Album Review: "Unto The Nothing" by Fortress

Unto the Nothing

For today, we are reviewing the debut effort from Maryland's favorite sons, Fortress.

To be specific, Hagerstown is where they reside.

Based on their the musical outlook, I would wager that Hagerstown is an industrial wasteland that's been taken back by nature and looks a lot like Chernobyl does now.

Well, based on my research, Hagerstown isn't all that metal and certainly does not look like Mother Nature's reclaiming the grounds and leaving a looted industrial complex in the middle.

The only other recording Fortress has done is a demo back in 2012. Their album is being released on Unholy Anarchy Records, a small but very awesome label on  the East Coast. They also released Coffin Dust's amazing effort.

Fortress in the wild.

This album begins very slowly. That's not to say that it took some time to warm up to the music, but it just took some time before the music got fast.

They play with all of the speed and deliberation of Electric Wizard.

They succeed in playing as a tight, cohesive unit. Playing at that speed, it's very noticeable if you're off a beat.

Now, as the album progresses, so does the speed of the music.

What sets them apart is the sound of the bass. Like early Kiss songs, the riffing is found on the bass guitar and the six string is playing chords...long flowing chords. The bass has the melody and the guitar the seasoning.

The clean, thick, punchy sound of the bass makes this dynamic work in a new and awesome way.

My highlight from this record is a nine minute track called The Nothing which is about Atreyu's battle with Gmork in The Neverending Story.

The music's heft, pacing, and plodding fit that scene so well. It would also not seem out of place during battle sequences in Kurosawa movies. It's grey. It's heavy. Its mood asphyxiates the listener.

Release: 12/2/14
Genre: Doom Metal
Label: Unholy Anarchy
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