Band:	Pylar
Album:	Pyedra
Style:	Drone doom metal
Release date:	November 02, 2016
A review by:	Auntie Sahar

01. Menga
02. Megalitos
03. Menhir
04. Meteoros

Quick everybody! It's "Guess The Style By The Album Artwork" time! Here we seem to have a cover depicting a giant rock with a portion missing, the drawing style of which could easily be misinterpreted as a male genitalia by our more imaginative friends, or a cake by the more gluttonous. Just what are we dealing with here?

If you guessed "European power metal," I regret to inform you that you were wrong and will unfortunately not be winning the Lamborghini and the Armenian supermodel tonight. On the contrary, Pylar are a Spanish drone doom five piece of colossal proportions. Having finessed my drone preferences more as of late, I've come to generally shy away from that which goes for the more monotonous "wall of sound" approach, and seek out that which attempts a bit more subtlety of musicianship. Thankfully, Pylar do just that on this year's Pyedra. The music here is what I've come to label "expansionist drone," and much like some work from Sunn O))), Menace Ruine, and others, there's a strong incorporation of non-drone techniques here, a feeling of the band almost transcending its would-be limitations.

There's really a lot going on here that serves to impart this feeling. Though retaining a doomy drone core, Pyedra is much, much more than just that, and could be seen as quite unorthodox within its area. Horns, a woefully underused instrument in the genre, rear their head here, giving off a slight Monoliths & Dimensions type atmosphere, or even conjuring thoughts of more ambient type bands like Tauusk or The Mount Fuji Doomjazz Corporation. Violin is also utilized occasionally, with an almost A Forest Of Stars-like beauty. Further still, drumming, another uncommon tool in drone, is also displayed here, in an almost jazzy, improvisational-like style reminiscent of early Boris. Despite these similarities, somehow Pyedra is unquestionably "Pylar," and the sound the band summons here is all their own.

On Pyedra Pylar are throwing quite a few ingredients in the blender, but somehow it all comes out in the form of a cohesive, truly impressive whole. This album is a fine example of the fundamentals of the drone genre: how the free flowing nature essentially forces one to create their own structure from nothingness, to go in whichever direction they choose. And indeed, what a remarkable direction Pylar have chosen to go in here. Boldly creative and more layered than it may initially let on, along with Wolvserpent's latest this is probably the best drone release of 2016, and could very well be one to beat in its department for quite some time.

Play it loud and immerse thyself.