Mo'ynoq - A Place For Ash

Labels: Self-Released

Formats: Vinyl/CD/Tape/Digital

Formats: 23 Sep 2022

Tracklist: 

1. Penance

2. Throes Of Ardent Disposition

3. Effigies Adorned In Fire

4. Sychromysticisim

5. The Beast That Mourned At The Heart Of The Mountain

Last year I read about a new online platform called Ampwall. At the time, it was still in development (as it still is today) but wanted to offer something more to musicians at a time when bandcamp was being taken over by new owners. I signed up to it's newsletter to keep updated on progress and more recently, the site has invited a small number of bands and artists to upload their music to the platform, while also offering merch options too. 

Ampwall is spearheaded by Chris Grigg, also of US black metal band Woe. With that in mind, I wanted to write about a band using the platform as a way to promote both them further and also Ampwall, for those who are unfamiliar. I've featured Mo'ynoq here before, when I wrote about their 2019 full-length Dreaming In a Dead Language. A Place For Ash was independently by the band in 2022 on all formats.

As somebody who mainly consumes music (for review purposes) on either bandcamp of iTunes, having a new platform like Ampwall is exciting. The current and future state of music consumption is something that really fascinates me, as a heavy music fan and as a supporter of physical formats (weirdly). Mo’ynoq may seem like an unlikely starting point when it comes to exploring new digital platforms but they are an early adopter, having been invited to join by Ampwall’s founder. The US black metallers tear straight into opener ‘Penance’. It’s raw and chaotic to begin with before Mo’ynoq settle into a rhythm of sorts, all the while guided by blasting drums. The metallic guitars and rumbling bass shroud the percussion, leaving it bathed in hellish growls and bellows. 

‘Throes Of Ardent Disposition’ is a cross between ice-cold black metal and groove-laden, martial rhythmic intensity. It seems to draw influence from war metal, teutonic thrash and a mix of both Appalachian/Scandinavian black metal. From the previous barrage comes the musically atmospheric ‘Effigies Adorned In Fire’. I’ve drawn special attention to the instrumentation here but it plays a very significant role in the song, whilst being held up against the intense vocals, themselves drawing from post-metal at times. It’s bloody brilliant!

Penultimate song ‘Synchromysticism’ is an amalgamation of cascading riffs and catchy musicianship in general. Whatever your thoughts are on black metal as a sub-genre, it’s hard to ignore that it delivers now more than ever. Mo’ynoq prove that here and then some! For anybody who digs Twilight Fauna, ‘The Beast That Mourned At The Heart Of The Mountain’ comes close to that band’s musical approach initially before Mo’ynoq unleashes their true black metal might one final time. It’s an utterly engrossing song with an incredible mid-section filled with dramatic melody. It’s equally as dramatic as it draws the album to a close.

This is an expansive album filled with so much depth. It shows off the best of Mo’ynoq and their song-writing skill. Fantastic work. Promoting this release as well as previous releases here can only be a bonus for Mo’ynoq. Being able to spread the word about it fills me with joy. 

You can stream A Place For Ash and discover more about what Ampwall offers both bands and fans below:-

Mo'ynoq - https://www.facebook.com/moynoq

Ampwall - https://ampwall.com

Mo'ynoq - Dreaming In A Dead Language

Labels: Self-Released/Blasphemous Mockery

Formats: Vinyl/CD/Tape/Digital

Release Date: 11 Jan 2019

Tracklist: 

1. Empyreal Decay

2. The Collector

3. These Once Tranquil Grounds

4. Doomed To Endure

5. Carve My Name

6. Witness To The Abyss

7. Buried By Regret

I am beyond tired now. Public transport was all snarled up after work due to an earlier incident, so I have to hike my way into town to go shopping before heading home. At least it's the weekend now. None of that has anything remotely to do with tonight's review but this is a blog after all! Tonight's band of choice for me is North Carolina's Mo'ynoq, who ply their trade within the USBM scene. "Dreaming In A Dead Language" was self-released by the band in January and was picked up by a label called Blasphemous Mockery for a tape release too. Mo'ynoq are super active on the live front too and will soon be playing alongside Pyrrhon and Woe in August, in Raleigh (NC).

USBM continues to steam on like a well-oiled loco and it never gets old. Mo’ynoq’s iteration of the sound is captivating with tones of treble-led guitar work, drums with the kind of live sound that more established bands could only dream of and the most harrowing of growled vocal deliveries on opener track Empyreal Decay. Atmospheric and maniacal at the same time. There’s a lurch into doom/post-metal territory on The Collector, which comes complete with deep bellows during it’s opening bars before the song is propelled on a faster trajectory. The technicality here is obvious yet not overpowering. 

The guitar virtuosity hits new levels on These Once Tranquil Grounds, which hints at a W ITTR influence, at least in the title anyway. Its tempo is relentless yet musicality is not pushed to the side. That’s the thing with bands like this. They have the talent to not just sound blisteringly extreme but also almost embarrassingly good musically. Mid-way through “Dreaming In A Dead Language” you’re allowed time to breath thanks to the majestic piano-led interlude of Doomed To Endure. A whole album of this would have been fine with me!

Lengthy instrumental passages will be nothing new to black metal fans, especially those who like their ’s atmospheric and they may struggle to find a better one than that on Carve My Name. It’s a fantastic way to start what is a huge song. It progresses in movements of varying tempo and technicality, while still retaining the black metal essence that Mo’ynoq has worked hard to forge since their inception in 2016. Penultimate hymn Witness To The Abyss is descriptively accurate because while listening to it, you feel as though you are staring into the black endless void. It’s exactly what black metal should be and while some uber-necro pvrists will turn away after that statement, I stand by it. It’s a great song!

The briefest of pauses is met by closing song Buried By Regret, which is another seven-minute+ rager with icy undertones aplenty. More stupidly fast percussion and precise guitar/bass work sits alongside the extreme vocals, though the instrumentation very much takes centre stage, as it has all through the album. This is another example of the quality of USBM at the current time and Mo’ynoq is definitely destined to break out of the underground with “Dreaming In A Dead Language”. If you haven’t given this album your time yet then you should do so asap. Both band and album are brilliant.

You can stream and purchase the album on all formats below:-

Mo'ynoq - https://www.facebook.com/moynoq/

Blasphemous Mockery - https://www.facebook.com/blasphemousmockery/