Terror, misery, sorrow my senses palpitated a staccato jig, yet I found an odd serenity wash over me every time I listened to Requiem вЂ“ Pianissimo, each session a wallow of tar and shadow. ThereвЂ™s an ominous tone to the music, in particular the Latin chanting from both the soprano and tenor on вЂњKyrie Eleison,вЂќ made all the more menacing by the strings that swing low and sharp like PoeвЂ™s pendulum. вЂњDies Irae,вЂќ with its choral of bruised color invoked a feeling of slipping into a peaceful oblivion вЂ“ like slit wrists in a warm bath. This soon passed and I began to accept Requiem вЂ“ PianissimoВ for what it was, a dark and brooding classical lamentation. In fact, the excision of any and all metal elements was a sore point, so conditioned was I to distorted chords and bellicose shouts that I struggled to lose myself in the music. I will say my first impression elicited a twinge of disappointment as the absence of any guitar meant missing out on Sesca ScaarbaвЂ™s (formally Samantha Escarbe) memorable and unique lead work. More importantly, Requiem вЂ“ Pianissimo must be judged on its own merits, decoupled from any external crutch. The reality, however, is that few will swallow three hours of music in one sitting. The three records are meant to be consumed as a whole, meaning the absence of metal on Requiem вЂ“ Pianissimo is balanced by the excess of heaviness that follows on parts two and three. Not here, as Virgin Black have structured their triptych so that each album represents a facet of their sound: the first pure classical, the second, Requiem вЂ“ Mezzo Forte, doom and classical, and the third, Requiem вЂ“ Fortissimo, pure death/doom. Several bands have flirted with classicism like The Red King and Elend, but they still left traces of extremity, ensuring that an iota of metal remained. YouвЂ™d be wrong as Requiem вЂ“ Pianissimo is devoid of even a skerrick of heavy metal. You likely did a double-take when you read the words вЂњsolelyвЂ¦ classical orchestral music,вЂќ thinking that there must be a scabrous riff or two lurking between the timpani. Virgin Black better hope their audience still has the stomach for wanton ambition. So here we are, 10 years late and comprised solely of classical orchestral music, Requiem вЂ“ Pianissimo emerges into our modern landscape naked and exposed. After their follow up, 2003вЂ™s ElegantвЂ¦ and Dying, the band embarked upon an ambitious undertaking: a trilogy of albums, a project that would see the second and third records being released a decade before the first of the three would finally be finished in 2018. But it was fantastic while it lasted, and Sombre Romantic, the 2001 debut record of Adelaide-based Virgin Black, was one of the early successes that left an indelible impression with its contrasting cries of doom and operatic embellishments. So confident was I in their curation that I set upon buying practically every release The End Records put out, at least until the wheels fell off and the label debased itself by churning out mainstream dreck. Agalloch, Green Carnation, Antimatter, the label churned out a stream of genre-defining albums by metal bands large and small. There was a time when The End Records could do no wrong.

Virgin black requiem pianissimo