Genre: Dark ambient/ Electronica   

01 Das Ganze Sein ist Flammend Leid
02 Der Kardinal Napellus
03 Die Vier Mondbruder
04 Der Opal
05 Bal Macabre
06 J.H Obereit's Besuch Bei Den Zeitegeln
07 G.M
08 Meister Leonhard
09 Walpurgisnacht
10 Der Golem
11 Das Grune Gesicht
12 Der Weisse Dominikaner
13 Der Engel Vom Westlichen Fenster


One single beat, perhaps a church bell, is the modest opening for Silence and Strength's new album, "Das Haus Zur Letzten Latern". In a second, it takes us back in time and place, preparing us for the journey that Stephan Friedman had prepared for us this time. Enclosed in a beautiful A5 case, ocher, leather-like cover,  along with beautiful and relevant artwork, " Das Haus Zur Letzten Latern" is a fitting tribute to the works of Gustav Meyrink and his masterful stories, examining the supernatural, the macabre, the spiritual, and the occult. During the entire album, Stephan Friedman rises above the usual dark ambient gimmicks and provides peculiar landscapes, forged inside the cinematic world he had created, as each track is a soundtrack to a different story, taking us each time to a different settings and moods.
 
"Das Ganze Sein ist Flammend Leid" opens with slow and sporadic church bells, over a deep chasm of blood chilling sounds. Like the wolf at the door, the sinister breathing  heard underneath the sonic howling are giving an impression that, even though we have just started, the end is already here.

Silence and Strength's album is powerful all the way to its last second. "Der Kardinal Napellus" uses horrific drones and insidious whispers while "Die Vier Mondruder" sounds even more alien at some points, as Friedman closes in on every side of the listener with sharp stings of piercing sounds until it is hard to even breathe. Semi industrial, ethnic percussion is the dictating element on "Der Opal". By now, it is obvious that Friedman is not here to bore us with the routine. Der Opal, the most potent of the tracks so far, leads to "Bal macabre", putting us in forgotten, royal ball, now populated by ghost-like piano music , screaming banshees and a violin section of numerous demented poltergeists. Inside das haus zur letzten latern, everything Freidman had built is precise and delicate. Chilling stories get chilling soundtrack, which never serves as a mere atmospheric apparatus to make some Halloween effects. Several listening to this album will reveal the hard work put behind each and every one of these tracks. As we go further inside, "Walpurgisnacht" sends more brigades of marching thunder drums and tormented sirens gliding over distant dramatic melody. As it develops, "Walpurgisnacht" is an apocalyptic horn blast. It ends swiftly and leads to “Der Golem", which is the longest and most diverse track in this album. The long, nerve-pinching introduction, drawn from the blackest veins of dark ambiance, changes skin and transforms into a traditional sounding folk singing, with the music changing accordingly as well. The track shift repeatedly from the dark side and to the light. Deep dark drones, heavenly choir like grand opening in the dark cloudy sky, twisted dinner parties and detuned saloon singing and the scorched remains of everything, which closes this opus. Easily the best track on this great album.
 
Even the aftermath of the Golem is powerful and intriguing. "Das Grune Gesicht" begins in a mysterious way that reminds me of Tribes of Neurot of all things, and develops into a warm rhythmic industrial hymn." Der Weisse Dominikaner" is a beautiful song, relevant in its position as the sign of approaching closure on this album.
 
When the door of das haus zur letzten latern is closing, on the last track, it is done with shrieks of pain and whispers of acceptance. Friedman lets the church organ escort us away from the kingdom he erected for Gustav Meyrink and then he closes the door. When the last notes of music die, there is one thing left to do, and that is to take a deep breath, press play and go through this journey once more.