�� Just discovered this band after checking out the American black metal imprint Singularity Publishing for the first time. Astral Rebirth are a Mexican black metal outfit who do their own take on synth-draped atmospheric buzz; hardly a new sound, of course, but I definitely dug just how far these guys lean towards the electronic/industrial end of this style, an approach that takes this tape into some sinister lower planes of blackened industrial ambience. This is the precursor to the bands debut full-length on Winterglow; The Axis Of The Utter Black Ocean features four tracks of blazing modern black metal laced with some seriously gorgeous passages of black kosmische drift. When the tape starts off, it's with a cloudy electronic dronescape called "Black Visual Void" where the band sprawls out through several minutes of minimal rumbling sonic fog. From there, they launch into the furious twelve-minute "Distortion Mental Process", and the sound transforms into a sweeping, murky brand of black metal, the riffs imbued with a sorrowful, melancholy feel that at times recalls the likes of Drudkh. That sound is fleshed out with layers of jangly chorus-drenched guitar and discordant riffs, the feral snarling vocals drowned in distortion, a hiss-soaked snarl that's buried way down in the mix.
�� And then there's those synthesizer textures, adding a cinematic quality to Astral Rebirth's music. This stuff slips into some really cool atmospheric passages, like when the majestic blackened drone of the guitars slowly fades into the distance and we're left with just the sound of delicate acoustic strings being plucked over a field of minimal electronic drift. The production is the right kind of murky, and heavily layered, the sheets of symphonic strings muffled by a haze of hiss that could just be a side effect of the cassette format, but which works well with the generally hazy feel of the music. The tape ends with one final ambient soundscape called "Seabreath", another grim mass of looping orchestral sound and grinding industrial drones, a symphonic blackened dronescape that almost has a classic Cold Meat feel going on. Sure, there's a ton of bands out there doing this sort of stuff, but Astral Rebirth's stirring melodies, ultra Tangerine Dream-ish keyboard arrangements and the noise-flecked production make this one of the better releases of its kind.