Laetitia In Holocaust – Fauci Tra Fauci

The name is LAETITIA IN HOLOCAUST. It means “Happy in Apocalypse”. Their music certainly has a feeling of elucidating the apocalyptic environs visualized by an emissary from hell. It’s very chaotic, it’s very contravened, it’s very distrait. You will feel like there is no cohesive contrivance. It’s like just some pedestrian nullifidians decided to do whatever they want, whenever they want, however they want. Hailing from Modena, Italy. This distinctive group consisting of S. and N. released their first demo “Blood on Humanity” in 2003. From the very beginning, their music has been full of confusions, uncertainties and far from the domains of traditional black metal characteristics. Their first full-length album “Tortoise in Blood” released in 2009 seemed too “hipster” even to the disciples of black metal underground. Though they enlisted their music under the category of “easy listening and healing music”, I certainly didn’t feel like that. There were some sobering, tranquilizing feels here and there, but it was far from easy listening. Too much clean guitars, too much scandalizing melodies, showing little to no transcendence to rhythms, too much tempo changes…it was like a Syd Barrett envisioned “AstronomyDomine” filled with complete and utter chaos. It’s like they wanted to torture their audiences with some horrifying dreams. Well, now they are back with their 3rd full-length album “Fauci Tra Fauci”. And boy oh boy, it has been such a pleasant surprise. It’s surely their best work yet. There are some factors which distinguish it from “Tortoise in Blood” and the second album “Rotten light”:

1) Well, there are more “black metal” here. They used more orthodox shady, wintry, noxious riffing here to complement their typical hypnotic harmonies & melodies. The compositions are more serrated and beefy.

2) After releasing their previous works independently, they’ve teamed up with London based “Third-i rex’ records which have been home to many good Italian underground black metal releases recently. The production is much more robust and animated compared to their previous releases.

3) The use of fretless bass has added a whole new dimension to the composition. The derisive bass licks every now and then mixed with the dark, rigid, cold riffs and melodies has created a great tonal contrast.

4) The drumming is much more improved with a lot more variety of works, transitions between blast beats and quarter note beats uses of off beats and odd time signatures. 

So what we get here are a great coalescence of conventional black metal and hypnotic avant-garde madness. The opening track “Diva fortuna” is a great example of that. It starts with some harsh distortions and splendid drum fills. Then they proceed to their characteristic frantic guitar harmonies inter-bred with some great start-stop playing and odd time signatures. Those guitar harmonies are like someone is chasing you in your wildest, affrighting nightmares. But towards the end, we’ll meet the new LAETITIA IN HOLOCAUST with the introduction of some more misanthropic, nihilist black metal tremolos which will carry on to the next track “Through the eyes of argo”. The slowing of the tempo in the middle of “Through the eyes of argo” with some majestic combination of distortions, melodies, haunting fretless bass licks and great drumming is really a trip which carries on till the end and then ends with a double-acoustic medieval, awe-inspiring outro. “In cruelty and joy” carries on in the same vein with some great melange of multi-layered guitar works with palm-muted swaggering riffs, frosty melodies, and grim tremolos. What comes next is very unexpected, but with LAETITIA IN HOLOCAUST you always have to be ready for some unexpected madness. “Exile” is a classical piano piece performed by a guest appearance of Dark Shaman. This is like some laments of the wind where the melancholy of piano is combined with some sorrowful clean singing and gloomy bass notes. “The Elders know” brings us back to the familiar territory of suspenseful black metal with the return of some greater start-stop playing. “The foot that submits” creates a pretty mid-tempo spooky atmosphere. That little breakdown in the middle with some pretty primeval drumming and then little bleak, demonic riffs is quite awesome. The closing track “Gods of the swarm” is a very fitting farewell. It starts with the new more misanthropic, nihilist approach LAETITIA IN HOLOCAUST has embraced now and continues forward with some typical hazy melodies and then finishes off with some scary whispering spoken words and hypnotizing, enchanting atmosphere to accompany it.

So this is a band which really don’t care about name, fame or recognition at all and do music for the pleasure of their soul. When asked if they would do any live show ever, S. responded – “The only show we would like to do is a show where people are eaten by sharks in shiny dawn, in the quiet waters of the pacific”. They were never afraid of walking a different path than others and try something new. And hell yeah, that approach has finally delivered something special, unique with “Fauci Tra Fauci”. Their music may not be that easy on the ear or accessible, but surely it will appeal to the black souls who dream of abomination, perversion, and salvation, pray for life’s extinction. It is for those who consider themselves to be LAETITIA IN HOLOCAUST. 8.5/10 Apollo

8.5/10 To Greatness and Glory!
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