Oftentimes, it just takes a good cover to get people interested in the music beneath. Looking through some material to review, Grey Heaven Fall came across as particularly striking, so it found its way into the speakers. The rest is all history from there, as this Russian black/death metal band firmly held this writer’s attention with a number of tricks up their sleeve with Black Wisdom.
While the base coat is definitely in the black/death range, the influences that Grey Heaven Fall flirt with over the course of the 51 minutes of Black Wisdom will keep you on your toes. They can go from intense, primal black metal to dark and sinister acoustic segments with ease. They have some dissonant black metal via Deathspell Omega one moment, only to drop the action to a doomy crawl the next. The spirit of Bolzer runs through some of the faster segments, but the band can also move in towards an almost jazzy feel (see “That Nail in a Heart”). They even make time for some oddly melodic riffs (“To the Doomed Sons of Earth”). You get the picture. Grey Heaven Fall play with a number of different dynamics, but all within the frame of their sound. There’s no identity crisis here – the band wants to give you an eerie, black metal(ish) experience and uses a variety of colors in which they paint their picture.
A wide swath of metal successfully congeals into one intriguing piece of black/death with Black Wisdom. Russia has been a fertile ground of metal, particularly the last few years, giving us a number of unique and interesting bands. Grey Heaven Fall can safely be added onto that growing list. Worth seeking this one out.