80%

Recently, I have been complaining that there's a stagnancy on Polish scene. Well, I'll have to take my words back as I got the next successful publishing from Beast of Prey label. It's the recent CD of the band Nekyia that comes from Lubawa. According to the official biography, the band was formed in 1999. Their output comprises of several CDs including those published by the active and once well-known label Fluttering Dragon from Warsaw. The CD I review reveals Nekyia's wide range of stylistic variations: starting from dark ambient which dominates, up to  neofolk and industrial. The authors admit on their website that the eclecticism  is highly purposeful. What's even more interesting the album is very coherent in spite of diversified influence. The first track "Eternal Rest" starts with the calm guitar melody which soon transforms into the dark, gloomy wall of synthesizer sounds  in the background of which the bells toll and the heart beats.
The monotonous voice of the vocalist soon joins the harmony and fortifies the mourning atmosphere. He recites more than sings, but it's definitely better that way. There is no place for vocal show in such kind of the music. When in the middle of the track the low, appealing, bass rhythm enters subwoofer I already know that I like the new material of Nekyia. The intro is very good and promising. The next track changes the atmosphere a bit because of the female vocals; it's also less gloomy. The guitar (it sounds as if it was alive) implements the sound at times. The next tracks keep the style up to the track "Nausea". I have a clear association here – it sounds like DIVE! DIVE of the last CD "Behind the Sun". The same vocal manner, dynamic and catchy rhythm plus minimalism. Are these purposeful references? Anyway, it's nothing wrong. Dirk Ivens is an unquestioned master of industrial sounds and evergreens so I will never take  NEKYIA's inspiration for disadvantage. The last two tracks are very good combination of neofolk and dark ambient. The material is well-recorded and produced; it's clear that the band is purposive as far as their sound is concerned. They skilfully combine numbers of styles in their music. In my opinion however, (subjective) Nekyia does better in the  dark tracks with predominating machine sounds  and not in those where there are guitars and over sweetened female vocals. "Eternal Rest" and "Nausea" are the best parts of the CD. I personally hope that the band will follow the way once taken. And for "Purgatory as the Serpent Domain", 80 %.

1. Eternal Rest
2. Everyday Of Doom
3. Amon
4. The Hourglass
5. Nausea
6. The Weaver
7. Light Eternal

• V/A - Brewery In Piotrków Trybunalski - 2007-01-01 (Music reviews)
• Nekyia - Slowmotion Downhells - 2006-12-24 (Music reviews)

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