Back in 2018, Australian death/doom undertakers Malignant Aura released an eponymous demo. Like Finnish genre legends Hooded Menace, the songs sound like they were draped in cobwebs in some haunted underground tomb. Four years later, the quintet’s debut LP claws its way from its subterranean lair. Their album Abysmal Misfortune is Draped Upon Me breaches the earth’s crust on May 31st. Thankfully, we have a new single to share with you all well before that. And holy hell it’s dark.
“…And So It Was That I Lay Down Forever” is a mood-ruiner in the best ways possible. Bleak and pitch-black, the song is a perfect sample of the band’s extraordinary blood-smear of influences. It’s not until the second minute that the melodic death/doom components emerge. Before that, the song’s intro flirts with gothic and death rock components. The eerie atmosphere is soon suffocated by death metal ectoplasm. It’s a song that has defined chapters but feels like a cohesive journey through cemeteries old and new.
“”…And So It Was That I Lay Down Forever” is an exploration of the stories we all inhabit when we’re afflicted by pain,” the band explains. “Once our protagonist becomes sufficiently entangled in his own woeful tale, he finds that separating himself from it carries harrowing existential challenges.”
The talent surrounding the album’s release is also supremely killer. Striking cover part by Paolo Girardi. It was beautifully recorded by one of my favorite extreme metal engineers, Brendan Auld of Black Blood Audio. The final coffin polish was provided by Arthur Rizk’s mastering. Press play below and succumb to Malignant Aura’s sepulchral Death/Doom.
Pre-order Malignant Aura’s Abysmal Misfortune Is Draped Upon Me HERE
Follow the band on Facebook for news and updates HERE
