Abstinentiadivinorum – Hopelessness/Benzedrine (Null Religion Records)

Musical Content: Wow. Two C90 cassettes filled with some intense dark ambient/drone. Abstinentiadivinorum is Russia’s Viktoria Mengele, who certainly thrives in this long form of drone music. It’s a daunting release, but very rewarding once you ease into it. Don’t let the double-tape release scare you off. Both tapes are aptly named, so pick your poison wisely.

Benzedrine can easily satisfy a “background ambient” listening experience. Turn your focus to the dark end of the spectrum and you begin to be drawn into an intense experience. Mengele’s use of low-end rumble is both subtle and unsettling. Higher in the spectrum, tones appear, echo and trail off, never to be heard again.

Hopelessness is even more intense. The tape begins with what, to western ears, must be an old Russian popular song. It doesn’t take long to realize that something is wrong, and a cloud of intensity builds underneath until that old song is over, leaving behind smoke and destruction. By the end of the first side, there is no mistaking Hopelessness for a calm drone album. It’s enough to alter your consciousness for the better part of the day.

Packaging and Sound Quality: Null Religion has done a great job with this release. Both tapes are in a double-tape case, with high quality printed J-Cards. The tape shells are each a black/white split (Side A black, Side B is white), and the tapes sound really good.

Limited to 25 copies. Available from Null Religion Records.