Desolation's Flower is the sixth studio album by American black metal duo Ragana, released on October 27, 2023, through the Flenser, the duo's first album on the label.[1] It received the Best New Music honor from Pitchfork.
| Desolation's Flower | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 27, 2023 | |||
| Recorded | December 2022 – February 2023 | |||
| Studio | The Unknown, Anacortes, Washington | |||
| Genre | Black metal | |||
| Length | 41:00 | |||
| Label | The Flenser | |||
| Ragana chronology | ||||
| ||||
Background and recording
editThe duo's work has political themes,[2] and they described the title track as a "hymn of gratitude [...] to their queer and trans predecessors".[3] Rolling Stone noted that the album's lyrics contained "proudly queer, anti-fascist politics."[4] The album was recorded in a studio that was converted from a church in Anacortes, Washington.[3]
Critical reception
edit| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 75/100[5] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Exclaim! | 7/10[6] |
| The Guardian |   [7] |
| Pitchfork | 8.3/10[3] |
Desolation's Flower received a score of 75 out of 100 on review aggregator Metacritic based on four critics' reviews, indicating "generally favorable" reception.[5] Pitchfork awarded the album their "Best New Music" distinction, with the site's Evan Minsker calling it "a sludgy and simmering call to action", and writing that the duo "splice panoptic frenzy with near-ambient calm to underscore the present fraught moment in history where oppression is written into law".[3] Stereogum named it album of the week, with Tom Breihan commenting that if the album "is your first exposure to Ragana, as it was for me, then you are in for an experience", elaborating that "in many places, Desolation's Flower is a sad, angry piece of music. But in moments like that, it also brings a towering, resonant sense of beauty and tranquility".[1]
Ben Beaumont-Thomas of The Guardian felt that the songs "wander between post-rock, stoner rock, doom and black metal" and while "too often in the quieter sections, the duo opt for ponderous arpeggiated runs of notes that make their songs feel pedestrian rather than merely slow[,] when they bring in groove [...] they carry the listener aloft to a hard-won clarity".[7] Exclaim!'s Jeremy Sheehy stated that "while it isn't a perfect record, it's filled with the kind of raw, honest emotionality that has punctuated the band's work and made them a darling of the underground metal community".[6]
Rolling Stone named it the third-best metal album of 2023, praising the band's "powerful pathos, and the innate synchronicity of their approach."[4]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Desolation's Flower" | 8:29 |
| 2. | "Woe" | 6:35 |
| 3. | "Ruins" | 5:55 |
| 4. | "DTA" | 4:04 |
| 5. | "Winter's Light Pt. 2" | 7:10 |
| 6. | "Pain" | 3:57 |
| 7. | "In the Light of the Burning World" | 5:15 |
| Total length: | 41:00 | |
Personnel
edit- Maria – vocals, guitars, drums
- Coley – drums, vocals, guitars, layout, design
- Nicholas Wilbur – recording, mixing and mastering
- Bailey Kobelin – cover photo
- Suzanne Yeremyan – additional layout and design
References
edit- ^ a b Breihan, Tom (October 24, 2023). "Ragana Desolation's Flower Review". Stereogum. Retrieved October 31, 2023.
- ^ "Ragana: 'It's never been easier to connect with people.' (1/5 at KFN w/ Vile Creature)". Philthy Mag. December 28, 2022. Retrieved October 31, 2023.
- ^ a b c d Minsker, Evan (October 31, 2023). "Ragana: Desolation's Flower Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved October 31, 2023.
- ^ a b "The 11 Best Metal Albums of 2023". Rolling Stone. December 16, 2023. Retrieved December 17, 2023.
- ^ a b "Desolation's Flower by Ragana Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved November 19, 2023.
- ^ a b Sheehy, Jeremy (October 26, 2023). "Ragana Find Light in the Depths with Desolation's Flower". Exclaim!. Retrieved October 31, 2023.
- ^ a b Beaumont-Thomas, Ben (October 27, 2023). "Ragana: Desolation's Flower review – amazing guitar tone lights up doomy incantations". The Guardian. Retrieved October 31, 2023.