Cavernlight - As I Cast Ruin Upon the Lens That Reveals My Every Flaw

Angry Metal Guy

As spring progresses, the ever-more-present sun brings light and warmth, for some even a promise of hope. Cavernlight throw scorn on the very idea. As I Cast Ruin Upon the Lens That Reveals My Every Flaw follows their habit of epically proportioned titles. It also continues the trend of dealing with existential suffering and despair. Where it differs is in the way it delivers its message. As We Cup Our Hands and Drink from the Stream of Our Ache was a relentless rhapsody of torment, railing and raging with metallic furor. As I Cast Ruin… feels like a step beyond this rawness, to a deep, depressive apathy and acceptance. If anything, it’s heavier—musically and emotionally—its more overtly doomy disposition and dark post-metal leanings dragging you down into its depths.

At its core, As I Cast Ruin… is an exercise in grim resignation, effuse with hopelessness. “I don’t want to live anymore,” repeats the woman whose expression of her disillusionment with existence recurs across the record. The music itself is also oppressive: low, slow, bass-heavy, distortion-heavy, atmosphere-heavy, with crashing cymbals and frequent use of vocal and effect layering. Even exceptions to the onslaught carry a submerged solidity. But what really has the most weight—whether through heavy or delicate instrumentation—is the pathos. “Accepting the Fate I’ve Crafted” fades from harrowing sample to sombre piano and Trent-Reznor-“Hurt”-esque throat-catching cleans, before drums and guitar come crashing in, and vibrato violin wails as throat-rending screams howl the refrain. It’s one hell of an opener, and this emotional grip does not let up until the album is through.

As I Cast Ruin Upon the Lens That Reveals My Every Flaw by Cavernlight

Cavernlight succeed in keeping their chokehold on the listener by effectively infusing psychological pain into their music. Mournful melodies that melt into hypnotic repetition (“Material,” “The Ashes of Everything I’ve Failed to Be”) amplify the sense of anguish. Violin and synth accent melancholy and provide additional intensity to involuted climaxes (“Accepting the Fate I’ve Crafted,” “To Reconcile A Virulent Life”). Low growls and rasping shrieks are layered in off-kilter ways (title track, “To Reconcile a Virulent Life”), and percussion and distortion cluster into confusing chaos. Both are anxiety-inducing. At the opposite end of the spectrum, “A Shimmering View”‘s almost apathetic spoken word and “Prelude”‘s miserable sample offer a despairing stillness thanks to the former’s cinematic synth-driven melody and the latter’s softly ebbing accordion that projects a nostalgic sadness. Every note carries some small piece of the total existential heartache. From the discordant seething of “Gaze into the Glow and Drift into Time,” to the transcendent wretchedness of “The Ashes of Everything I’ve Failed to Be” each track is an uncensored view of deep despair.

Depressing as it may be, As I Cast Ruin…sounds fantastic. Cavernlight have stepped up the production here, resulting in a full-bodied solidity that gives the music even more heft. This is amplified by the emphasis on a thick noisy atmosphere, and everywhere a touch of distortion. The cathartic crashing of the percussion (Adam Bartlett), cannot be understated; nor can the stirring power of the classical (and not-so-classical) instrumentation (Scott Burns). Bartlett, Burns, and Caleb Cheslock share vocal duties, and execute them with tangible feeling. With the final joint wail over collapsing layers of noise, guitar, and percussion, they come to the apex of this expression of suffering with undeniable potency. The band were also thoughtful enough to provide a lyric sheet—including sample text—which allowed for an even deeper immersion in and appreciation for their art.

As the music fades at the album’s close, As I Cast Ruin… feels like something that has happened to you, an emotional experience you don’t forget. Cavernlight have perfectly bound pain with power into something devastatingly heavy. “I don’t want to live anymore,” states the nameless woman as the final seconds play out. I’ve heard her so many times now, having listened to Cavernlight‘s lament over and over. It’s still goosebumps every time.

Rating: Excellent
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Translation Loss Records
Websites: cavernlighttl.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/cavernlightnoise
Releases Worldwide: May 13th, 2022

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