AYYUR is a Black Metal duo from Sousse, Tunisia. Formed in 2007, the band has release several EPs, but this is their debut full-length. From their EPK, "Desolation. Isolation. Detachment. This is what AYYUR conveys through its first full length: pure hermitism in the form of Black Metal. Elevating themselves within their ivory tower, the artist observes the desolating reality which surrounds them, finding a personal path and the answers to their own questions. "Prevail" is an intimate album, strongly introspective and ruthless at the same time, with lyrics sharp and pungent like blades."

"Pillars" is the first. There is a long, tense, and ambient build in. When the main riff drops, it's doom and gloom, with a slow pace, and guttural vocals. There is also some melody bubbling in the background, but it is desperate sounding. "Stratagems" is another desolate sounding song, with a torturously slow pace and deep, resounding vocals. I'm curious however about the short length of the songs so far. "The High Throne" is a little faster as well as a little longer, but Doom is still the central theme. I suppose it's easy to blur the lines between Black and Doom Metal when you take away the wall of sound that often accompanies the former of the two.

"Putrid Progeny" has another lead-in of ambient but tense tones. So far, these types of effects seem to be one of the things that the band does best. But again, the song is over before it can really scare the listener most. The next two songs are very short and mostly just reiterate the solemn mood. "A Chant for the Deafs" is another slow and desperate sound. I really hear much more Doom than Black Metal on the album, but genre classification is in the eye of the beholder for the most part. "Seek" is another instrumental that seeks to build on emotional heaviness with another concrete block piled up on you while you are prone.

"Drought" is the last proper song, unless you count the very short closer. The doom builds like heavy footsteps in the hallway outside of your bedroom. The more there are, and the closer they come, the more your anxiety rises. The vocals come towards the end. "Xellu" is the short closer. If nothing else, this album is a unique approach to Black Metal. Many of the telltale signs of the genre are missing however...the vocal shrieks, wall of guitars, machine gun-drumming, and treble production. But the cold, desperate, and desolate sounds are there. Some of the songs have an all-too similar sound to them, but I like the change of pace. If the band can build in the element of surprise every now and again, it would only strengthen things.