EP Review: Through Mists – “Prolific” (Blackened Progressive Death Metal)

Written by Kirk

What do heroes do when they’ve completed their quests?  Where do they rest their weary bones once their long journey has ended?  Do they join the elves in the Undying Lands as they bid farewell to the world of men?  Do they ascend the throne of the world they just liberated, eager to restore peace and serenity to a world that has been torn asunder by war and desolation?  Or do they simply look into the camera, smile, and say, “I’m going to Disney World!”?

When you’re James Aniston of Through Mists, you take a much-needed break.  Between October 8, 2021 and December 8, 2023–exactly two years and two months—he recorded, mastered, and released a grand total of ten singles, eight EPs, and nine albums chronicling the epic adventures of The Traveler, a magical shape shifting creature whose journey began with a simple desire to save the forest from a fungal infection and led him to challenge and ultimately slay the gods, under whose thumb the creatures of the world had suffered and languished. Blending death metal, progressive metal, black metal, and even grindcore and industrial into a unique and oddly clean-sounding melodic blend of death metal, the saga of The Traveler is a feat in and of itself.  I had the pleasure of reviewing one album (Starkiller) and two EPs (Homicidal Hamsters and Hunting the Ones Up High) last year shortly after their release on September 15, 2023, which you can find here.  And it seems all too appropriate to give my thoughts on the beginning of this new chapter for Through Mists.

Before we get started, I want to first point out how appropriate the title of this EP is.  If I had to come up with one word to describe James’ work, I couldn’t find a more appropriate word than “prolific.”  As one-man heavy metal creators go, I think his only real competition is Garry Brents and his myriad projects, and that’s honestly some pretty damn fine company to keep.  But where Garry has created new projects in order to explore new sonic ideas or motifs, James has maintained an absolutely insane level of consistency with Through Mists, exploring the depths to which death metal as a backdrop can be applied.  And each release in James‘ catalogue has built on what came before, and not just from a narrative standpoint.  You can literally chronicle his growth as a musician on literally every level.

Opening Prolific is “The Ride”, a very straightforward death metal track, making use of the sort of death metal riffs that have been the backbone of just about every Through Mists song.  Assuming you’ve done your homework (I spent three days going through the entire saga of The Traveler, so yes, I’ve done mine, and no, you can’t copy it), this song will feel instantly comforting and familiar to you.  It’s James at his most comfortable, but it’s also James continuing his evolution as a composer as he probes further into the pointedly aggressive riffs of Summon the Severed, the final album in the saga of The Traveler.  The second track, “In Shattered Mirrors”, might be my favorite Through Mists song yet.  It starts at a ten and doesn’t let up.  It’s 3:42 of fast, heavy death metal with a blackened edge and is one HELL of a good time.  If this is the sign of what’s to come in this next phase of Through Mists’s catalog, where do I sign up, because I need more of this. LOTS more.

Up next is “Golden Goddess”, which also happens to be the longest song so far.  What is immediately noticeable is the softer, more melodic approach to the guitar, which allows the drums to become the focal point of the song. They’re fast. They’re pounding.  And they’re absolutely riveting, completely stealing the spotlight. Clocking in at a whopping 6:29, it’s roughly as long as the two songs preceding it, but that pales in comparison to the title track, “Prolific”.  At a gargantuan 14:07, it’s a sprawling tableau of everything we’ve come to love about Through Mists. It has killer drum fills. It has blackened death metal riffs. It has synth and keyboard parts. And it has James’ dueling vocal styles that have so brilliantly allowed him to craft his narratives so eloquently. It also seems to be a tip of the ol’ cap to that late ‘60s/early-‘70s motif of having the B side be one big song that’s as long as all the other songs combined. Which, let’s be honest, is something of a lost art.

THE BOTTOM LINE

I don’t know exactly how many years into the OSDM revival we are at this point because it’s not something I was really invested in, but I know there will be purists out there shaking their hands at clouds and shouting, “This isn’t death metal!”  And they’re welcome to do that; arguing with that kind of mindset is painfully dull.  Personally, I get excited at the ways artists can inject elements of different music styles into other styles and come up with something unique.  And while James is far from the first person to make blackened death metal, he’s of a very small class of musician to expand that particular sub-genre into other sub-genres.  Progressive or technical death metal seems as though it would be at odds with the raw nature of blackened death metal, yet James makes it work.  He’s not afraid to experiment with different tones or textures or sounds, which makes Through Mists an endlessly engaging project.  Sure, it may ruffle some feathers along the way, but isn’t that the point?  Because if you’re not pissing someone off somewhere, then you’re in danger of becoming complacent.  And that sounds…well, boring.