TMA reviewed by radikaliai.lt

Lithuanian cultural blog radikaliai.lt reviewed album TMA by Kragrowargkomn.

Darkness, slowly, unfolding into darkness

Experimental funeral doom / industrial / drone one man act using overdriven 6 string bass, synthesizers, live – recorded raw samples of drums, cymbals and metal surfaces from mountainous Slovakia with a rather difficult name Kragrowargkomn has its debut album Tma (Slovak, “darkness, gloom, void”) with 61 minute terrific slow music.

Kragrowargkomn (it’s a one man band) says: “As such, darkness does not exist — it is merely a lack or absence of light. Abstract phenomena such as darkness or void are here and known to us, but we can never really perceive them. Where there is an absence of harmony, euthymia, and melody, there is plenty of space for creeping doom rumbling, industrial bustle, and black metal dissonance turning music into a rough noise mass.”

Yes, you can call this music “a rough noise mass”. Not an easy listening, though, but it rewards. The songs, of course, are quite lengthy, but not boring at all (if you are not a fan of AC/DC, though). It reminds me of classical WINTER a bit, and of SUNN O))) sometimes, but Kragrowargkomn has its own unique style, which is much slower and heavier. 

The music, speaking about “rush”, “fallout”, “pressure”, “insects”, “noise” and “darkness” (if I translated the names of the tracks correctly), is convincing. Do expect darkness, which slowly evolves in to nothing else, but the same darkness… Which, as it was said, doesn’t exist…

One of the strongest experimental albums I’ve heard

As we see, Tma touches one of the main philosophical and cosmological questions about “eternal” or “primordial” darkness/light, probably beyond categories of “evil/good”.

Videoclip and photos for Tma were made infamous place in northern Lithuania, called Hill of Crosses (Kryžių kalnas). Once, it attracted attention by cult neofolk band Sol Invictus, now you can see unique shooting in Tma.

Could this be a hint? Tma (darkness, void, gloom…) in our heart, belief, world? In Christian, Catholic world. Hill of Crosses is a place which KGB tried to destroy for year. It survived. With people thankful to God bringing their thousands of crosses into one place.

Listen to the album once more. Don’t hurry to have all the secrets coming out very fast. But they will. It’s the music with inner surprises. Somebody could call this magic. I will just leave myself to the magically sounding Slovak word (which you might understand if you speak almost any Slavic language) Tma.

Summarizing it all, the album has a strong philosophical, cosmological side as well as great, impressive music and interesting visual side. It feels that the album was made not perfunctory, but with deepest insights. Will wait for the second opus of Kragrowargkomn.

Full original review is here.