FUNERAL FORNICATION – PANDEMIC TRANSGRESSION (Hypnotic Dirge Records)

A very interesting CD, this one. Funeral Fornication is the vehicle of expression of a Canadian blackheart called Vultyrous, who’s been flying this banner since 2003. His art has diversified and changed considerably over the years and the current sound is ambient / depressive Black Metal, with an epic feel and a forlorn sense of grandeur. Sometimes it gets a little too pompous but by and large this is a worthwhile listen.

I like the tortured, distorted vocals (when in use), which fit in perfectly with the sometimes carnival-esque atmosphere to create a genuine sense of menace. A nice variety of instruments is brought to the table and all are performed competently, indeed with flair, as FF trawls through a gamut of emotions and manages to conjure a slab of ambient Black Metal that’s mostly neither tedious nor bland.

Regular readers of this website will know that my preference is for grim, raw BM. This certainly isn’t that. And there are some very dodgy clean vocals to be found along the way (for which I’ve deducted points, of course) but all in all it’s a good enough effort. While ‘Pandemic Transgression’ is by no means the best album you’re going to hear this year, I can imagine a lot of people really appreciating the soundscapes located on what is – with all due credit – an ambitious and fairly accomplished piece of work, even if not quite my preferred cup of sorrow.

Evilometer: 333/666