Petrozavodsk is a drone metal trio based out of Moscow and Barcelona. This week the group released an epic 2-track LP entitled Winter War via Ivan Zoloto‘s new label endeavor, School of the Arts. Recorded at a rural studio in Catalonia by Gerard Tomas this past January, the album was mixed and mastered by Moa Pillar in Moscow.
Both cuts here clock in at just over 18-minutes, and as such, are slow-burning immersions in an ultra-heavy, amp-worshipping drone. Recorded at a small farmhouse studio using two bass and two guitar stacks, these are tracks of titanic power. “Winter” baths the listener in an exfoliating tar bath for the Shadow Self. Warm, thick waves of quicksand-like feedback scour with steady power, as the track’s aggressive amplitude dissolves the Darkness into deep black oblivion.
“War” comes on more hesitantly at first as pulse waves of dread reverberate through a ghostly tangle of drums. Turning up the infernal heat until it bubbles like molten venom each player courts dissonance as a weapon on this cut until ear shocking peals crack across the social fabric. Eventually, “War” coalesces into a smoldering mono-riff of sonic destruction, and like “Winter,” it melts everything that it touches. Those that love the obliterating power of Drone will find much to be impressed with on this record.
