Delirium - A review of Loviatar's Lightless

Loviatar's second regular studio record Lightless comes around with six tunes and a total running time of thirity-eight minutes. If compared to the self-titled predecessor, this album is less ambitious, epic and intellectual which is actually positive because the six songs work well on their own, have excellent flow and are much easier to digest than the songs released three years ago.

The band has kept all its fascinating trademarks. Steady drum passages and gloomy bass guitar sounds meet psychedelic guitar layers and hypnotizing vocals. The muddy old-fashioned production blends in appropriately. This entire concept works particularly well in the dramatic ''Silica'' that stands out as the record's most emotional track as well as in the sluggishly meandering ''Horse in Thrall'' that emerges as album highlight after multiple spins.

The doom metal quartet from Ottawa also manages to offer some experiments without abandoning its atmospheric concept and psychedelic vibes. The fast and heavy tune ''Cave In'' is certainly the most accessible song and would be a solid choice for an underground radio single. ''All the Witches You Failed to Burn'' is a wonderful instrumental effort with almost folkloristic acoustic guitar sounds, tribal drums and smoothly distorted electric guitar sound that provide a mysterious atmosphere. Album closer and title song ''Lightless'' combines all the band's strengths from a sluggish instrumental overture over fragile transitions to desperate outbursts with steady rhythm section, highly experimental guitar play and desperate vocals. Despite its length cracking the ten-minute mark, the song has decent flow and doesn't overstay its welcome.

In the end, Loviatar's second full length effort Lightless is a slight improvement over the more complex predecessor. The album cover evokes the record's gloomy, mysterious and psychedelic atmosphere splendidly. If you like sludge metal, psychedelic rock, progressive rock and doom metal, you should give Ottawa's best-kept secret a few spins. Please note that the album is only available digitally and on vinyl so far but here's hope that the band and its label will release a CD version to give fans the chance to complete their collections.

Final rating: 88%