“Atmospheric depressive blackgaze” is the sub-genre that I’ve seen attached to Sadness, a one-person independent Bandcamp band. It’s a ridiculous, almost comically lengthy combination of four sub-genres… but it totally makes sense.
This seemingly arbitrary sub-genre is a combination of atmospheric metal, depressive metal, black metal, and shoegaze. Simply put, Sadness’s sound on the album I Want to be There, creates a landscape of loud, desperate, depressing yet (somehow?) blissful noise. A type of noise that makes you feel enveloped, or like you are drowning. Melodies and riffs linger for long stretches — creating the aforementioned atmospheric experience.
The album’s opener, “In the Distant Travels,” immediately creates a serene, spacey atmosphere that is abruptly interrupted by a wall of noise with piercing shrieks that somehow manage to cut through.
In the album’s second of six tracks, “I Want to be with You,” the shoegaze side of Sadness dominates. The distorted guitars are harsh, yet there’s a melody and chord progression underneath the noise. It repeats, eventually accompanied by triumphant, chanting, choir-like vocals: a nice juxtaposition to the music that really exemplifies I Want to be There well.
This album is an absolute trip and emotional rollercoaster. The feelings that this album gives off are intense, violent, raw, and melancholy. I admittedly don’t listen to much metal, but there’s so much in this package for people less familiar with the genre. I feel like I could recommend I Want to be There to almost anybody. You can support Sadness on their Bandcamp here.
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