By Gruesome Greg

With their latest effort, Earth toys with the idea of heaviness. Angels of Darkness… isn’t an album that pounds and pummels you into submission, but lightly glides on by, taking you along for the ride. This record exudes mellow vibes, so light a candle and close your eyes as it takes you away…

One can almost get lost in the winding, mellow melodies of opener “Old Black,” which stretches nearly nine minutes in length. More of a rugged, rootsy effort, not heavy so much as wispy, surf rock meets winter ice. The work of cellist Lori Goldston adds texture throughout, on such pieces as “Father Midnight,” it complements the guitar nicely.

As the 20-minute piece de resistance that closes the album, the title track is slow and minimalistic, with sparsely interspersed notes from Dylan Carson relying on the other instruments to fill in the blanks.

Alas, while all the compositions on this record are long and fairly repetitive, the interplay between instruments sets a leisurely pace that’s soothing, not boring. The perfect chill-out music, as it were.

(Southern Lord)

http://www.myspace.com/earthofficial

Rating: 8