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Third album from the extremely mysterious Ea, a Russian band with no website, no named members, and not a single credit in the liner notes. So Ea leave you nothing but their music to go on when evaluating them, which was obviously what they want. I have enjoyed their work since 2006's Ea Tasse, and I find Au Ellai a satisfying continuation of their sound.

Some people don't like Funeral Doom, and those people should just avoid listening to this band, as Ea are veeerrry Funeral Doom. Three songs clock in at just under an hour of slow, moody, atmospheric crushing. This is not as heavy as Ea Tasse, nor as murky and dark as Ea II, this album is much more mournful and melodic, with fantastic atmosphere dripping from every chord and line. The guitar work is beautiful, the background crushing paired with the beautiful melodic clean playing that overlays this entire album. Keys and piano provide accents and drama, and the vocals are once again a mysterious dry growl. In other words, this is Funeral Doom in all its glory, and this genre usually succeeds or fails on its ability to get you to surrender to the mood and be carried along. Ea have always been good at this, and I find this album dramatic and affecting.

Au Ellai is intentionally inscrutable, providing us with no way to know what the intent is behind the music, save a serious devotion to the ancient past of man. Thus, we are free to build our own images and landscapes around the album. I see overgrown temples and ancient forests that cover lost cities. I see the empires of old ages swept under the sands of the desert. I see the distant past marks of humanity crumbling eternally beneath the crush of years. A splendid and evocative album.