Amenra 'Mass VI'
In any case, ready or not, 'Mass VI' is here, and more than any other album in Amenra's past, it highlights those contrasts in a deeply affecting way. The eerie quietness of the first couple of minutes of "Children Of The Eye" announces the coming storm, and the nine explosive, cathartic minutes of this opening song hold in themselves all the strikingly disparate emotions that we have come to expect from Amenra.
'Mass VI' is an emotional rollercoaster until its very last second until "Diaken" is abruptly ended at its very climax, as the last breath of an expiring life. Every band member is seemingly being stretched to their physical limits throughout. As always with Amenra, this art has come directly from the souls of the musicians involved, they are capable of establishing connections with their listeners more profound than almost any other band because they are direct heart-to-heart connections.
It's hard to think of a better person to capture this sonic enormity than Billy Anderson. The legendary American producer was already the chosen one for 'Mass V' and has been a decisive element in the building of many a true classic. 'Mass VI' was recorded in the Belgian Ardennes, a region of thick forests in the south-east of the country, where the band was snowed in for a week.