Style: Atmospheric black metal
Primary Emotions/Themes: The hypnotizing wonder that nature brings when it envelops me
Thoughts: The rain starts with a few small drops. Pitter patter, pitter patter. I look up to see that the sky has darkened and the imminent threat of a downpour is real. I struggle to find shelter as the rain continues to build, now it has truly started to come down in earnest. That's when I hear it: thunder. I need to find shelter quickly. The storm grows and grows as I start to fear for my safety. Then, as quickly as it came the storm leaves.... the rain has stopped and I am left standing wet and soaked.
The above recollection is the way that the title track feels. A slow build into a dramatic climax only to fade out as quickly as it came. This is also the main component to Fen's music on Epoch... the slow and powerful build using both atmospheric keyboards and black metal to create a wall of sound approach that few band's can do as well as it is executed here.
Ebb and flow, this is the essence of the nine songs found on this hour of music. Sometimes the music flows stronger than the mightiest river flooding, other times it is softer than the morning dew. It's these dynamics that really make Epoch stand apart from a lot of other black metal bands that work in post-rock elements.
The music is minimalist when it's needed. The music is overwhelming when needed. It is exactly what it needs to be when the moment arises. Fen mastered it on this release and never quite was able to get back to the level of songwriting prowess as shown on Epoch. As much as I wish they had matched this, in a lot of ways I'm also glad that they never did. It would perhaps have diluted the importance of Epoch in my collection and it solidifies its place as a unique take on atmospheric black metal.
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