Fear of Eternity

With the aged melancholy of goth, not to mention its layers of synthesised strings, keyboards and effects, and the maleficence of black metal along with its dirge-like guitars and primeval voice, Fear of Eternity’s first full length album is thick with funereal atmosphere. Like the soundtrack to a tale of gothic horror (often with Goblin-esque eeriness), Toward the Castle entrances, but with a hint of delightful revulsion, undulating in swirls of looping melodies and slow-paced riffs. Fear of Eternity is a one-man show, whisperingly intimate at some moments and then coolly remote the next, almost soothing if it weren’t for the buzz of the guitars and the throat-wrenching vocal delivery. Despite its lack of speed, Toward the Castle never plods, but pulsates instead, throbbing and bleeding like a pierced heart.