Lingua Ignota is moniker under which Kristin Hayter releases haunting, intense, crushing and soul destroying music accompanied with what must be one of the most frightening live presences of the current times. I first became aware of Lingua Ignota through stumbling upon the 2018 release “All Bitches Die” and from the first millisecond that holy cacophony hit my ears I`ve been obsessed. I hope by now, our readers have converted to Lingua Ignotaism or at the very least are aware of their presence.
Following up the 2020 singles “Jolene” and “Wicked Game”, both absoloutely beauitful, haunting covers drenched in melancholy, Hayter has returned with the EP “Agnus Dei” and took me by complete surprise as I was not aware of anything being in the works as I have not been able to keep up as much as I`d like to.
The opening track “IN TOUNGES” starts off with what sounds like church organs playing to a sample of a child speaking of God and religion, so far all we love about Lingua Ignota is present and things seem very fucking promising. At one point the child is heard describing having prayed for a miracle which was granted the next day, at this point a flood of distorted noise crawls up and seemingly devoursthe hopeful tone of the child and brings us into the second track “SEXLESS//NO SEX” , a cover of the Iron Lungs track, where we hear the familiar voice of Hayter as they play slow organ melody becoming increasingly enveloped by a swarm of noise that builds and builds and then drops…We`re left with the voice, the organ and we slowly fade out. A short but sweet experience.
“WHER`ER YOU WALK" , a rendition of the musical drama from composer G.F Handel, introduces itself as a distant apocalypse creeping and crawling, inching towards you as a disembodied voice speaks from the eye of the storm that seems to come closer and closer, Hayters voice fades in and out, gracing or teasing us, who knows for sure, with the voice of a thousand seraphim.
The final and titular track “AGNUS DEI” a cover of the Johan Sebastian Bach composition, is the longest track , clocking it at 7 minutes and one second. Operatic, dramatic, controlled chaos with the aura of a combination of slowly falling to your death or ascending to the heavens ends this short but quite beautiful journey, using the word beautiful in terms of Lingua Ignota may seem odd at ties considering the gravely serious lyrical topics Kristin Hayter brings but regardless of that fact, beautiful is the word that keeps popping up in my head when listening to any of their work.