Review by Ben for Bríi - Corpos transparentes (2022)

This album has me considering what actually constitutes a black metal album. Should an album be considered black metal if it contains no black metal riffs at all? Bríi is yet another highly adventurous artist that mixes outside influences, in this case breakbeat / drum and bass and a whole heap of jazzy piano and synths, with aspects of metal (blasting and black metal vocals). The result is unlike anything I've ever heard, and I wouldn't be surprised if it has a fair portion of metal fans running for the hills. Personally I've found Corpos transparentes, which is a single 36 minute movement, to be thoroughly entertaining, and I delight in the sheer creativity on offer. Perhaps my general fondness for electronic music, particularly IDM, Breakbeat and Trip Hop, means that the individual ingredients that make up this album are all in my wheelhouse. The fact that I've never heard them all merged together as they are here makes this more curiosity than challenge.

I've listened to this release every day in the past week and I'll definitely be returning to it in the future. Every listen reveals more little aspects I hadn't noticed previously, but unlike some of the dense releases I've reviewed recently (such as Epitaphe's II), this is an album that doesn't require a heap of listens to come to grips with. I think you'll already know whether or not your metal palate will accept or reject an album like this. If you feel like it could be the former for you, I highly recommend giving this a try.

2022 RANKING (55 releases so far)

20. Mammoth Weed Wizard Bastard - The Harvest - 4 stars

21. Bríi - Corpos transparentes - 4 stars

22. Aeviterne - The Ailing Facade - 4 stars

2022 BLACK RANKING (26 releases so far)

8. Wiegedood - There's Always Blood at the End of the Road - 4 stars

9. Bríi - Corpos transparentes - 4 stars

10. Krallice - Crystalline Exhaustion - 4 stars