The Pacific Northwest metal outfit Mizmor has cemented themselves as one of the rising metal entities of the modern creative underground. Liam Neighbors, otherwise known as ALN, has been at the helm of this blackened doom metal project for over a decade. Their breakthrough record was probably Cairn, but the project has continued to push through the realms of black metal, doom, and other esoteric metal influences to become one of the most watched outfits in the scene. Neighbors was even on the cover of Decibel. Prosaic is the latest full-length from ALN’s one-man project, which is filled with members of the sludge band Hell and other Pacific Northwest true believers.
Prosaic begins quickly, which is a change for Mizmor. Few of the project’s records have begun with a classic black metal dirge like “Only an Expanse”. The track’s opener is over 14 minutes long. With a funeral doom middle, the piece reverts back to its classic black metal roots. The fast parts in this track are reminiscent of Mayhem or Darkthrone, and the production is intentionally gritty to call back to the second wave of black metal in Norway. The opening song’s descent has a transitional moment where time sits still. Then the double bass kicks in. You are off to heaven, or hell, as it were.
Thus, the listener slips into a hellishly blackened doom-scape of metallic lushness. At the end of the first cut, Mizmor’s characteristic darkly clean passages lay waste. “No Place to Arrive” begins suddenly like a sludge anthem. The melodies and octaves in the guitars and vocals collide, blending into one another. This begins a ten-minute epic that is pure doom-sludge-stoner. The riff a couple minutes in is pure classic sludge. The tom and screeching vocal counterpoint build angst like a Khanate piece but with the melody of an Elder movement.
Prosaic | MIZMOR | Mizmor (bandcamp.com)
20 minutes in, you get this gorgeous acoustic passage. The listener sits with it peacefully. It is an immersive take on baroque classical guitar injected with metal sensibilities. Like a lot of black metal, it goes into blast beats but unlike a lot of black metal it feels completely intuitive. The feedback comes in as the acoustic feedback spreads across the sound spectrum. The guitars, again, are scratchy and ethereal. Double bass hits right when you need it to.
The four tracks of this record are perfectly paced. Two pieces in and the listener is halfway through. “No Place to Arrive” ends where it began. Then “Anything But” begins the second half of this epic release with another classic black metal riff. The chords are dense and dripping with fuzzy gain. There are some quiet, ominous vocals and other guitar builds upon the riff.
This listener wants the ominous clean vocals to be louder, but they do sound creepy in the background. Sectioned with another sludge dirge, the fast/slow dynamic of this record is reminiscent of the quiet/loud technique used by noise rock, indie, and slowcore bands of the 90s but utilized in a whole new genre. “Anything But” has both fast/slow and quiet/loud dynamics. Perhaps the best part of the track is the vocals.
The vocal delivery performance remains strong in the final cut, “Acceptance”. The track closes out the record with some of the best riffs, blasts, and vocal presence on the entire album. Prosaic is a stand-out record in Mizmor’s discography. It gives the black metal fans what they want more than ever, and it is a notable shift from doom to a sludgier sound reminiscent of Noothgrush or Crowbar. However, the closing riff hits the listener with the classic doom vibe. It is a great record worth any metal fan’s time. One can only hope that Neighbors and company will push further into this direction.
