Hail Conjurer – Ouroboros Lust (2023)

May 27, 2023

One look at that cover art and I had to check this out, even more so when I saw the associated artists for this project were Pussies and Hooded Menace, two bands I would have never put in the same sentence.

Hail Conjurer have a ton of recordings but this is the first that I have come across and after a few listens now I’m still not entirely sure what to make of it. The immediate musical aesthetic is one of black metal, but has this weird, off-kilter approach to such that it doesn’t really fit under that banner. Equally, Ouroboros Lust is as doomy as it is black, but outside of some weepy riffs this doesn’t really hold that much in common with doom either. Throw in a bunch of noisy passages and sizzling electronic pads and you’ve got an unholy cauldron of sounds that jumps around in utter confusion.

But does it work? One could argue yes, that it does. Others could say that it’s a bit of a clusterfuck. Both would be right. What I do know however is that you’d be best tuning in and deciding for yourself. It is an interesting journey, if nothing else.

Stand out track: Two Stars