Webster’s Dictionary defines “lugubrious” as “very sad, especially in an exaggerated or insincere way.” So that’s a fun new word I get to throw into my lexicon now that I have taken the time to listen to In the Wide Vale of Uncreated Night, the debut full length from Milan’s Lugubrious Garment. I guess my first thought is like…those “I swear I don’t know what happened to my ancient, impossibly rich husband, he just fell down the stairs, anyway how soon is the life insurance payout” black bathrobes a twenty-something new widow with a transatlantic accent would wear to the police station when she *definitely* didn’t murder her decrepit husband.

Lugubrious Garment is the brainchild of one Gabriele Gramaglia, who is best known for his tenure with Cosmic Putrefaction and Vertebra Atlantis, as a means of tapping into the more chaotic and instinctual side of death metal.  Sure a lot of people make that claim, and you could also argue that *all* death metal is a little chaotic and instinctual, but Gramaglia’s goal is to have Lugubrious Garment be death metal straight from the guts: no thoughts, head empty, pure momentum and aggression and inertia carrying the songs forward on a wave of feral, unhinged pandaemonium.  It’s exactly what you would expect from a 20 Buck Spin release, as well; as we say, they know death metal, and this surely is the genuine article.  Gramaglia handles the bulk of the instrumental duty, save for a few guest vocal spots and guitar solos, but he is joined by Claudio Invidia of Putridity and Devoid of Thought on drums and household favorite Andrea Morgan on violin and viola (more on her coming soon as well…).  In the Wide Vale promises a more fully-fleshed out and actualized version of what Lugubrious Garment is capable of, and it absolutely delivers on that, given the combination of talented people on display here.

There is something so comforting about the combo of 20 Buck Spin and some meat and potatoes death metal. In the Wide Vale is the kind of death metal that blends a healthy dose of modern stylings and flair with the classic elements that make death metal timeless. I was promised a chaotic and unhinged album and I do feel like, for the most part, I get that. “And Therein Plant, Unto Their Souls Asunder,” the sonic assault that opens the album, is a perfect encapsulation of what you get pretty much the whole way through: aggressive, pummeling, hectic and frenetic riffing backed up by the vocals that remind me of the sounds coming out of my body after I get debilitating food poisoning from Taco Bell again. Couple that with the energy brought from mid-album highlight “Innocence as a Burden, Guilt as a Weapon” and you’ve got some of the most rousing and bowel-churning death metal released this year.  Repeated listens, however, reveal a lot more than meets the eye though: Morgan’s strings are downright lovely (as they always are), Invidia’s jazz chops come through pretty nicely if you have the patience to listen for them, the subtle touches of keys and acoustics help break up the cacophony in a way that really helps this album be digestible.  The little touches of complexity and creativity are hands-down my favorite part of the album, which might fly in the face of what Gramaglia is trying to do, but I still think In the Wide Vale accomplishes what it sets out to do, and then some.

If you think you know what you’re getting with this album, you’re mostly right! However, there’s a lot here to unpack, and repeated listens will reward you with some surprisingly (or not, given who is behind this project) forward-thinking death metal. So, then, I’ll leave you to it. Have a…lugubrious day! Am I using that right?

-Ian

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In the Wide Vale of Uncreated Night is available now on 20 Buck Spin. For more information on Lugubrious Garment, visit their Instagram page.