AMN Reviews: Yudol – Anthems of Nonexistence (2023; Reverse Alignment)

Anthems of Nonexistence could be lumped into the ritual ambient or post-industrial categories. But it is so much more.

Over the course of seven long tracks – ranging from 8 to 22 minutes, the Yudol collective meticulously crafts disorienting aural atmospheres that explore psychedelic and hypnogogic states. These pieces are densely packed with rich electronic and acoustic features – drones, field recordings, effects, voices, and other instrumentation. There is a certain degree of looping and sculpted white noise but without undue repetition.

Each track takes on its own dominant character. Some are shimmering and echoing soundscapes, while others involve throat singing with didgeridoo, or are mainly differentiated by their percussion-driven passages. Several exhibit an airy, collage-like nature but fall short of being noise walls, instead appearing to be loosely composed. Nonetheless, most of the material on Anthems of Nonexistence was recorded live despite some pieces coming across as being based on studio manipulation.

The result is an album of thick, fricative rumblings with foreground elements that ebb and flow. The music showcases an intricate dance of deconstruction and reconstruction – a journey where the static and dynamic coalesce seamlessly.