Review: Gaerea – Mirage

Mjsyl March 21, 2023

Review by Mjsyl

Gaerea – Mirage

Record Label: Season of Mist

Year: 2022

Rating: 9/10

Gaerea has ventured into the modern Black Metal scene during the pandemic achieving international success with the release of their album “Limbo”. This Portuguese quintet whose members have remained anonymous, continues to be present with “Mirage”, an album that combines the visual art of their members with a technical and polished musical proposal.

Gaerea

The guitar chords introduce us to “Memoir”, a musical delicacy of around eight minutes in which we can appreciate a solemn beginning that stands out for a clean vocal interpretation and that contrasts with the notes of the keyboard, leading to a more aggressive sound. in which a powerful guttural voice stands out in which pain and despair can be felt.

“Salve” increases the intensity of the sound guided by the guitar with tremolo and the drums, to which is added the heartbreaking guttural voice whose members remain anonymous. The transition used by the band to include some acoustic and choral elements that add more drama to their musical concept is interesting. “Deluge” gives continuity to this frenetic and aggressive sound, strengthening the musical identity of the band.

“Arson” has a slow and deliberate musical introduction in which the sound of the guitar and the keyboard is distinguished, however, as the song progresses it can be seen how it gains strength and leads to the incessant pounding by Battery. It is perhaps one of the most representative songs on the album: a song that wraps you in this heartbreaking and depressing atmosphere from start to finish.

“Ebb” immediately transports you to this dark and dense atmosphere that characterizes the genre, the presence of guitar riffs throughout the song generates that feeling of desperation that contrasts with the vocal performance. With subtle changes in sound, it does not detract in terms of creativity on the part of the Portuguese quintet, to which it brings a contemporary air to its musical proposal.

“Mirage” is perhaps one of my favorite songs on the album because of the sound transitions that we can find throughout the song. The introductory part immediately involves you in the musical universe created by Gaerea in which we can find moments of absolute darkness but also some spaces in which the light can be seen beyond the tunnel. Wonderful.

“Mantle” shows an exceptional job on the part of the guitar playing with more aggressive notes that tend to become darker as the song progresses and that contrast with the vocal performance. “Laude” could be said to be the true closure of the album despite being an additional song to the album and that will move every fiber of your being. A song that has a musical proposal different from what is offered throughout the album.

Gaerea is a band that has gained my attention thanks to Mirage and generates in me the expectation of knowing how the future will treat them. Mirage is an album in which attention has been paid to the small details, creating an impeccable musical production that strengthens the musical identity of this Portuguese quintet, perhaps becoming one of the benchmarks of modern Black Metal and also an important competitor for one of the best albums of this 2022.