discovered this album off the Spotify genre playlist “The Sound of Black Noise” (see also “The Sound of Death Industrial” if you’re into this type of thing, or my own website Spotify Genre Explorer for more genre discovery). There’s a good deal of pretty mid shit on that playlist like Enbilulugugal and Jute Gyte but the occasional gem.

And really, most importantly, this is music for a state of mind. I remember hearing it the first time and being blown away by this wall of sound. Nihilistic, misanthropic, and encompassing, this was the first time I heard music which really was similar to the type of stuff I play in my own head when I want to block out unwanted thoughts (via a combination of teeth drumming, ear rumbling, and tonal breathing). There’s just enough variation on this album where it doesn’t feel the exact same for 45 minutes. Some mix of Sunn O))) type drone with that blasting industrial drum machine and screeching, filtered vocals. Comparable to, but better than Portal.

When I heard it, I remember I was on solo walk near the waterfront of Alameda, wishing I could get away from all the people and have some serenity in isolation and wilderness. I’m not saying I believe in psychic power but I do believe that people around us effect our thoughts. Being around other people I compare myself with them, be in judgement, lust, or jealousy. It’s exhausting. They are not literally in my head but they might as well be. Insecurity runs deep and is a feeling I’m well familiar with. Putting on dark ambient or noisy music is like a weighted blanket for me. By having this negativity manifested externally, I find my brain is more free to move into the creative, happy space.

Vessel of Iniquity is a one-man band out of UK. They have five full-lengths, although I don’t remember much about the other four. He also has an excellent side project called Crown of Ascension - give a listen to the track “The Great Dying” there which is some great dissonant sci-fi black metal.