When this promo arrived in my inbox, I was instantly drawn to the title. Mainly for my own personal connections with an experimental musical artist, who also went under the name Sanguine. While not related to this Italian release, there are more similarities than I had expected.
Given the work here has been released under the genre of “Ambient Raw Black Metal” (is that even a thing?) I wasn’t entirely sure what I was about to listen too. Sanguine Pluit is the solo venture of Polus, a one man musical project, who basically delivers a disturbing piece of noise.
It’s ambient, but not relaxing. I once had my own work with the artists namesake described as “the soundtrack to a migraine”. It’s a quote I’m more than happy to lift for this review of “There is a Goddess in the forest” by Sanguine Pluit.
Sanguine Pluit
At times it sounds as though Polus has fallen asleep on his synth during “Vibrant Mist” with the sampled vocals coming from his inner demons. This is followed by “Aural Enchantment”, although the guitars and drums result in just as much of an ongoing drone.
Elsewhere all the artist achieves is to give you a headache, it’s not exactly comfortable listening. Then again, neither were some of the results from my own home recordings, albeit not completely in the same vein. Maybe that’s another reason I can relate to this, I like the concept, I enjoy the lo-fi production and love the challenging attack on the senses.
As to whether or not I can listen to the whole thing, that’s another matter. The album goes on far too long, there’s not enough variation to distinguish a valid reason for making it to the last track. I did somehow persevere to the bitter end, with “Raw Darkness” heavier in terms of reaching those black metal elements.
There is definitely something intriguing about Sanguine Pluit, however there was also a huge relief when it finished.
