**Liturgy - Aesthethica

An album whose context within the black metal community occasionally shadows the music itself, Aesthethica is the second full-length release by Brooklyn experimental metal outfit Liturgy. In contrast to the relatively standard punishing black metal of debut Renihilation, the group's sophomore effort utilized influences from no wave ("Generation"), indie rock ("Red Crown," "High Gold"), post-punk ("Veins of God"), and electronics ("Helix Skull"). Far from the goofiness of follow-up The Ark Work, Aesthethica created a sonic milieu of experimentation and "transcendence" that has since become a cliché within heavy metal. There are even major key and resolving melodies - something unheard of even within the comparatively open-minded USBM scene.

Unfortunately, Aesthethica's release was somewhat mired by frontman Hunter Hunt-Hendrix's publication of a manifesto on US Black Metal - let alone a stumbling interview with Metal Sucks. A high-profile feature by Pitchfork didn't help their metal cred, leading to accusations of "hipster" metal - along with blackened shoegaze titans Deafheaven. Whether or not one chooses to listen to Aesthethica within the context of Hunt-Hendrix's now-memetic status is a subject of much contention, as seen by the Metal Archive reviews.

The content and context of Aesthethica make it one of the most "important" albums in extreme metal of the 2010s. Hunt-Hendrix's insistence on "transcendence" notwithstanding, Aesthethica demonstrates black metal's curious relationship with the Internet, the alternative music climate, and the divide within extreme metal as communication technology makes it easier for listeners to access what was previously a (relatively speaking) insular subculture. Aesthethica is as much a testament to the accessibility of previously secluded subcultures as it is for black metal's schizoid relationship with experimentation.