Dark sounds of monastery bells, Gregorian chants in the background, other tragic noises that bring to mind a scenario of medieval life: this is Einsamkeit und Dunkelheit (solitude and darkness), the intro to the fifth album by the never-too-praised Germans Lunar Aurora. One of the few intros capable of immersing the listener right from the first seconds in the atmosphere that he will find throughout the entire album; it almost never happens, the intros – and especially the effects-only ones – are generally as avoidable as a headache. But the Lunar Auroras are champions, they succeed admirably where all the others fail.
Elixir of Sorrow had a troubled history. It was composed and recorded well before its actual release year, March 2004, not long after its predecessor Ars Moriendi which dates back to 2001, also a wonderful album which practically launches the sprint to this album, which is in any case superior to it precisely because of the terribly leaden and cavernous atmosphere, which right from the intro is thrown in our faces like a Bible of Evil. However, Lunar Aurora never had any luck with record labels, either because they trusted them too much or because they refused any commercial aspect, which they considered to be of secondary importance. Both Kettenhund and Ars Metalli, third-tier German underground labels with little more than amateur organizations, closed down just when it should have been released. Elixir of Sorrow.
Left without a contract, our band was offered the opportunity to publish the album by the newly formed The Oath records; only that they fell from the frying pan into the fire, the distribution was terrible, the promotion even worse, the copies actually printed were insufficient compared to the band’s coat of arms. The double vinyl edition licensed to Deviant records was easier to find than the CD, which is saying something given that 500 copies exist. These messes finally convinced the group to start your own label, Cold Dimensions (led by Whyrhd and producing sumptuous talents such as ColdWorld, Grupel, Faulnis, Mortuus Infradaemoni and others, was later incorporated into Prophecy productions). Before Elixir of Sorrow was marketed as it deserves, ten years had to pass and they had to take care of it themselves through Cold Dimensions. Before 2014 the album was unobtainable except at crazy prices, today even those of the first editions have dropped a bit.
In a hypothetical ranking of Lunar Aurora’s best records – which is very difficult to compile given the very high average level of their works – Elixir of Sorrow in my opinion it is only less than Seelenfeuer, which is an amazing album. The compositions are all frenetic, imbued with malevolence and malignity, accompanied by alienating effects a very strong hint of the demonic; mainly set to very high speeds, although there is no shortage of more thoughtful breaks, placed in strategic points that certify their immense compositional expertise, and blessed with keyboard sounds that are probably the best they have ever chosen for the arrangements. They are very reminiscent of the 70s electronic music invented by the award-winning company Franke/Froese/Baumann (Tangerine Dream) and are in fact indispensable for perfectly conveying what the German group wanted to communicate. With lyrics focused on the darkest aspects of the human soul, the amount of resentment and pure hatred released by the five songs themselves (even by the interludes of only effects or keyboards, however) is impressive; And the anguished melodies, sick to the core, furious as we have rarely had the opportunity to hear, are at the top of the band’s production during their long and highly honored career. Pieces like Zorn aus Äonen or Hier und Jetzt (which lasts eleven and a half minutes and flies by like a piece of three) are not within everyone’s reach, or rather they are within the reach of practically no one outside of Lunar Aurora, who in 2004 wrote a page of immortal black metal, this too is impossible to match.
Also from 2004 are the sixth album Zyklusfrom the songwriting extremely complex which makes listening very difficult, and the split with Paysage d’Hyver (who pay a substantial tribute of inspiration to the music of Lunar Aurora) in which they participate with the wonderful and very long (22 minutes) To Haudiga Fluagone of their most beautiful compositions ever and, consequently, one of the most fantastic black metal songs of all time. The Lunar Aurora were true championsI’ve already said it but I’ll never get tired of repeating it. (Griffar)
