Review by Felix on September 14, 2023.

Some noble people think they need an expensive stereo system, a private concert hall and freshly washed ears in order to enjoy music wholeheartedly. Other (not noble) people just listen to bands like Aura Noir. They know that the aforementioned things are not necessary. In particular well purified ears are rather an obstacle than a useful detail. The filth of Aura Noir’s music wants to meet equally dirty ear canals and a pitch black mentality. That’s all it needs to enjoy dingy little bastard albums such as Aura Noire.

The insidious trio Apollyon / Blasphemer / Aggressor knows its metier very well. There is always a casual undertone in their compositions. The superficial brutality is combined with a “don’t take us too seriously, we are just three crazy Norwegians” approach. Expressed differently, Aura Noire is well aligned with its predecessors. Perfidious riffing invites the listener to take a bath in sonic atrocities. In particular the fast parts of the song do not lack merciless cruelty (“Shades Ablaze”), inter alia because of the unpolished, aggressive and direct production which cannot hide a noisy facet.

Two nearly monumental tracks have crept in. “Mordant Wind” lives up to its name, because its entire guitar work leaves an unhealthy stench. Aura Noir celebrate ugliness on six strings, but I miss a clear contour. Either way, mid-tempo stomping as well as the dark sounds of the bass guitar emphasise the malignant mood. An oubreak of speedy fury is also integrated; nevertheless, “Hell’s Own Chamber” with its constantly rasping guitars marks the better long track. Among other things, it houses a very gloomy part. Here Aura Noir break with their usual dogma which is focused on the presentation of a disgusting face. The raging beginning and the end of “The Obscuration” deliver the contrast for the comparatively calm sequence mentioned before.

Aura Noire suffers from the fact that no track really stands out. Sometimes this a good thing, but here it means that the band is not able to reach the highest compositional honours. The songs are okay, they do not lack any important features, but it is also true that Aura Noir derail every now and then. “Shades Ablaze” is kicked off with excellent riffs and lines, but somehow the band is too furious as the song progresses. Thus, I do not find a new “Condor” or a new “Fed To The Flames” here, but still a portion of solid black thrash that stands on its own feet. Aura Noir’s integrity cannot be doubted and their sixth album delivers the black thrash edition of what Exodus once called “good friendly violent fun”. So now, after this 32 minutes of demoralizing shellfire, I can stand up and wash my ears. If only I had the desire to do so...

Rating: 7.2 out of 10

Review by Adam M on February 10, 2017.

Mouth of the Architect performs a bare bones approach to post-metal.  There really is a lot to take in with this band, however.  The music here is straightforward enough, but deep in its treatment of the sub-genre.  It is thus a very authoritative view of the genre and should not be taken with a grain of salt. 

The music sticks to the standard instrumentation for the majority of its run-time and makes good use of it as well.  This can be seen as different then a band such as Isis, which makes use of hollow drums to give themselves a very tribal sound.  The music here is indeed up front and normal enough, but it has a great deal of depth with the complexity that the songs reach at times.  Though they sound normal, there is a need to add some intricacies and make for a neat and compelling listen.  Though they don’t match the output of Cult of Luna in terms of quality, there is a niche aspect to the band that is very appealing.  This music sounds straightforward, but is different enough in nature that it will appeal to a broad range of post-metal lovers.  One has to investigate the album closely to unveil the small intricacies that are present.  The songs converge to interesting points at times and take a keen listening ear to uncover the goodness that’s found within.  This can be seen from the interesting Stretching Out for example.  The problem with the album is that the quality lessens when compared to the top bands of the subgenre like Cult of Luna, Isis and Neurosis.  There is simply more enjoyable music to be had from those bands then there is here. 

However, for those looking for another outlet for their post-metal listening experience, there’s a lot to like with Mouth of the Architect and this album Path of Eight.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10