The worst thing about depression is that you have to pretend you are fine in front of the people who don’t even give a shit about you. But not everyone wants to hide their pain. Not Chelsea Wolfe.
Folk music is the mainstream of alternative scene. Many can play with folk, more or less authentically, but when you mix folk with gothic rock, drone, metal and dark ambient, the result is not only authentic. It is innovative.
Innovation is Chelsea Wolfe’s middle name. With three albums in her opus, I was confident she is going to continue nurturing her differentia specifica sound that made her so loved and acclaimed. Her music might be difficult to understand when you listen to it for the first time. Once you let yourself dive in into the deep and dark melodies, you will feel like you are reading Bram Stoker book or watching David Lynch movie. With the darkness as the nucleus and the gothic rock as the base that does not try to convince you to like it, Abyss is a masterpiece only Chelsea can make.
She admits she was wearing a black veil on her concerts because she has a fear of public. You can understand this fear. Her songs are not relatable and you need to really get to know her in order to appreciate her work.
Her fourth album is resembling the previous one – goth folk drone metal dark ambient with the underlying pain. If you stare into the Abyss long enough, you might notice Siouxsiee and Zola Jesus. The only thing is – what Chelsea is doing is way more eclectic. The lyrics are pure metaphors of literary and philosophical references. The work of Ingmar Bergman is one of the strongest influences so it is no surprise the themes of identity, alienation and making sense are dominant on Abyss.
Carrion Flowers, a single that also opens the album is the best track, no doubt. Completely naked and dark, with intelligent lyrics and mesmerizing vocal, it asks you to listen patiently. Iron Moon has a line that really made me sad My heart is a tomb, my heart is an empty room, I’ve given it away, I never want to see it again. There were a lot of divine poetic moments on the record, usually buried into the dark notes of someone who suffers from isolation and melancholy. After The Fall is self-call for overcoming the worst.
Color Of Blood and Abyss are closing the album just as it started. Dark, dark, dark. Chelsea Wolfe is a wonderful example of how a deep sorrow of a human being can give birth to something breath taking.
