BOTANIST

"Die Zahl der Bands, die Post Black Metal spielen, scheint inzwischen fast unüberschaubar, wobei man den Eindruck hat, dass sich manche Genres, Shoegaze etwa, besonders gut zur Integration eignen. Bands transzendieren die Thematik und das Image und fügen weitere, oft als atypisch wahrgenommene Instrumente hinzu. Natürlich führen solche Auflösungen allzuenger Genregrenzen oft zu Gegenbewegungen: Der Hass – und das scheint durchaus das treffende Wort zu sein -, der z.B. Deafheaven oder beosnders Liturgy entgegengeschlagen ist, ist weithin dokumentiert. Dabei kommt es bei aller Dehnung von Genregrenzen selten vor, dass Bands ganz auf die Gitarre verzichten, wie auf diesen Seitenauch schon bezüglich einer anderen Botanistveröffentlichung bemerkt wurde, und dies hat scheinbar dazu geführt, dass sich keinerlei Botanist-Eintrag bei den eigentlich recht extensiven Metal Archives findet. Dass das Hackbrett, das im Zentrum des Klangs des Einmannprojekts steht, bei der Genese der Band gewählt wurde, hängt primär damit zusammen, dass der unter dem nom de guerre Otrebor agierende Künstler eigentlich Schlagzeuger war und ein Instrument suchte, das sich möglichst leicht lernen ließ, und das Hackbrett wird eben auf sehr perkussive Art gespielt.

Wie der Name des neuen Albums andeutet, ist “Collective: The Shape Of He To Come” von einem Bandkollektiv eingespielt worden und nicht mehr nur allein von Otrebor, und zwar mit Hilfe der Musiker, die Botanist in den letzten Jahren live unterstützt haben. Dies hört man dem Album dann auch passagenweise sehr deutlich an: „Praise Azaele The Adversary“ beginnt mit langsam gespieltem Hackbrett, das dem Stück durchaus Folkcharakter verleiht, bevor nach etwa der Hälfte dann unmenschliches Geheul einsetzt. Das Titelstück ist wesentlich perkussiver, dafür ist der chorartige Gesang fast schon sakral. Auch „The Reconciliation of Nature and Man“ wird von chorartigem Gesang dominiert “Upon Veltheim’s Throne Shall I Wait“ klingt etwas nach Mittelaltermarkt. Beendet wird das Album von „To Join The Continuum“, einer von der Lotus Thief-Sängerin Bezaelith gesungenen Folknummer.

Thematisch geht es bei diesem selbst so betitelten Green Metal um die Pflanzen, die den Homo sapiens verdrängen (werden und sollen), hier noch stärker als auf den Vorgängeralben als Evokation desjenigen, der kommen wird: „Hail thee, Azalea /Great adversary /Opposing the path of doom /Countering the human folly/The folly of self-destruction”. Der Untergang des Menschen wird antizipiert: „Here, upon my living throne of Veltheimia/My cathedral of emerald and red/I await the time of the great passing/(Into which the world shall be led)”. In der Apotheose der Pflanzenwelt (“Glory be to Flora, the divine/Embodiment of the unseen/That which makes what is /That which balances all/All that represents/The truest knowable god”) erinnern Botanist vielleicht etwas an Robinson Jeffers, hier kombiniert mit der apokalyptischen Bildhaftigkeit eines J.G. Ballard. In der Darstellung des “modernen Menschen” als “Unterdrücker”, “who shall be wiped away”, lässt das natürlich auch an Pentti Linkola denken, der dem Menschen attestiert, ein “homo destructivus“ zu sein und dessen Vorschläge zum Umweltschutz wohl nur die wenigsten gutheißen werden. Über die Misanthropie gelangt dieser Green Metal dann letztlich doch wieder zum Black Metal." -- MG, African Paper, October 14, 2017

--------------------------------------------------------

AGIT READER, THE

"On first glance, Botanist is a peculiar project, but look deeper and it makes perfect sense. It started as a solo project for a guy calling himself Otrebor, but one-man black metal bands are not uncommon, and his prominent use of hammered dulcimer is in line with other avant garde groups experimenting with extra-metallic instrumentation. Eventually, he started to bring in musicians to assist him in creating his vision, which\ again is not unheard of.

The Botanist moniker manifest itself in fixations with plant life. His self-described “Green Metal” is marked by observations about nature which, whether musty smells from fetid, floral swamps or the tranquil snow-blanketed trees of Scandinavian woodlands, have always had a hand in inspiring black metal atmosphere.

Since forming in 2009 Botanist has gradually become even less unorthodox. Some of his collaborators spun off into Lotus Thief, who make textured, dreamy post-metal inspired by classic literature and marked by hauntingly beautiful female voices. The project was so well-received it transcended a mere side dalliance and morphed into a band in its own right. Possibly as a result of that success, Collective: The Shape of He to Come (Avantgarde Music) sees Botanist acting like more than just a collective and instead resembling an actual band.

Otrebor recorded his drum tracks way back in 2010, a full year before the I: The Suicide Tree debut, but took them out of the mothballs and asked a handful of musicians to do the rest. But instead of asking others to create his vision, for the first time Botanist solicited creative input from others including Bezaelith (nee Beth Gladding) from Lotus Thief. They were given the tracks and, after instilling their own unique visions, gave them back to Otrebor who added keyboards and vocals.

Interestingly enough, after rescinding control of Botanist, Collective: The Shape of He to Come is arguably the most consistent release of the band’s canon. Certainly it is the easiest to digest the entire way through as Bezaelith’s expressive vocals seem like choral hymns from ancient churches. If this is still the Botanist, the plant life is ancient ivy climbing crumbling walls of nearly forgotten cathedrals.

“The Reconciliation of Nature and Man,” the third of six tracks, is possibly the quintessential Botanist track. The metallic clanging of what seems like a dozen dulcimers drive alongside more traditional black metal percussion and keyboards chiming like shoegazing psych-rock guitars. The vocals get more frantic as the song moves along, with the yin and yang of surreal female and harsh male vocals creating a great sense of foreboding.

Surrounding that aural perfection you have “Praise Azalea the Adversary,” a three and a half minute album intro that goes from sedate to sinister, and “And the World Throws off Its Oppressors,” a folk song backed with what sounds like harpsichords from space followed by an 11-minute opus called “Upon Veltheim’s Throne Shall I Wait” that is as elaborately symphonic as the preceding track was simple. Finally album closer “To Join the Continuum” is an extended, melancholic outro that incorporates sounds of birds and other wildlife. This proves that even though Botanist is embracing nurture, it will always come back to nature in the end. Perhaps Otrebor is finally seeing the forest for the trees." -- Brian O'Neill, The Agit Reader, October 25, 2017

--------------------------------------------------------

ANGRY METAL GUY

"Though not exactly my favorite band in the metal canon, there are few acts I’m more excited to talk about than Botanist. While some avant-garde bands attempt to breach genre boundaries by removing as many traditional melodies and discernible rhythm patterns as possible while still qualifying as music, these Californians take an experimental approach by simply modifying the tools of the trade. By swapping six-string guitars for the obscure yet beautiful hammered dulcimer, they practice modern black metal on a structural level with a completely unique sound capable of moments more beautiful and more terrifying than one is likely to find anywhere else in the genre. Collective: The Shape of He to Come, their seventh LP in as many years, is an attempt to further not only the boundaries of the scene but also their own aesthetic. It’s hampered by issues that have plagued Botanist since their inception, but it’s a marked evolution and an impactful album nonetheless.

The Collective header of this record is meant to highlight a break from Botanist’s main line of albums as their first team effort. Whereas vocalist/drummer/dulcimist(?) Otrebor previously handled all songwriting and instrumental duties, the band’s live lineup has provided contributions on this particular outing. TSoHtC‘s sound is distinctly familiar in a way that only a band as unique as Botanist can pull off, but collaborative input has brought marked changes. Layered, melancholic cleans largely replace Otrebor’s harsh vox and the average track length has greatly increased, but far more significant adjustments have been made to the band’s dulcimer arrangements. The Botanist of old channeled the unbridled forces of nature in its simplicity; Botanist on The Shape, conversely, comes across a complex marriage of abrasive black metal and spiritual grandeur. There’s a borderline religious level of reverence accompanying the grandiose, cascading note progressions, and for much of the album, the effect is completely captivating.

Despite the record’s majestic tone, there’s a sort of loose playfulness to many of the dulcimer performances that deliver a contrasting sense of levity. Melodic patterns jump huge spaces between notes in quick succession like ricocheting raindrops, and the resulting effect, while technical, perfectly reflects Botanist’s pro-nature thesis. The compositions, while consistently intriguing, can feel a bit long-winded; at ten minutes apiece, the three “metal” tracks feel a bit bloated and occasionally disjointed. The title track, in particular, suffers from the latter issue, featuring a jarring instrumental break at its midpoint that sounds like it should be a transition into a new track altogether. Even so, the intricacy of Botanist‘s soundscapes sweeps me up in the catharsis; while listening in the moment the songwriting issues melt away, and it’s only on post-listening reflection that these problems become obvious.

The more pressing concern with TSoHtC, in keeping with Botanist tradition, is the record’s production. There are certainly worse sounding Botanist records, but it’s a damned shame that the sonic evolution didn’t have a greater impact on the engineering. The snare drum, when coupled with the unadventurous drum performances, creates a metronome-like effect that’s hypnotic in a way that some will love and others will loathe. Meanwhile, the lightly distorted dulcimer drowns out much of the mix aside from the choir-like clean vocals, which I find a bit dispassionate in execution. “And the World Throws Off its Oppressors” thankfully provides relief from any production mishaps as a nostalgic, stripped-down folk tune that recalls memories of good times by the campfire. The opening and closing tracks are similarly minimalist affairs that grant the album unexpected and welcome variety, with the back end of the opener (“Praise Azalea the Adversary”) hinting at the atonal cacophony that accents much of the record in disturbing fashion.

The Shape of He to Come is a complex work that, admittedly, took several spins to connect with me. It’s not as immediately engrossing as many of Botanist‘s older albums, and I think that the shorter tracks of a record like VI: Flora might be a better starting point for newcomers to the band and their unique, potentially jarring approach. Yet despite some bloated cuts and disappointing production, this is a beautiful effort that transcends its surface level problems and stands out in the context of the band’s catalog, even if it’s not strictly their best. There’s truly nothing else that sounds like Botanist, and as a direct result of The Shape, I’m intensely curious to hear where Otrebor’s willingness to explore new ground will take his avant-garde oddity. 3.0/5.0" -- Eldritch Elitist, Angry Metal Guy, September 4, 2017

--------------------------------------------------------

ARISTOCRAZIA WEBZINE

"Sono passati un po' di anni dall'ultimo passaggio di Botanist su queste pagine. Dopo aver recensito i primi tre capitoli della sua discografia e aver conosciuto meglio Otrebor tramite un'intervista, oggi incontriamo di nuovo il musicista all'avvio di quello che potremmo definire uno spin-off della sua avventura musicale.

A differenza dei dischi numerati e composti unicamente da Otrebor (a eccezione di split e collaborazioni, come "Allies"), la prima uscita della serie "Collective" lascia facilmente intuire la propria natura dal titolo, essendo composta da un gruppo più numeroso di persone. "The Shape Of He To Come" è il risultato della collaborazione dei sei artisti che hanno permesso a questa bizzarra creatura di prendere vita sul palco tra il 2013 e il 2015: la batteria di Otrebor è il punto di partenza su cui i dulcimer di D. Neal e R. Chiang creano le strutture dei brani, supportati dal basso di Balan e dalle tastiere del mastermind. I pezzi vengono infine arricchiti dalla presenza vocale di Bezaelith e da alcune parti cantate da A. "Golem" Lindo e dallo stesso Otrebor.

Il disco è caratterizzato da un'atmosfera celestiale, ottenuta soprattutto grazie ai molteplici strati di voce pulita che formano una sorta di coro di preghiera, tanto da ricordarmi a tratti un ibrido tra l'approccio religioso dei Batushka e quello trascendentale dei Liturgy (non prendetela come un'offesa, è solo un riferimento stilistico). Il suono del dulcimer — seppur distorto e dissonante — è meno aggressivo di quello delle chitarre, rendendo così ancora più etereo il sound complessivo e dando modo al basso di emergere in più occasioni, in particolare in "Upon Veltheim's Throne Shall I Wait". Non è un caso che per questa opera Otrebor abbia deciso di avvicinarsi a tematiche più spirituali del solito, rispecchiate pienamente dal suono paradisiaco delle tracce.

Nonostante lo scream occupi una porzione minore delle parti vocali, ciò non significa che Botanist abbia rinunciato alla potenza e alle peculiarità prettamente metalliche della propria musica: la batteria martella in continuazione e cambia ritmi, passando dal blast beat ai tempi dilatati vicini al Doom; in entrambi i casi, spesso viene fuori un aspetto ipnotico che sembra spingere l'ascoltatore verso uno stato di trance. Anche le melodie dei dulcimer — pur non potendo vantare la stessa possenza delle chitarre elettriche — sono perfettamente adatte a un disco Black Metal dalle tendenze sperimentali.

Oltre ai tre brani di maggiore durata e propriamente estremi, Otrebor e soci ne propongono altrettanti in cui viene esposto il proprio lato più atmosferico e talvolta Folk ("And The World Throws Off Its Oppressors"); nella traccia in apertura — che in realtà mostra già caratteristiche metalliche — è presente anche l'harmonium di Lindo.

"The Shape Of He To Come" è probabilmente una delle uscite migliori di Botanist: non per sminuire i lavori del solo Otrebor — a cui, anzi, si deve dar credito di aver plasmato una creatura indubbiamente interessante con le proprie mani — ma il contributo dei musicisti si fa sentire in maniera molto positiva e riesce a donare al progetto quel senso di completezza che a volte mancava negli altri album. Concludo dicendo che le playlist del 2017 sono già pronte, eppure sono sicuro che passerò le prossime settimane a scervellarmi su quanto Botanist avrebbe meritato la Top 5 e soprattutto a chi avrebbe dovuto rubare il posto; è un duro lavoro, quello dell'Aristocratico..." -- Vlakorados, Aristocrazia Webzine, December 27, 2017

--------------------------------------------------------

BEAT MEDIA

"Botanist is a five piece post-black metal band from San Francisco, California. They have been a band since 2009 and have released five albums and three EP’s before this album was crafted. One of the things that makes this band stand out from the rest is the fact they do not use guitars as the lead instrument. Instead, they use a hammered dulcimer which gives it a very melodic, if not slightly hypnotic, approach to this interesting take on metal. A word to the reader, I must say that there are a few tracks that I would not say transcends metal, but you could not even call metal. Now onward to the oddly unique album!

I was definitely not expecting something like this to be found in the metal section of the good old band camp, as I am admittedly a bit new to the idea of post-black metal. I had to walk into this with a pretty open mind. Throughout the album, you can definitely hear the black metal influence and why they would call it post-black metal. This album has loads of melody and clean/vibrant tones to it, mixed with a variety of choir vocals, blast beats, and ambient textures throughout! Had I not read that this was post-black metal, I would have called it some form of (slightly) blackened Hippy/Stoner metal album with all of its upbeat textures and overall blend. Some of the songs on this are very long, from the 8:36 - 10+ minute range. Unfortunately for some of them, you can feel the song length start to bear down on you. Some of these songs are very good in parts, but I would like to have seen some of these transitions made into songs of their own, as they seemed to have two different ideas for two different songs. They kind of meet in the middle, if only for a section, like two ships passing in the night, only to never see each other again, nor experience the love child that those passing parts created.

Favorite Track: The Shape of He to Come.

As per a lot of bands who tend to name the album after the strongest track on the album, this is no exception! This song blends everything this album does right in its almost nine minutes of music, one of the best things I can say about this long track is easily it does not feel like nine minutes or anywhere close to that. It is very easy to get lost in it and it seems to pass by it what seems like it could have been a mystical second or lost in a moment for weeks. There are several songs on the album longer, but this one just feels like a mystic ride in which you can get lost without noticing how long it is, as the longer ones can tend to drag a bit on one's attention if they are still not in the sweeping mindset of The Shape of He to Come leaves the mind in.

Rating:

Overall this was a decent album. It was a very enjoyable listen for the most part, save for a few points where all trace of metal is gone, which is okay, as it added to the atmosphere. Very good recording quality and production lead to an interesting overall album. However, no one song walked out and grabbed me and hooked me in for future listens. I give it a solid C+. It is a very decent album, I just wish there was something a bit more I could sink my teeth into!" -- RJ Mitchell, Beat Media, January 2, 2018

--------------------------------------------------------

CAN THIS EVEN BE CALLED MUSIC?

"I was a proponent of Californian experimental black metal project Botanist, when their debut double album, I: The Suicide Tree/II: A Rose from the Dead was released, back in 2011. At the time, it was new and pretty much unheard of, at least not widely so. The following albums, however, felt like mere reiterations on the same themes and a simple reorganization of the same core sounds and ideas; no matter how long you shuffle your salad, it’s still going to be the same salad. That’s why I was [cautiously] optimistic for Botanist’s new project: there was no roman numeral in front of the title. No VII: The Bryophytes of Belial in sight, this hinted to – I hoped – a change of direction for the project. With Collective: The Shape of He to Come, my hopes are fulfilled, my wish granted: Botanist sounds new and interesting again! As we can read from the bandcamp description of the album, the project moves from a one-man band in studio to a more complete, collective work – hence the name –, taking all the members of the live band to the composition and recording processes. This resulted in beautiful and mesmerizing tracks, like the opener “Praise Azalea, the Adversary”, as well as new and fresh black metal compositions. The album uses much more atmospheric passages and clean vocals, both of which are very welcome to the Botanist salad. Collective: The Shape of He to Come is an outstanding album, and an interesting new direction for Botanist to take. Hopefully, we hear more from the Collective series in the future!" -- Daev Tremblay, Can This Even Be Called Music?, September 5, 207

--------------------------------------------------------

DEAD RHETORIC

"Self-proclaimed ‘green metal’ one-man act Botanist has done something interesting and out of the norm for the usually odd entity – he formed a full-fledged band (or collective, we should say). In doing so, rejuvenated the Botanist sound a bit by adding more dynamics and sounds to the mix.

For those unaware, Botanist is already a unique entity, utilizing a hammered dulcimer instead of guitar to navigate the waters. What’s interesting here on The Shape of He to Come, is that the use of bass guitar. Of all the additions by forming the collective, this one is what really makes the music feel more full, and helps when the band reaches for the heavier end. The hammered dulcimer still commands the charge though, providing both some gorgeous melodies and eerie darkness. Botanist has always thrived by providing that dissonant yet sweeping quality, and here those feelings are amplified by the use of a more fleshed out approach. One of the album’s most striking features is that of Bezaelith’s (also of Lotus Thief) vocals. Soaring and impactful, they have a tendency to leave a memorable impact whenever they are used, either solo or in part of the group chanting that comes out in a few spots. These choir vocals work well, often enhancing the mood of the songs into something that feels more spiritual in tone (see “Upon Veltheim’s Throne”). There’s some harsh vocals as well, which aren’t the usual froggy croaks but more bellowing and powerful – also a pleasant addition.

As Flora seemed to be the pinnacle for the solo Botanist approach, this collective work brings in a refreshing tone that still feels like a genuine Botanist effort but with an expanded palette. As more collective releases are still coming in the pipeline, there’s a new spark of interest in where it could head from here." -- Kyle McGinn, Dead Rhetoric, September 5, 2017

--------------------------------------------------------

DER OHLSEN

"Die Studiowerke des kalifornischen Blackmetal-auf-Hackbrettern-ProjektsBotanist sind für gewöhnlich Soloeinspielungen des eigentlich als Drummer gestarteten Multiinstrumentalisten Otrebor. Bei den zwei(!) neuen Alben ist dies jedoch anders, wie der Zusatz "Collective" verrät.

Das zweite neue Album "Collective: Setlist 2017" habe ich bereits neulich nach dem Konzert in Kiel besprochen. Es entstand in erster Linie, um einen für die Tour repräsentativen Tonträger dabei zu haben, denn vomeigentlichen neuen Album wurde live nicht ein Ton gespielt.

Und nein, zu schlecht ist es nicht, ganz im Gegenteil.

Die Grundidee dieses ersten "Collective"-Albums war es, die Mitglieder der Liveband an den Aufnahmen zu beteiligen, aber auch im kreativen kompositorischen Prozess einzubinden. Konkret bedeutete dies, dass tatsächlich alle Mitglieder, die von 2013 bis 2016 irgendwann dabei waren, hier etwas beigetragen haben, auch solche, die zu dem Zeitpunkt gar nicht mehr dabei waren wie die ursprüngliche Bassistin Bezaelith.

Und dadurch dass sich die Zusammensetzung der Band inzwischen wieder geändert hat, waren Botanist schlicht nicht in der Lage, die Songs von "The Shape Of He To Come" für die Liveperformance zu lernen. Das klingt zunächst nach doofer Ausrede, ist aber tatsächlich verständlich, wenn man bedenkt, dass Otrebor inzwischen von seiner gewohnten Bühnenrolle am Mikrofon und Harmonium and den gehämmerten Dulcimer gewechselt ist und keinen der Dulcimerparts auf diesem Album selbst erdacht und eingespielt hat.

Die Band hat diesen Umstand überlebt, doch schade ist es durchaus, da es sich hier um ein sehr abwechslungsreiches und oft von der gewohntenBotanist-Formel abweichendes Werk handelt.

Am offensichtlichsten und prägendsten dafür verantwortlich ist Bezaelith. Da der Bass schon eingespielt war, bedient sie hier nämlich nicht den Viersaiter, sondern singt.
Und da an ihrer oft choralen, mystischen Stimme kaum vorbeizuhören ist, klingt "The Shape Of He To Come" insgesamt wie eine 50:50-Mischung aus gewohnten Botanist (wie auf "VI: Flora") und "Gramarye" von ihrer ähnlich nerdigen (und nebenbei wie auf dem Prophecy Fest live erlebt ziemlich epochalen) Band Lotus Thief.

Dazu versucht sich auch Otrebor erstmals am Klargesang, und die von den Instrumentalisten hineingeflossenen neuen Einflüsse heben das Album ebenso vom Rest der Diskographie ab.
Alles in allem also eine größere, bombastischere, abwechslungsreichere Version von Botanist, die enorm viel Freude bereitet.

Dies gilt auch für die Verpackung, ist die transparente LP doch in ein sehr ansehnliches Cover verpackt, auf dem die pflanzlichen und tierischen Komponenten der Erlöser(und Zerstörer)gestalt, von der das Album erzählt, sich erst in verschiedenen Schichten zum kompletten Bild zusammenfügen.

Die Songreihenfolge unterscheidet sich in der digitalen und vinylen Version leicht, weil die zunächst ruhige Eröffnung "Praise Azalea, The Adversary" auf die B-Seite der Schallplatte verschoben wurde. So fängt diese Version also gleich mit der vollen Dulcimer-Geboller-Packung an. Funktionieren tut das beides gut.

Vielleicht das beste - auf jeden Fall ein sehr gutes - Album einer Post Black Metal-Band, die klingt wie keine andere Gruppe auf dem Planeten. Uneingeschränkt empfehlenswert.

Highlights: The Shape Of He To Come, Upon Veltheim's Throne Shall I Wait, The Recociliation Of Nature And Man." -- unknown, Derohlsen, November 11, 2017

--------------------------------------------------------

GRIMM GENT

"The first thing coming to mind while listening to Collective: The Shape Of He To Come, is that Botanistcreates some truly unique music. Post-Black Metal with hammered dulcimers as carriers of the music, it isn’t quite the everyday thing in the Black Metal realm. When on top of that, these hammered dulcimers are electronically amplified and distorted into a chilling yet calculated cacophony, many arm hairs reach for the sky. Collective is the first album published as an actual band, as opposed to no less than eight predecessors. So what’s new?

Praize Azalea The Adversary is a sombre intro introducing once more the weird, sitar-like instrument. Its sound immediately creates a certain distance to our normal world, both exotic and primordial at the same time. The strange rhythms of the additional drums and bass guitar – Botanist must be the first and only metalband that is not using any actual guitars – and the insane screams of Botanist-vocalist Otrebor, are enough to set the tone from a little weird to completely – but deliciously – fucked up.

From The Shape Of He To Come on, we can also hear an entirely different side of Botanist. The high, lingering, weeping tones of the dulcimers have a tender, caring, dreamy undertone. They also keep the music somewhat light, as the ridiculously overflow of bass on drums and bass guitar cannot be anything but a (dubious) musical choice. The latter is quite a pity: with a more balanced mastering, the purifying sound of the dulcimers would be able to take their rightful place in the spotlights even more. In the middle of the song, all metal is left behind for a dulcimer piercing right through your spine playing a slow, enchanting melody. Screams and clean vocals alternate and the layers in clean vocals serve a double effect: on the one hand, there is an irresistible (yet probably subconscious) link to the atmosphere of Demons And Wizards, on the other hand the music is bathing in a semi-religious aura.

This is strongly present in the liturgical chanting at the start of The Reconciliation Of Nature And Man. At the same time, it must be said that Botanist’s qualities really lie in the originality and sound of the hammered dulcimers. In terms of playing metal, it still feels a bit disappointing… The all-overwhelming drum and bass rhythms just keep following trodden, even amateur-level paths. More interesting bridges between musical parts are often completely ignored. But just when you’ve almost had it with the mediocre metal, the dulcimers hit with full delusional force! The end could easily be a soundtrack for a bizarre Japanese eighties-thriller.

On And The World Threw Off Its Oppressors, all metal is abandoned completely. It is an acoustic track bathing in a neofolky atmosphere to the likes of The Moon And The Night Spirit and possibly Faun, too. This song emphasizes the theme Botanist is all about: humanity has long exterminated itself and plants are taking back the planet. The apparent visual utter boringness of this event alone makes it a truly genius approach. It quickly becomes clear that the plants have a quite complex universe… The awesome thing is also that the sounds of the dulcimers make you believe you can actually hear the plants grow in their dark, moist lairs. Throughout the album I had a continuing vision of professor Sprout’s mandragora’s having a slow, sombre and dark party at the greenhouses of Hogwarts. Sound and theme match in an unprecedented way, amply compensating for the mediocre metal!

Upon Veltheim’s Throne I Shall Wait starts off with rhythmic dulcimer strumming and a multivocal religious duet. A devastating bass – and drumline joins in and the pace remains low and doomy, but at the same time the whole is pretty melodic and almost uncomfortably melancholic. This is truly a beautiful, serene, esoteric track and one of the most balanced and varied songs on the album, with creative use of bass guitar here and there and a strong construction mounting in complexity. It keeps striking us how different, unique and somehow awe-inspiring the atmosphere of this hymn to the vegetal world is. The outro To Join The Continuum confirms this once more with a bizarre ringing sound, which is from now on the official way I imagine plants communicate in their dark earthy halls.

Compared to their previous work, the sound of Collective is more full, the music more complex, the emotion more expressive, vocals more mature and atmosphere more convincing. With Collective: The Shape Of He To Come, Botanist reach their full growth and flourish like never before. In terms of metal there is still a lot of work to be done, but the totality is still an enchanting musical adventure you must have heard and seen at least once in your life. It doesn’t really compare to any other band, but fans of Lifelover might like this.

On Botanist's first album as an actual band, these plant-loving Californian weirdos have almost reached full growht, florishing as never before! Still some work on the mere metal elements, but in terms of atmosphere, originality, complexity... A one of a kind album by a one of a kind band (8/10)!" -- Sam, Grimm Gent, September 6, 2017

--------------------------------------------------------

HEAD-BANGER REVIEWS

"There are a collection of bands out there that simply defy classification and labelling with their music, and that’s how they manage to achieve much more than other groups who worry too much about staying within the boundaries of their chosen style. Botanist is a group that’s clearly beyond such pointless lines between styles and that’s given them a nice following, but now they’re changing up the script even more. Their upcoming record is not only the beginning of a series of albums but also the start of a new chapter for the band behind the scenes.

To try and put not only this album but this band in any specific genre would be an incredibly tiresome task because Botanist really goes all over the table with their music as they take elements from death metal, black metal, prog, folk, and even more to jam in all into one cohesive experience. It’s an extremely easy thing to fuck up in execution, yet this group pulls it off with absolute mastery for “Collective: The Shape of He to Come”. And previously, there was a mastermind behind the work of Botanist while extra hands were brought in for recording and performances, but “The Shape of He to Come” marks the first time that the band has begun forming albums as a unit opposed to one guy creating the music and sending it off to actually be made. One might expect a clunky outcome on the first go, but this record is anything but clunky. “The Shape of He to Come” is ridiculously diverse and is the sort of thought-provoking album that requires more than one listen if you want to say you truly experienced the record and heard all it has to say. We’re granted fantastic instrumentation alongside multiple sets of vocals that do naught but pull you in even further from the harsh growls to the harmonic cleans, and then to call the work of the instruments any less than cinematic would be a crime. Everything flows together very well with “The Shape of He to Come” and it’s no less than a record that the weak-minded should not come across lest they want a unique kind of enlightenment and anyone who wants to hear a real work of music that’s carefully crafted is going to want to investigate this opus.

We always get an album that’s simply a work of art slide in underneath the radar every so often, and I’ll be damned if I let this record become one of those sadly unheard pieces. I’ve never once heard of Botanist prior to this record, but I’ve confidence that in the “Collective” series that follows this entry will draw me into the realm that this band has created even more. “The Shape of He to Come” is not a record for those looking for an easy listening experience, but those looking for a transcendent piece that offers so much more." -- Vinterd, Head-Banger Reviews, August 24, 2017

--------------------------------------------------------

HEAVY BLOG IS HEAVY

"As diverse a genre as black metal can be, even many of the most experimental bands still stick to a standard instrumental lineup. Finding a BM band without guitars is exceptionally rare, which makes the success Botanist achieves without the staple instrumentall the more noteworthy. Replacing guitars with hammered dulcimers sounds like a gimmick on paper, but in practice, it’s one of the most striking, unique and electrifying ideas ever to be introduced to the genre. Collective: The Shape of He to Come sees project mastermind Otrebor affording the band’s longtime contributors and live performers a chance to contribute to an album’s songwriting, and naturally, the result is the band’s most diverse sonic offering to date. It’s a stretch to fully pin this to any specific BM subgenre, but fans of blackgaze and folk-tinged post-black metal with plenty of personality and oddities should feel right at home." -- Scott, Heavy Blog Is Heavy's Top 15 Albums of 2017 (#8), December 15, 2017

--------------------------------------------------------

HEIDNIR

"Botanist fait partie de ces groupes et projets qui ont su se tailler une réputation respectable ces dernières années grâce à des choix musicaux qui sortent quelque peu des sentiers battus. Le cas du projet de green metal est d’autant plus particulier que son statut a sérieusement bougé ces derniers mois. Initialement projet solo d’Otrebor, Botanist est désormais un groupe à part entière, et se prépare notamment à la tenue d’une tournée européenne. En ce sens, il s’agit là du tout premier album de Botanist en tant que groupe, d’où l’appellation Collectivedans le titre de l’album. Néanmoins, force est de constater que le virage a sans doute été un peu plus sec que prévu.

La musique de Botanist est absolument reconnaissable à la première sonorité. Un coup de dulcimer martelé, et voici l’auditeur littéralement propulsé au coeur d’un décor verdoyant et luxuriant dont seul Botanist a le secret. Normal, me direz-vous, avec de telles thématiques, qui ne sont pas parmi les plus répandues. Toujours est-il qu’avant que le projet ne devienne un groupe, il ne décevait jamais, repoussant toujours plus loin les limites de son éclatant royaume verdoyant. Le ton adopté jusqu’à présent vous aura sans doute donné quelques indications sur la teneur des propos suivants. Effectivement, il semblerait que Botanist ait fini par signer un album qui se situe loin de ses standards foisonnants.

Malgré une entrée en matière lente et portée sur des sonorités vaporeuses tout à fait propices à l’évasion, c’est bel et bien lors de la piste introductive que le premier froncement de sourcils viendra donner à votre visage une sérieuse expression de perplexité. « Praise Azalea the Adversary » commence en effet très bien, pour finalement se vautrer en beauté au moment où commencent à résonner les sonorités metal de Botanist. Que sont ces chants ? Où est passée la magie du projet américain ? La musique du projet d’Otrebor pouvait tout à fait se montrer noire, parfois même avec énormément de réussite, comme sur le split réalisé en compagnie d’Oskoreien, mais dans le cas de The Shape of He To Come, on se demande où est la cohérence.

Même si la musique présente sur l’album voulait effectivement se montrer crue, c’est une calamité absolue. On ne sait finalement plus très bien où donner de la tête ni même que penser, Botanist a décidément bien changé. The Shape of He To Come déborde de tous les côtés d’on ne sait vraiment quoi. Il s’agit parfois d’une volonté de rendre l’atmosphère plus obscure, mais on distingue aussi quelques choix techniques empruntés au post-rock, le tout se situant dans un maelstrom incroyable de sonorités plus alambiquées les unes que les autres. Et on ne parlera même pas de la médiocrité incroyable des chants clairs, qui sont majoritaires sur l’album, tant ils se montrent ternes au possible.

Mais nuançons davantage notre propos. Botanist n’est après tout pas passé du coq à l’âne, et son identité ne se trouve d’ailleurs pas remise en cause avec ce nouvel album. Simplement, il est tellement surprenant de voir qu’Otrebor ait accepté de tels changements chez Botanist que l’on en vient à se demander quelle sera la suite des événements. Le charme et l’espèce de féerie doucement menaçante ont laissé place à une musique pâle et sans saveur. The Shape of He To Come n’inspire à rien de particulier. Peut-être plaira-t-il, espérons-le d’ailleurs pour le groupe et son public, mais les fondations de ce nouvel album sont indéniablement différentes de celles qui ont fait le succès de Botanist, et la chose pourrait être vraiment préjudiciable pour les américains.

The Shape of He To Come apparaîtrait presque comme une volonté de la part de Botanist de rentrer dans le rang ou de composer une musique plus conforme aux attentes de la masse. Botanist était un projet novateur et absolument fascinant, et il est peut-être en train de devenir un groupe lambda qui se rend coupable de choix douteux. Les mots sont lourds, mais il le sont beaucoup moins que la déception ressentie à l’écoute de ce nouvel album. Peut-être aurait-il fallu pour Otrebor qu’il garde Botanist pour lui seul. Le fantasme auditif offert par Flora est décidément bien loin…

Que dire, sinon que The Shape of He To Come est une énorme déception ? L’album plaira sans doute à un certain public, mais j’émets des doutes quand à la réception des amoureux de la musique originelle de Botanist. Les quelques moments de pure douceur ne parviennent pas à faire oublier les manquements incroyables dont le groupe se rend coupable. L’interrogation qui prime est désormais celle qui questionne sur le futur de la formation. Le royaume verdoyant serait-il en train de faner ? Il a en tout cas cruellement perdu de sa superbe avec The Shape of He To Come." -- Maxime, Heidnir Webzine, September 7, 2017

--------------------------------------------------------

MEAT MEAD METAL

"Anyone who has followed this site for any length of time knows our affinity for Otrebor’s mainly vocals-and-hammered-dulcimer project Botanist and the records covering the apocalyptic goings on in the Verdant Realm. The fact we haven’t gotten to this one before now just demonstrates how easy it is to have something slip under the surface, as this record, where Otrebor employs the full band concept with Botanist, is a treat. This is the first in a series of recordings of this nature, and if this record is any indication, the concept should only blossom from here. We also get significant added voices to the Realm as Bezaelith (also of the amazing Lotus Thief and who also has worked with Palace of Worms) and A. Lindo have significant roles within these six songs.

The vocal melodies are enrapturing on the tremendous title track and “The Reconciliation of Nature and Man,” and Bezaelith’s haunting singing transforms the short turn of “And the World Throws Off Its Oppressors” it into something magical.

Another interesting note is that the dulcimer, typically front and center in Botanist tracks, gets to play more of a complementary role here, which actually gives it more life. This is a really pleasing, rousing effort, and I’m excited to hear what Vol. 2 holds." -- Brian Krasman, Meat Mead Metal, December 5, 2017

--------------------------------------------------------

METAL1

"Ob man ihrer doch recht experimentellen Musik etwas abgewinnen kann oder nicht, es lässt sich jedenfalls nicht leugnen, dass BOTANIST einzigartig sind. Ehemals das Soloprojekt von Mastermind Otrebor, machen die inzwischen zum Sextett herangewachsenen „Green-Metaller“ vor allem dadurch auf sich aufmerksam, dass sie anstelle von E-Gitarren Hackbretter einsetzen. Doch auch die ungewöhnlichen Melodien und die mit botanischem Fachvokabular übersäten Songtitel und Texte machen schon seit längerem von sich reden. Mit ihrem sechsten Album wagen die amerikanischen Avantgardisten nun etwas Neues: „Collective: The Shape Of He To Come“ ist der Auftakt einer neuen Reihe von Alben, wurde erstmals von der gesamten Band komponiert und beinhaltet – trotz eindeutig weiterbestehendem Bezug zur Natur – keine komplizierten Pflanzennamen mehr.

Schon vor dem Hören fällt auf, dass sich „Collective: The Shape Of He To Come“ zwar aus weniger, dafür aber wesentlich ausschweifenderen Tracks zusammensetzt, als es beispielsweise noch auf dem 2014er Vorgänger „Flora“ der Fall war. Wer jetzt denkt, BOTANIST hätten damit ihre bisher am schwersten zugängliche Platte kreiert, liegt vermutlich im Recht. Die Exotik, die den sanften Hackbrett-Klängen im trübsinnigen Intro „Praise Azalea The Adversary“ anfangs noch entströmt, ist nur ein Vorgeschmack, denn schon bald zerschmettern bedrohliche Dissonanzen und geradezu verstörende, verzweifelte Screams den trügerischen Frieden.

Was folgt, sind drei ausgedehnte Post-Black-Metal-Nummern, ein bedrückendes, aber doch beschwingtes Interlude mit rhythmischem Saitenspiel und dem klagenden Gesang von Bezaelith („And The World Throws Off Its Oppressors“) und ein Outro, das in etwa in dieselbe Kerbe schlägt. Während die niedergeschlagenen Akustik-Kompositionen relativ leicht zu erfassen sind und viel Stimmung rüberbringen, stellen BOTANIST den Hörer in den metallischen Longtracks immer wieder vor Herausforderungen. Im Zusammenspiel mit brachialen Blast-Beats und intensiven, dramatischen Riffs und Leads, die sich auch gut auf einer Deafheaven-Scheibe machen würden, wirken die geisterhaften, beschwörenden und chorartigen Gesänge sowie die wahnwitzigen, wechselhaften Screams wie ein einziges großes Rätsel.

Fremd und unnahbar klingen die Melodiebögen, die damit geweckten Gefühlslagen lassen sich kaum in Worte fassen. Auf „The Reconciliation Of Nature And Man“ treiben BOTANIST den Hörer mit ihren teuflischen Dissonanzen und schiefen Tönen gar völlig in den Wahnsinn – mit voller Absicht. Komplettiert wird das Gefühl von Mystik, das BOTANIST vermitteln, durch die sonderbar verwaschene, aber dennoch kraftvolle Produktion, in der manche der packenden Melodien leider etwas untergehen.

„Collective: The Shape Of He To Come“ ist sicherlich kein perfektes Album. Die Chorgesänge erscheinen oft als zu ziellos arrangiert und einige der in der Wall Of Sound vergrabenen Tonfolgen hätten im Mix etwas mehr Aufmerksamkeit verdient – was man von den klanglichen Experimenten hält, steht sowieso auf einem anderen Blatt. Doch so schwer es auch sein mag, sich in die Platte hineinzuhören, so lohnenswert ist es. Die Dynamik und das Ausdrucksvermögen, das BOTANIST in ihren Songs zur Schau stellen, ist nämlich wirklich faszinierend. Man darf also gespannt sein, wie die avantgardistischen Post-Black-Metaller die damit begonnene Albumreihe fortsetzen werden. (8/10)" -- Stephan Rajchl, Metal1, September 4, 2017

--------------------------------------------------------

NOISE VORTEX

"Starting out as a solo project that was often waved off as gimmicky Botanist's sound and line-up have evolved significantly over the course of the last few years. With The Shape of He to Come Botanist recorded their first album as a full line-up and the first part of the Collective Series. With a sound more ambitious and imaginative than ever before, Botanist came out with their most cohesive, complete and impressive album to date. In addition to this album the band also released another album featuring the entirety of their setlist for their European tour, featuring a different line-up and re-interpreted songs off of early Botanist releases." -- Noise Vortex's Top 10 Albums of 2017 (#4)

--------------------------------------------------------

POLPET METAL REVIEWS

"I Botanist al primo impatto sono uno di quei gruppi che ti fanno inarcare un sopracciglio, un po' per la sorpresa e un po' per lo scetticismo.

In primo luogo non è normale trovare gruppi che abbiano un lato concettuale completamente incentrato sul mondo vegetale, in cui le piante diventano le protagoniste delle storie e delle metafore narrate tramite le canzoni. In secondo luogo, lo scetticismo da parte dei fan più ortodossi può essere giustificato dall'assenza di chitarre, sostituite in questa sede da dei dulcimer, il cui suono tintinnante risulta bislaccamente adatto a riprodurre riff e atmosfere affini a certo black metal. E infatti, almeno fino all'album precedente, il genere dei Nostri non era altro che un black metal con strutture non troppo complesse, con annessa voce in scream, ma suonato con gli strumenti di cui sopra.

Ora, seguendoli dall'inizio della loro carriera, devo confessare che inizialmente la proposta non mi convinceva molto: i riff e le soluzioni adottate a livello di scrittura mi sembravano fin troppo scolastiche, e per un po' arrivai addirittura a relegarli nella nicchia del "tutto fumo e niente arrosto". Casualmente ascoltai anche i lavori seguenti, e mi accorsi che col passare del tempo però nel sound del gruppo iniziavano a comparire strutture più curate, idee più brillanti e una maggiore consapevolezza dei propri mezzi, che mi convinsero a tenerli d'occhio.

E fu così che si arrivò alla pubblicazione di questo "Collective...". Già dal titolo viene evidenziata la prima novità. Il collettivo di cui si fa menzione non è altro che la band stessa. Infatti a questo disco han collaborato una moltitudine di ospiti che con le loro performance hanno conferito una dose consistente di personalità e dettagli in più al sound dei Botanist, facendogli finalmente fare il salto di qualità aspettato per anni.

La novità più consistente è costituita dall'uso delle voci pulite (alternate allo scream, comunque presente), che a volte si presentano in solitaria, mentre altre si organizzano in cori dall'aspetto iridescente, capaci di passare da atmosfere quasi festose ad altre praticamente sacrali (se non fosse per la presenza di voci femminili in alcuni casi si potrebbe azzardare un paragone col canto gregoriano, come ad esempio avviene in Upon Veltheim's throne shall I wait).

Ogni tanto si odono anche interventi di uno strumento che non sono riuscito ad identificare, ma che può ricordare la fisarmonica; in più appaiono anche diversi tipi di percussioni. Ma quello che forse mi ha stupito più in positivo è stata la nuova abilità con cui sono riusciti a strutturare i brani, cosa che in passato era sempre stata la nota dolente della loro proposta. Almeno nei tre brani più lunghi si nota come le atmosfere riescano ad alternarsi e incarnarsi tra loro senza il minimo impiccio, e come le fasi di transizione da una parte all'altra dei brani siano curate alla perfezione, con un gusto se vogliamo affine più ai filoni blackgaze e post-black che a quello del black classico.

Grazie a tutte queste novità, mi sento di dire che la loro impresa di dare una voce al mondo vegetale tramite il loro sound possa dirsi riuscita. Anzi, dirò di più: questo disco (pubblicato dalla nostrana e sempre affidabilissima Avantgarde records) arriva a piazzarsi agli apici delle pubblicazioni del 2017. E fino a poco tempo fa non ci avrei scommesso affatto." -- Polpet Metal Reviews, December 28, 2017

--------------------------------------------------------

SCENE POINT BLANK

"Botanist belongs in this new generation of black metal bands, of acts attempting to reinvigorate the genre by expanding its scope. Post-rock influences and avantgarde notions find their way into Botanist's music, leading to a very successful series of releases, with 2014's VI: Flora standing out in particular. At the same time, stylistically the band departed from not only the traditional extreme metal instrumentation, implementing the hammered dulcimer instead of guitars, but also lyrically, the focus has shifted to an ecological perspective, where the Botanist entity aims to bring about the end of mankind due to its destruction of the environment.

The one-man project of Otrebor has been extremely successful in conveying all these messages, and has also been very productive, releasing new music every year since 2011. But, it seems like the six full-length albums and three EPs might have taken a slight toll on the creativity of the mainman, and therefore for The Shape of He To Come, Otrebor employs the help of his live band to build the record. As a result, this is a slight different beast from the previous Botanist works, retaining a significant portion of the black metal DNA, but at the same time diluting it further with melodic tendencies, diverse elements and a strong post-metal attitude.

The dissonant and traditional black metal spirit still remains, magnificently presented in the opening track, where the harsh vocal delivery echoes through the desolate space. The same quality is found in an even more brutal representation in the title track, as the blastbeats come through and the textural lead work appears. However, it is the melodic element that becomes the prime focus of this work, and that is highlighted in the very intro of the record, “Praise Azalea The Adversary” with the solitary dulcimer setting a sorrowful tone, and yet containing an underlying sense of optimism.

Using the post-metal tendencies, the collective is able to awaken an epic quality for their music, that ties in perfectly with the harsher black metal origin. The title track features this element, especially when the clean vocals arrive. It is a quality that truly fits the “green” narrative the band presents, and allows the composition to further flourish under its light, no matter if they do so under melodic leads or a more dissonant edge. “Upon Veltheim's Throne Shall I Wait” for instance, presents the darkest and more harsh moment of the record, still using a lot of melodies, but through tis slower pace it is able to create a sinister outlook around them.

Despite the stylistic changes, also brilliantly brought forth in the two most melodic moments of the album, “And The World Throws off its Oppressors” and “To Join The Continuum,” the magic that made Botanist's music so unique is still present. The uncanny ability to elevate their music through the ethereal qualities they append to it is something astonishing, and the songwriting process has been significantly reworked to further accommodate that notion. The tracks are longer, and Botanist spend more time intricately exploring them, twisting them to their will and building a cohesive narrative for them. “The Reconciliation of Nature and Man” is such a moment where the melodic and hopeful qualities are crushed through an uncanny twist, becoming abrupt, brutal and uncompromising. This adventurous outlook has greatly benefited the creativity of Botanist, and it has opened another chapter for their next steps. (8/10)" -- Spyros Stasis, Scene Point Blank, October 9, 2017

--------------------------------------------------------

SPUTNIK MUSIC

"An exciting journey through the wilderness.

Botanist is not the usual musical project within the black metal scene. Guitars are swapped for a hammered dulcimer, an incredibly arduous instrument to play, which ensures this trademark sound is not likely to be found anywhere else. On the other hand, that abundantly raw quintessence harboured within more traditional black metal is also found here, engendering a rather primal sound. It is like the musical equivalent of feeling nature's tender embrace coil around you, only to discover the acute thorns sheathed within the penduncle grasp. In that sense, this record is similar to nature itself, as they both are capable of being beautiful and abhorrent.

As the record blossoms into play, one is easily illuded into thinking this is a more of a melancholic outing. Stirring pianos germinate amidst the silence, conjuring an eerie, yet beguiling atmosphere upon the listener. The elegance augments in grandiosity until everything comes to a halt. It is at this moment that the hammered dulcimer bellows into life, asserting its colossal presence swiftly. The immensely agonising vocals then pour into the record, eroding any sense of beauty and replacing it with consternation. A truly painful sound is emitted, adding an abrasive quality to the mix. With these two intertwining elements of the record, comes an equal proportion of harmony from the likes of the melodic notes and disarray from the alacrity of the drums.

Aside from all of this beauty, comes multiple issues buried within the record. Firstly, come the prodigious song lengths of the predominantly abrasive tracks. It could easily be possible for one to become tired when listening to the tracks in full, as they feel somewhat distended. This could have been easily avoided, as there are breaks from instrumentals found within the tracks that could easily be pathways to new ones.

Apart from that issue, only one other seems to be present, which is the lo-fi production. This is not an issue within itself, as artists can easily make good records with lo-fi production, such as Paysage D'hiver. The problem lies in the fact that the undefined production leads to the instruments drowning out the echoing clean vocals, which carry a very sorrowful property. A key element to the record has been rendered almost obsolete, and while this problem is predominately found in the more caustic sections of the record, it is easily noticed.

Botanists first release as a group, rather than a one-man project, proves to be one of the best in the whole discography. It is incredibly spiritual, lavish and permeated with complex layers to discover with each listen. Due to this, it is maybe not the best starting point for a new listener, as the previous releases are a lot more facile to decipher, but this proves to be much more rewarding when fully appreciated. With all of its beauty peppered throughout, 'Collective: The Shape of He to Come', proves to be an essential listen with its evident musical evolution, and may just be a sign for greater things to come. (4.0/5.0)" -- Porky, Sputnik Music, September 5, 2017

--------------------------------------------------------

TOILET OV HELL

"Would you like green metal and ham? Would you eat it on the lam? Would you play it like a flam?

Sorry. Don’t answer that.

If you are anything like me, you dig Botanist‘s outsider hammered dulcimer metal. You find it charming and cerebral. It is not something you feel like listening to often, perhaps because listening leaves you more perplexed and drained than fulfilled. You really dug the middle albums of Botanist’s ever-evolving career, but the schtick, as it were, is starting to grow thin for you. You listened to that last Botanist full-length, VI: Flora, and you thought “Yeah, that sounds cool” but it didn’t really stick to you. You’re waiting for hammered dulcimer fetishist and Botanist mastermind Otrebor to evolve the “green metal” formula in some drastic new direction.

If you are anything like me, then Collective: The Shape of He to Come is the Botanist album you have been waiting for all your life.

From the very first notes of “Praise Azalea the Adversary” (which, by the way, constitute a most heartfelt and (ahem) dulcet intro), I felt love. Love without object. Love without ownership. A sort of free-form love disassociated from any person, place or thing. Experiential love in and of itself. A smile unfurled on my face. I seem to remember laughing. (Had I been drinking all afternoon? Yes. Shut up.) My emotional state was hardly altered when, around the 1:53 mark, all that serenity was ruptured by sour hostility. Even the horrific yelling and discordant dulcimer-hammerings which conclude this track are impotent to rob it of its essential beauty.

Given the profound effect that “Praise Azalea” had on me, I was not prepared for the intensity to be ratcheted up several notches on “The Shape of He to Come”, which is just about the most heavenly song I’ve heard all year. With groveling apologies to The Dark Master, I’ll speak that word again: HEAVENLY. Pregnant with layered vocal choirs and a heart-flooding descent of a chord progression, the song’s first movement sounds like pure worship. But worship of what, you ask? I don’t know. If you were to ask Otrebor, he would doubtless just say “plants n’ shit”. But as someone who does not exactly worship plants, much less pray for some chlorophyllic savior to rise up and cleanse the earth of the human stain, I’d have to say it just sounds like the worship of whatever it is you happen to worship in the privacy of your own home. Beer? Sex? The Risen Christ? Again, the object doesn’t matter; all that matters is the experience itself. (Wait, I just realized I totally have been praying for some chlorophyllic savior to rise up and cleanse the earth of the human stain. Shit. Oh well, moving on.)

As with most of the songs to follow, “The Shape of He to Come” is a deep, dichotomous listen, flowing organically from the aforementioned pretty crests into low troughs of apocalyptic basting and ashen howls. It’s an emotional tug-of war which, miraculously, never sounds the slightest bit contrived. These days, when we have so much music to listen to and so little time, it can be difficult for artists who do not play at 0 bpm to justify spinning compositions beyond the 8- or 10-minute mark. And yet here, Botanist does just that, drawing the listener so deeply, hopelessly into mysterious, ivy-choked labyrinths that you’re not likely to notice when nine minutes have gone by. (If you’re anything like me, you’ll be pissed that there aren’t nine more minutes to go.)

As the album title suggests, Collective: The Shape of He to Come is the work of a collective. Up until now, all Botanist records have been conceived by Otrebor and executed with occasional help from his shadowy cohorts. This time around, Otrebor wisely opens the floor to compositional input from said cohorts–with glorious results. This is just the shot in the arm ol’ Botanist needed. Instead of the intriguing yet somewhat monochromatic palette of shoddy percussion, hammered dulcimer and demonic toad croaking to which we Botanist fans have grown accustomed, The Shape offers a whole slew of new sounds. Most striking among them are the aforementioned choir-like vocals, with their power to dazzle and transfix. Elsewhere, we are surprised by beefier harsh vocals and solo clean vocal performances and–holy shit!–melodic bass guitar! This confluence of new sounds serves to flesh out the skeleton of Otrebor’s style; to give myriad dimensions to a sound which was brittle and closed-off and, over time, almost self-defeatingly homogenous; in effect, to legitimize the concept of “green metal” beyond mere semantic play.

While each of Otrebor’s collaborators brings something vital to the album, it is Bezaelith of Lotus Thief who ends up stealing the show. It’s as if this dulcimer-driven music was tailored for her voice alone–and all the other voices which accompany it are but shadows or profanities or the shadows of profanities. Not that she dominates the record, sucking up all the air–she does not–but when she appears, especially in solo, she calls down all the imponderable gravity of the celestial spheres. She closes out the album at the helm of the acoustic folk song “To Join the Continuum”, which, in its patience and ethereal frailty–in its pronounced absence of metal–proves that Botanist is a much more versatile entity than anyone could have imagined. Otrebor’s self-coined “green metal” is a world unto itself. Letting his friends join him there was a risk, for sure, and one that pays off in spades, as there really isn’t a single misstep from the start of The Shape to the finish.

Simply put, The Shape of He to Come sounds holy, the musical equivalent of a religious experience. Botanist is not the first ostensible black metal artist to attempt to capture the sound of (non-Satanic) spiritual rapture. So Hideous and Liturgy did so previously, to what I would call varying degrees of success. Both of those acts are pretty highly regarded, and yet neither one struck a lasting chord with me. The Shape strikes several chords; several hundred chords; countless chords. And it does so without the benefit of crystalline or even just kind of good production. The album is as loose and lo-fi as ever. And perhaps it is this juxtaposition of beautiful instrumental performances and a disregard for studio polish that givesCollective: The Shape of He to Come its revelatory edge.

According to the album’s press release, there will be more collective efforts from Botanist in the future. I sure hope so. I hope all of Otrebor’s future works take on a greater degree of collective approach. He built his bizarre brand alone, in the shadows of the San Francisco scene, and there is nothing else like it out there. But most artists who insist on toiling in isolation eventually suffer fatigue and burn out. I don’t know exactly who this “He” who is “to come” is, or exactly which “shape” He’ll take; all I know is that He can’t get here fast enough. (5/5)" -- Richter, Toilet ov Hell, August 28, 2017

--------------------------------------------------------

THRASHOCORE

"Otrebor, le Vindsval américain ? La formule est aussi réductrice que discutable, celui-ci étant loin d'être le seul de ce territoire à aimer expérimenter. Pourtant, peu ont coupé autant de ponts dans leur objectif de prendre pour base le black metal comme une matière première à modeler, au point de la faire sienne. Otrebor, cet homme qui, plus souvent qu'ailleurs, m'a fait voir le twist qu'il apporte au genre (vous le savez depuis le temps, que ce ne sont pas des guitares que l'on entend ici, n'est-ce pas ?) comme une vision particulière, plus qu'avant-gardiste tant elle semble évoluer à part. Bonne chance pour le copier, celui-ci. Vous vous y casserez les dents comme ceux cherchant à copier Blut Aus Nord. Quant à savoir si l'un sera aussi important que l'autre ou s'il deviendra comme lui...

De toute façon, ces questions ne se poseront pas durant l'écoute de The Shape of He to Come : on pense beaucoup à Blut Aus Nord, point barre. Celui des Memoria Vetusta en particulier, mais surtout celui aussi identifié que barré, aussi austère que magnifique, aussi évocateur que unique dans ses hallucinations. Toujours la même matière, toujours le même discours, reconnaissables entre mille, et cependant une refonte totale : première réalisation écrite et interprétée collectivement, cet album de Botanist évoluant en dehors de la trame principale de sa discographie – le successeur de VI: Flora se fait d'ailleurs un peu attendre – laisse en effet une grande place aux personnes accompagnant Otrebor lors des tournées de son projet. Une œuvre chorale, à plus d'un titre, où l'enchevêtrement de participations ne donne à aucun moment une impression d'incohérence.

Une coupure nette, précise. Une coupure dans l'évolution que l'on sentait chez Botanist, passant d'une exécution râpeuse, quasi-grind, à des mélodies allant vers plus de repos, d'atmosphères éthérées. The Shape of He to Come est frénétique, vivant et résonnant à foison, au point de ne pas savoir où donner de l'oreille au départ. Certes, les quelques incursions plus minimalistes (« And the Earth Throws off Its Oppressors », par exemple) permettent de laisser respirer à la fois la musique et l'auditeur : le sentiment global reste celui d'une épopée vécue la poitrine sur le point d'exploser, à la façon des heures les plus épiques de Liturgy. Rythmes rapides et continus ; notes innombrables, les dulcimers se faisant harpes folles d'une rugosité apocalyptique ; voix pures, chœurs altiers, aussi fatidiques que ronds, comme une fin d'existence humaine accueillie les bras ouverts... Clairement, derrière ses élans plongeant dans une pop assumée, Botanist exprime une nouvelle fois une victoire de la flore sur l'Homme, dans un Dies iræ verdoyant, immaculé de blanc, d'eau et d'oxygène, où l'humain périt et le végétal envahit.

Ce qui, dans un cerveau peinant à trouver des références justes à ce qu'il entend ici, à la fois si calibré, réfléchi et inédit, « viral », fait rapprocher ce longue-durée des belles horreurs qu'ont commis récemment Sink (Ark of Contempt and Anger) et The Body (No One Deserves Happiness). D'abord enthousiasmé par ces morceaux de bravoure que sont le titre éponyme et « The Reconciliation of Nature and Man », par les joliesses progressives de « Upon Veltheim's Throne Shall I Wait » et sa basse aux motifs en train de se faire, on finit acculé par une ambiance irréelle, aussi triste que fantastique, des branches s'accrochant à nous, caressant nos veines, pliant notre peau à leur écorce. L’écoterrorisme comme nouvelle mystique, où les dissonances et hurlements (typiquement black metal, impressionnants de douleur) se font les témoins de notre corps en pleine mutation. Autrefois au mieux dévastateur, au pire uniquement figuratif, Botanist est devenu un de ces fous dans la montagne, dessinant cantiques, rites et chemins spirituels vers son rêve de plantes.

Car The Shape of He to Come est beau comme un rêve, un rêve vécu à travers les yeux empoisonnés de son rêveur. Si les écoutes répétées – ô combien répétées ! – qu'il entraîne montrent quelques signes de flou, là un final un peu long sur « Upon Veltheim's Throne Shall I Wait », ici un départ un peu lourd sur sa deuxième partie (« Praise Azaela, the Adversary »), il enchante avec une telle force qu'il devient la plus merveilleuse des transgressions, donnant à ses élucubrations totalitaires une aura totale.

...Quant à ces moqueries que j'ai toujours un peu laissées transparaître dans mes écrits au sujet de Botanist et ses histoires, croyez bien qu'elles n'ont plus lieu d'être. Votre occultisme est bien peu de choses, face à ces jardineries. 9/10" -- Ikea, Thrashocore, September 7, 2017

--------------------------------------------------------

TRANSCENDING OBSCURITY

"Botanist is a strange project, no doubt. It’s fair to say that Collective: The Shape of He to Come will appeal to only a select few. It is also fair to say that I am a part of that select few. I actually clued into this project EP 3: Green Metal/Deterministic Chaos. Bizarre black(ish) metal that focusses on ecological themes? Sign me up twice. Usually a one-man project featuring the work of Otrebor, this release takes a more collaborative approach, and includes the work of D. Neal, R. Chiang, Bezaelith, and A. Lindo (aka Golem). The result is a fuller, more cohesive sound to the chaos. Themes remain about the natural world. Music remains black metal at it’s foundation with a plethora of interesting side trips. My advice? Strap on your hiking boots. Allow yourself to be led on this particular journey. Pack out what you pack in." -- Rick Jackson, Transcending Obscurity