Its been a while since Ive delved into the hell hole of depravity that is Gnaw Their Tongues, one man band of Dutch musician Mories. I discovered this project back in 2009 and it has remained as one the most haunting and bone chilling sounds Ive ever heard. Its a noisy, claustrophobic and harrowing musical experience with an unrelenting apatite for discomfort in the exploration of perverse corruption in humanities darkest corners. With a large, patchy discography littered with EPs and limited releases in between its hard to stomach it all, but of what filth I've wadded through there is plenty of quality compositions to be found in the full lengths, including this one, his eighth in nine years of the project.
In the earlier days Morries's music was a catastrophe of symphonies colliding in a haze drenched with thunderous crashing symbols and tormented screams. Over time inklings of structure and Black Metal crept into the fold and made "Abyss Of Longing Throats" a vastly more approachable listen than I previous remember. The constant ticking of buried drums and their alterations helped guide the listener through the shifts of tone and direction under the constant haze of evil and discernible noise. Erie distortions, muffled screams, bellowing baselines, distant bells and howling winds. There's an endless list of what might be happening in the frenzy of noise these songs concoct.
The opening track is by far the records best. A discordant fuzz of guitar sets an instantly unwelcoming tone as the screams of restless spirits drag us below into the sound track of hate, pummeling crashes and strikes of metal. The nefarious choir chants build a dreading atmosphere that continually shifts one to the next before reaching an interesting conclusion in the endgame of the track as buried horns cry out from an industrious soundscape of grueling mechanical construction. The guttural vocals and lighter atmosphere on the following track also made a mark but beyond that the record descends into an expected trail of endless noise that fails to spark a memory. I'll always be interested in this project, however I find it no longer has the capacity to be unexpected or as mesmerizing as when first discovering such godless music.
Rating: 4/10