Band:	Defying
Album:	Wadera
Style:	Black metal, Post-metal, Progressive metal
Release date:	February 2024

01. Tempus Infaustum
02. ...Miast Cichać Szemrają...
03. The Fugue
04. Incomprehensibly Woken
05. The Acquaintance Shade
06. The Lurking Spectres
07. Cremaberis Igne Aeterno!
08. Reluctant To The Grave
09. Misbegotten
10. Quietus

On Wadera, Defying attempt to recreate an aura of years gone by, while still producing a record in a very modern style.

Poland’s Defying have been performing post-metal for over 15 years, but not in a particularly prolific manner; sophomore release Wadera comes a decade after their debut, with only an EP and standalone single released in the interim. Across this decade, their style of post-metal, which already exhibited hints of black metal, has evolved into something that can most succinctly be described as post-black metal; perhaps this infusion of the most evil of metal genres was driven by the album’s concept, which is inspired by Polish horror film The Wolf and short story Wadera, and depicts a story of revenge from beyond the grave.

The band strove to elicit a 19th century atmosphere, or a sound reminiscent of old film tape, and to try and accomplish this, they state that the album was recorded using traditional equipment and microphones; Defying also incorporated zithers and hunting horns, along with quotes from Edgar Allan Poe. In truth, I can’t say I pick up on a particularly retro sound to Wadera, despite the band’s efforts; the tone and mix on opener “Tempus Infaustum” sounds very reminiscent of many other bands performing a similarly sinister form of black metal, and the same can be said for tracks such as “...Miast Cichać Szemrają...” rooted in post-metal. From a listener perspective, this is absolutely fine and arguably ideal, but it does seem as if the band’s goal has perhaps not been fully realized.

As far as the songwriting is concerned, Wadera exhibits a good balance between post-metal and black metal, with most songs featuring elements of both. “Tempus Infaustum” is a good example of this; the first few minutes are slow and bleak, owing more to sludge or doom metal despite incorporating some blackened tones, but in the second half, it erupts into full-fledged blackened extremity, hitting a tone comparable to acts such as Panzerfaust. The track that is most specialized towards one specific genre is the aforementioned “...Miast Cichać Szemrają...”, which is a relatively short all-instrumental cut that perhaps teeters towards post-rock due to its clean tones, and could have appeared on later Isis records or something from Tacoma Narrows Bridge Disaster.

The juxtaposition of menacing black metal aggression alongside slower, gloomier atmospheric passages works very effectively on the likes of “The Fugue” and “Cremaberis Igne Aeterno!”, both of which open with blasting and tremolo riffing before veering off in their own directions. Defying are perhaps at their most compelling on Wadera with the longest songs, which afford them the most opportunity to allow their writing to sprawl across sounds. “Incomprehensibly Woken” opens in relatively melodic fashion, with delicate, almost folkish clean guitar motifs atop a base of atmospheric tom-dominated drumming, and even when it shifts into heavier and harsher distortion, there remains a lighter, more melodic touch in the form of a airy tremolo layer. The song’s midsection further explores the band’s softer side, with a proggy clean/acoustic guitar passage not miles away from softer Opeth accompanied by spoken word and warm synths, but “Incomprehensibly Woken” ultimately culminates with bleak blackened tremolos, harsh roars and blast beats.

The 10-minute album centrepiece “The Acquaintance Shade” is similarly wide-ranging, featuring brooding doom, sinister guitar solos, tasty sludge riffs, atmospheric bass and percussion that could easily feature on a theoretical next Tool album, lush, tranquil soundscapes, and a ratcheting up of tension towards its final moments before fading away, to be replaced by some parting horn blasts. Intriguingly enough, despite arguably spanning more genres than any other track here, black metal is largely absent from “The Acquaintance Shade”, Defying demonstrating that they don’t need to rely on those cold, dark tones to create a compelling atmosphere.

Defying’s expansion of their black metal inclinations has worked out successfully on Wadera, which is an accomplished addition to the post-black metal genre that exploits the virtues of multiple genres without relying on any one of them in particular.