Vigil – …And the Void Stared Back
Release Date: 29th March 2024
Label: Argonauta Records
Bandcamp
Genre: Doom, Post-Metal.
FFO: Onera, Electric Wizard, Sleep, Cathedral.
Review By: Paul Cairney
What type of band has 2 bassists…..? Vigil, that’s who! In an attempt to be, and I quote the band, ‘as heavy as we could’ a second bassist was recruited. The result is startlingly good. And the Void Stared Back is a wondrously heavy slab of primal Doom that encourages your bowels to rumble uncomfortably as you slip comfortably into the mysterious ether that only high-quality doom can provide.
With only 4 tracks, this is technically probably an EP, but it lasts over 30 minutes, and it is Doom, so is it an album? The running length is very welcoming, though. No track outstays its welcome, the shortest is just over 7 minutes and the longest just under 9, but no song feels its length. The Post-Metal influence can be identified in the Doom, understated but loitering, it helps the band raise the EP above their contemporaries.
The riffs are monolithically heavy, and we also have the deep rumble of the twin bass attack, but underpinning the whole EP is the guttural throat-ripping vocals of Dave Petillo. In a world where many Doom bands are opting for an ethereal vocal lead, we have a band who just want to bring the Heavy.
The heavy is consistent, but there are moments of clarity in the tracks, such as a great solo by Craig Simas in ‘Descend to Extinction’, a song that also includes great clean backing harmonies. This song craftsmanship is welcoming in the genre, again allowing the EP to breathe and develop a sense of nuance.
And the Void Stared Back is a great start for this New Hampshire quintet. Deliberately crushingly heavy, Vigil have achieved their goal, but their skill is that they have still made an incredibly accessible release that only bodes well for the future.
(4.5 / 5)
