Kev Rowland I remember reviewing the album released by Aenaon prior to this one, ‘Extance’, and saying that the Greek Black Metallers had a lot going for them as they refused to conform to what was expected, and this 2016 release has continued that progression. There has been a slight line-up change, and far less use of guests than before, but while some of it looks normal and as expected, there are some subtle differences. So, we have Astrous (vocals), Achilleas C. (guitars, bass, keyboards) and Anax (guitars), which are all straightforward. But, Nycriz is listed as providing drums, percussion, saz, bouzouki, sitar and oud – certainly not one would expect from a drummer, and some of these would never be expected on a black metal album. The newest member is Orestis, who of course provides saxophone. Saxophone? On a black metal album? The only guest is Giorgos Papagiannakis who provides some clean vocals against the gruff.

On hearing this album, one wonders why not more bands are using a sax in a metal setting, as it works incredibly well, providing a different edge while the guitars are riffing away which feels much more integral to the overall sound than keyboard sometimes do in the same setting. This isn’t the only difference within the album as the guys refuse to sit within any particular form, so although sometimes they are set squarely with the black metal genre there are other times when it is just an influence, and others where they drop it altogether where they move more into the mainstream. This is an even more balanced, exciting and adventurous album than ‘Extance’, and is one that I highly recommend, even if this form of metal isn’t normally to your liking.

Kev Rowland Aenaon is a progressive black metal band hailing from Greece. Formed in 2005 and quickly amassing a solid fan-base with their combination of experimental and original black metal, they released two EP’s before starting to work on their debut album (‘Cendres et Sang’) which came out in 2011. They are now back with ‘Extance’, which has been mastered by Tom Kvålsvoll at Strype Audio, Oslo (Dødheimsgard, Borknagar, Emperor). They have also employed some guest singers in Mirai Kawashima (Sigh), Sindre Nedland (In Vain / Funeral) and Tanya (Universe217). But they have also brought in further guests on saxophone, acoustic guitars, piano, electronics and cello, harmonica and contrabass. The result is something that Ihsahn would be proud of. First and foremost they are a BM band, but they are bringing in loads of different influences, styles and instruments, which means that they are an act that definitely deserve more than just a cursory hearing.

This is an album that contains a great deal of complexity and depth, while never losing any of the thrust, brutality and oppressive atmosphere that one might expect. There is even one song, “Algernon’s Decadence”, where it is just atmospheric piano – not something that would normally be construed as being Black Metal but within the album as a whole it works perfectly. Overall this is something that needs to investigated by all those who want their Black Metal to be a little outside the norm.

adg211288 Extance (2014) is the second full-length album by Greek black metal act Aenaon. Although it's been a few years now since the release of Cendres et Sang (2011) Aenoan have kept busy and released the spilt Er / Alter Ego (2013) with Stielas Storhett as well as the compilation Spheres of Orion (2013), a collection that consisted of the earlier EP Phenomenon (2009), a couple of new tracks, and some rehearsal cuts. Extance features many guest performances with the likes of Mirai Kawashima (Sigh), Sindre Nedland (In Vain), Haris (Hail Spirit Noir) and Tanya Leontiou (Universe217) among those featured.

For a band promoted as avant-garde black metal, the debut album Cendres et Sang featured a more simplistic black/death metal sound with only the odd nod to both avant-garde and progressive influences. At least it seems simplistic in hindsight given how much better Aenaon have achieved the sound originally described on Extance. Although I still think there are nods to death metal to be found here, the extreme metal elements are certainly much more focused on black metal, albeit a pretty well polished kind of black metal that is more easily recognised by the growling style used and the avant-garde elements have been brought to the fore, often through the band's unusual application of melody lines.

Aside from the typical black metal instrumentation of guitars, bass and drums, Aenaon have opted to also include instruments such as saxophone, cello, harmonica, contrabass, and oud along with piano, synths and various electronic effects. The saxophone is certainly the extra instrument of choice though, and it's a returning element that was also featured on Cendres et Sang. The music has a habit of throwing out the metal elements at odd intervals to introduce something seemingly random, ranging from more common ideas such as melodic clean tone guitar leads that have a bit of an Opeth vibe them, to the more unusual such as during Der Mude Tod where the sound comes over as Arabic influenced to my ears, possibly that's the oud, but it also has the saxophone going over the top. Then there's also Funeral Blues where the female vocals by guest performer Tanya Leontiou certainly have a weird tone to them.

I enjoyed the Aenaon debut Cendres et Sang a fair bit when it was released but did feel that they had some way to go yet and didn't actually feel a desire to revisit that album until the release of Extance. While on Extance the band has certainly taken that next crucial step forwards to becoming a top quality act, this time properly achieving the avant-garde black metal sound that was originally described, I can't help but feel that Extance is only a slight improvement on its predecessor, oddly for that very reason. It's a very solid album that certainly brings ideas aplenty while never sounding chaotic but I have say that there's a couple of elements that Cendres et Sang has the upper hand on, notably I miss the debut's stronger death metal aspect and I think it would have worked well for Aenaon again here to chop and change the way they handle their metallic element. A high end 4 star range rating is still in order though.

83/100

(Originally written for Heavy Metal Haven: http://metaltube.freeforums.org/aenaon-extance-t3350.html)

UMUR "Cendres Et Sang" is the debut full-length studio album by Greek extreme metal act Aenaon. The album was released through code666 Records in June 2011.

The band play an experimental/avant garde form of black/death metal that I prefer to tag extreme metal. That´s means that the music on the album is not really black metal nor is it death metal. The truth lies somewhere in between. The music is pretty varied with both straight forward extreme metal sections (blast beats, mid-tempo groove and doomier sections), mellow jazzy avant gardish sections with saxophone and progressive epic sections. There is a good balance between melodic and more raw content. The clean and polished sound production ensures that the music never gets too raw though (It´s of course an aquired taste but I think the music could have prospered from a more filthy and raw production). The band are very well playing and everything is delivered with precision and generally sound very convincing.

"Cendres Et Sang" is overall a very professional product and it fully deserves a 3.5 star (70%) rating. "Cendres Et Sang" is recommended to those who enjoy their extreme metal with a twist.

J-Man After releasing a handful of minor releases since their formation in 2005, Greek avant-garde black metal act Aenaon released this debut full-length in June of 2011 on code666. Cenres et Sang is an album that's strikingly unique in sound, while still providing plenty of quality compositions and impressive musicianship. The band's unique mix of genres, topped off with a strange, avant-garde twist makes Cenres et Sang an excellent recommendation to those seeking music on the not-so-traditional side of black metal. Aenaon still has some work to do with creating songs that are mind-blowing in structure, as well as making a slightly more coherent album, but this is generally an exceptional debut full-length that I've had a pleasure experiencing.

Right off the bat, a few things stand out immediately unique about Aenaon's sound. Although they do occasionally lean in the noisy, chaotic avant-garde sounds of Blut Aus Nord or Deathspell Omega, Aenaon generally play a much more melodic style of avant-black metal, with plenty of influences from jazz, progressive rock, and ambient. Most of this album isn't very "avant-garde" in a compositional sense - many of the songs here are fairly conventional - but it is instead avant-garde when looking at the arrangements. The strange saxophone portions, occasional operatic vocals, and unconventional guitar effects really put Aenaon at odds with most of the straightforward black metal crowd. Cenres et Sang's unique ambitions are ultimately its strongest asset, and the band's willingness to experiment is quite encouraging.

The songwriting on Cenres et Sang is also generally pretty strong - tracks like "Suncord" and "Once" certainly leave an impression on the listener, and throwaways are nowhere to be found. A few songs may lack a bit in the department of memorability, yet they never come across as boring in any sense. The strong and unique musicianship tends to keep things interesting, even if a few compositions may be slightly lacking. The chaotic, yet still clear and audible production also helps flesh-out the emotional impact that Aenaon attempts to obtain - and, for the most part, they succeed tremendously.

Cenres et Sang isn't a flawless album, and Aenaon will still have to work on songwriting a little more before taking the avant-black metal world by storm, but this is still a very impressive debut outing from one of Greece's most promising young acts. If you're an extreme metal fan with an eclectic list of other musical interests, odds are that you'll enjoy Cenres et Sang quite a bit. I'd say 3.5 stars are warranted here. I'll be curious to see where Aenaon heads in the coming years.