Eerie Heir - We Were Beautiful Once

Prague-based solo black metal project Eerie Heir's first release, We Were Beautiful Once, is gloriously depressing in that way only spacey black metal can be. Alternating between dreamy, effects-drenched fog and sparse, clean strumming, the EP uses its relatively quick 18-minute running time to paint an impressionistic picture of pain and loneliness. The work is a genuine testament to how the aesthetics of an album, from the artwork to the song titles to the texture of the recording, can complement the music. From the decidedly not-very-metal-yet-perfectly-evocative cover, to the album title, to the distant, lo-fi sound on the album, the whole thing feels like a small, intimate diary of someone's quiet ruminations on sadness. When I listen to a sparse instrumental song called "I've Always Thought I had Time" or a slow-burn piece that builds from and an ambient introduction to a thick wall of distortion by the end titled "Never Worn Wedding Dress," the blend of the music and the imagery hits is evocative on a practically molecular level. Overall, this is a great first EP and I hope to hear a full length from Eerie Heir in the future.