Fane - Armageddon Scars

Fane is a doom/sludge band from Buffalo, New York who hit the scene in 2021 with their full-length debut "Solitude."  Five years later they have returned with their second full-length, "Armageddon Scars." 

This album is a total banger. I love how balanced it is. “Armageddon Scars,” balances doom and sludge perfectly. It's low and slow without being plodding and languishing around trapped in its own sound—this darkness is always moving forward.

The riffs are thick as hell, a sonic density that is unbreakable.  That's how doom should be. Period. But the tone is nasty and abrasive just like sludge to me. It's melodic in the right places and takes this path with a subtle approach—a slow loving glacier that edges its way through with singular purpose. The vocals are fantastic too. They sit somewhere between death growls and a Crowbar style rough shout. If that doesn't appeal to you then I guess you don't like good things. Nerd.

The pacing is on target too.  With just five songs and a runtime under 34 minutes, it’s an album that can be picked up and played easily so even those who are not doomers won’t have to crawl through songs that are 25 minutes long with a runtime that’s triple that.  All five songs are good but, of course, listening straight through will have the most impact.  

I want to talk about my three favors on the album.  I HAVE to mention the opener, “Flatline.”  By the time the song is done, the riffs may indeed cause your heart to stop but what a way to go.  The song begins with doom and gloom, but the barest hints of melody exist, subtly stretching the notes out as the distortion reverbs outward.  By the time the slow, crushing grooves of the riffs and brutal vocals kick in, your body is already beaten to death.  Good.  Doom and sludge should crush the body.  The tempo upticks a bit for some optimum headbanging moments—another good thing about this album is that despite its slower pace, the band isn’t afraid to kick up a notch when needed.    The middle passage is so intense, I think my ears were deformed by the unfathomable depths of the bass.   The final couple of minutes is like being beaten to death with hammers, but whoever is causing the damage is taking time. 

“The Mariner,” is a goddamn great song.  The riffs here are engrossing, in a way that makes it feel like the song itself is under water.  It’s muddy, sludgy, and the notes push through a ton of undertow.   The vocals themselves sound like some ancient creature crawling out through cracks in the ocean floor: hungry, visceral, and unstoppable.  The clean effects as the song pushes towards its epicenter are slick and done well, creating a watery atmosphere without losing an iota of the intensity it was born from.  It’s a slow trudge back to the service, the notes feeling like that might drown themselves at any moment.  As the song breaks to the service, the music is palpable but becomes a force of nature near the end with the melodic twist and monumental double bass.   The drums on this album are a BEAST. 

I like the long intro to the final song, “Passages,” because there is nothing more doom than a long intro. The vocals are a low, clean voice of deep tone that works wonders alongside the deep bass and dark clean tones.  The song feels like the coming of end times during the middle passage—seething anger and regret created from the sorrow of the past.  The last few minutes are among the best on the album, a dirge of all the elements that make the album what it is.

Fane’s “Armageddon Scars,” is an intense surprise that hits all the right spots.  As the summer months refuse to die, this album sweeps in to ground it all into dust…and proceed to trample of the ashes. Highly recommended. 

Rating:  Excellent