Mesmur

An echoing thud in the chamber of human suffering, Mesmur tries to capture the sounds of a world that was doomed from the beginning. Led by Yixja, the mastermind that brought to life the progressive black metal band Dalla Nebbia, Mesmur is funeral doom with a little bit extra. Blending influences ranging from the funerary dirges of Evoken to the mesmerizing atmosphere of Neurosis, Mesmur shows versatility in a genre where simplicity usually reigns. Also featuring the agonizing screams of Chris G (Orphans of Dusk, Intorment Black), the drumming of Alkurion (Dalla Nebbia and Funeral Age), and the bass playing of Aslak Karlsen Hauglid, Mesmur brings you the harrowing sounds of your inevitable demise and is not for the weak at heart.

On the eponymous debut album, Mesmur weaves five tapestries of dread and despair, totalling about 52 minutes of runtime. Lyrical subject matter ranges from themes of isolation and paranoia, to death and loss, to cosmic cataclysm and the destruction of human society, and the album as a whole carries an almost Lovecraftian feeling of hopelessness for humanity in the face of uncontrollable horrors. Adding to this feeling is cover art from Gravedealer Studio, with its image of a primitive subterranean city that could portray a meager attempt at refuge from some unknown apocalypse occuring above ground, or could perhaps be the remnants of an ancient civilization that suffered a similar fate long ago.