SNAW – A Light Scalping (Recommendation)

Bolt Gun made a fairly great impact on me with their records Begotten and The Tower. Their mixture of Ambient and something between Black Metal and Post-Metal was and still is very unique for me. When I saw, that there would be a solely Ambient side-project by Bolt Gun guitarist Jon Vayla I was intrigued. Those quiet, unsettling and haunting passages, especially on Begotten, were my hidden champions.

“Trapped Behind the Seam of the World” is the slow door opener of this album. A Light Scalping breathes the same atmosphere as the aforementioned Bolt Gun releases. There is this sense of loneliness in a wide open space. The opener and tracks like “Bodies of Ash” or “The Crossing” convey this uneasiness in a stellar fashion. On the one hand you feel all alone while on the other hand there is still the feeling of being not alone (sounds strange, but you might know what I mean). The only thing that is with you are the dripping drums and the swelling guitars.

“Billboards” begins as a melancholic reminder of better times. Just like standing in front of an old billboard, advertising a product of your youth. But after 2,5 minutes a sudden burst of adrenaline interrupts the calm before the nostalgia sets in again and brings the songs calmly to an end. Those kind of outbursts are rare but happen again in the title track. Between all those layers of sounds those drums shake the songs up, like a strong wind blowing through a pile of ash and rubble. Your eyes might not see for a while, but once they do again, the dread is still there but the ruins are rearranged.

A Light Scalping is as haunting as it is fascinating. This album is the unsettling silence of something unknown and never seen before, just like a lost place. The urge to leave this place may be there, but it does not exceed the motivation to explore. SNAW has created this place and it would be a shame if one would miss it.