Presently, were one to rummage around the basement of my elegant abode, one would likely notice the various drum kits, guitars, basses, amps, keyboards, PA set-up and other musical knick-knacks kicking around. Head on up to where my record/CD collection is on display and you’ll find the entire Rotting Christ and Celtic Frost discographies along with smatterings of Dissection and Elegy. Afterwards, I’d introduce you to the nice elderly couple living next door who, even if they weren’t already half deaf, don’t mind loud and raucous amounts of noise emerging from my side of the property line. Add all those elements together and, theoretically, I could be doing what Plague Weaver is doing. What makes this duo from Mississauga, Ontario different comes with their willingness, talent, heart, dedication, execution and laser-sighted focus to take that seed material and utilise it in the creation of evil sounding blackened metal. That, and the fact that they, y’know, actually did it.
Coming to life as a solo project of Radoslaw “RM” Murawski in 2018, the then-one-man band issued a self-titled EP in 2018 and another EP called Through the Sulphur Eyes in January of last year. With everything and everyone on lockdown, RM got to work on Plague Weaver’s next phase by drafting in vocalist JC and writing what would become the project’s debut full-length, Ascendant Blasphemy, which we’re streaming below. We’d take a shot at describing the maelstrom of Greek and Scandinavian-inspired sonic insanity the pair has captured on their first album, but when pressed for a quote, they did our job for us and summed things up quite nicely:
“Ascendant Blasphemy is Plague Weaver’s first full-length release. A cold journey from start to finish, this album refines the doom-inspired atmosphere present in the previous release, Through the Sulphur Eyes while also introducing a new level of aggression. There are equal parts mid and fast-paced tracks with a couple slower, doom-ier ones near the end to close the album. The confident, riff-driven composition lays a strong foundation for powerful and diverse vocals. As a whole, Ascendant Blasphemy is a blend of black, death and doom which hopes to invigorate and distress the listener.
“Lyrically, Ascendant Blasphemy is a loose concept following a series of Satanic philosophies or inquiries, illustrated through the image of a defeated heaven being usurped by a conquering Hell. The phrase ‘Black metal ist krieg’ remains true with Ascendant Blasphemy. These songs are largely focused around Satanic empowerment of the self and the necessary war waged in the name of said empowerment.”
Ascendant Blasphemy is officially released tomorrow (February 26th), so check out the links for more info about the band and ordering processes.
