I have always found black metal and post rock to make for uncomfortable bedfellows by and large, but with their third full length, 'Ashes Against The Grain' (2006), canadian metal band Agalloch synthesise the two successfully, wrapping a raw black metal aesthetic around warm and progressive arrangements in a series of epic songs that slowly build to cathartic creshendos in the typical post rock tradition.

Whilst the songs are all mid-paced rather than frenetic, some, such as opener 'Falling Snow' are quite dynamic and urgent, whilst others such as the ten-minute-plus 'Fire Above, Ice Below' are much more lethargic and drawn-out, though in any case the songs are all very melancholy yet shot through with tantalising glimpses of warmth and hope. The guitars are frequently sadly melodic, with a Cure-esque shoegaze feel to them, frequently bringing to mind a more upbeat verision of Katatonia's 'Brave Murder Day' album, combining this minimalist approach with distrinctly organic, post-rocky drums wholly reminiscient of those employed by Isis. This merging of 80s/90s shoegaze with powerful, progressive drum patterns works brilliantly, whilst the songs themselves ebb and flow in a wholly convincing manner, with sorrowful yet dynamic guitar melodies frequently emerging alongside a mixture of desperate, raw howls and powerful and ethereal Nordic-sounding clean singing.

Elsewhere, such as on 'Not Unlike The Waves', the music is carried along by epic, thundering grooves, whilst the album also makes nods to the likes of Opeth and in particular Ulver's excellent acoustic-folk album 'Kveldssanger' with its regular incorporation of warm spanish guitar flourishes and stark mandolin in amongst the flowing riffs. The there are the quiet, introspective passages, such as on 'Our Fortress is Burning, Part 1', which combine a timeless, Neurosis-like folkiness with just a hint of blues and warm, gently meandering songstructures.

With 'Ashes Against The Grain', Agalloch have created a unique and entirely convincing album out of a number of seemingly disparate elements, and the end result is well worth checking out for fans of The Cure, Katatonia, Sombre Forets, Isis, and Neurosis amongst others.

Tracklisting-

1. Limbs 09:51
2. Falling Snow 09:38
3. This White Mountain on Which You Will Die 01:39
4. Fire Above, Ice Below 10:29
5. Not Unlike the Waves 09:16
6. Our Fortress Is Burning... I 05:25
7. Our Fortress Is Burning... II - Bloodbirds 06:21
8. Our Fortress Is Burning... III - The Grain 07:10

Total playing time 59:49