Dark Review: Space Marines: Infernus Marines + Paints Set

Review by Casey Douglass

One day, I was browsing a depressing subreddit for people who have given up on life and love, when I saw a response to a post that caught my attention. I can’t remember the exact words but it was something along the lines of “I just find peace painting my miniatures.” I then thought to myself: “You know what, there are worse ways to spend your time!” I then used some leftover Xmas money to order the Warhammer 40K Space Marines: Infernus Marines + Paints Set, which is the subject of this review.

Before saying anything more though, I want to make it clear that I don’t view miniature painters as depressed people who have given up on life. It just so happened that while feeling very low, I found someone else who’d found solace in the hobby and so I decided to pick up a kit to see if I could enjoy it too. I had no intention of building an army of miniatures or playing the table-top game. I just wanted to connect with the bleak 40K universe that I enjoy via the Black Library novels, and to find some small sense of satisfaction in painting something physical that was born from that universe.

The Warhammer 40K Space Marines: Infernus Marines + Paints Set contains three push-fit Infernus Marines (so no glue required), a Citadel Starter brush, three bases, and six pots of the various paints needed to paint said marines in the same fashion as pictured on the box. The marine models come on a single sprue (plastic framework), their various disembodied heads, legs, weapons, arms and torsos held in suspended animation by the grey plastic. Initially, I was going to use a craft knife to cut them free but I soon decided to pick up some cheap craft snips from Ebay as it felt safer, and as it turned out, was the best choice for trimming any stray bits of plastic away. It’s a bit of a shame that there weren’t any snips included in the kit, but it’s not a big deal.

The models themselves all take on a different posture, and the push-fit nature of each means that they all fit together in slightly different ways. It was easy to see how they needed to be assembled, and, upon beginning the paint job, it was easy to remove the odd arm or weapon again to aid in the painting process. Once pushed together firmly, the models feel solid enough, and I have no fears about them falling apart as gravity and time take their toll.

The most important step that I decided to take was to see if there were any suitable beginner videos on YouTube that might help me with the painting. As it happens, the official Warhammer channel has their own tutorial video for this very kit, and I’m very pleased that I watched it as it contains all sorts of tips that are extremely useful.

The video does a good job of explaining how to use each type of paint, how to use the Macragge Blue to base coat, how to thin your paints, and how you shouldn’t use your brush in the technical paint because it will ruin the bristles. I don’t mind admitting that I would totally have done that if I hadn’t watched the video, as I didn’t realise that the technical paint was a gritty sandy nightmare for a paintbrush. The only thing that I didn’t like about the video was the way that some of the advice seemed to be geared towards getting your miniatures painted in no time, the cynic in me filling in the end of certain sentences with “and then you can buy more!”

I found the painting process itself to be very satisfying. Building up the base coat layers until the covering is smooth and pleasing. Using the different colours to paint in the small details. Being mindful of how thin I want the paint to be, or of the shape of the brush head, and learning to hold and turn the miniature in ways that best let me paint as cleanly and neatly as possible. Also the unending dance with perfectionism and frustration, and seeing every misstep as just part of the fun rather than something to swear about. I could also see how my abilities improved from one miniature to the next, with the second one progressing a little easier; with less repainting required to touch up any mistakes I’d made.

One thing that I did find quite surprising was that I didn’t really reflect on my link to the 40K universe, the lore, or anything like that, while I was painting. I guess I went into things thinking that I’d be pleasantly lost in reveries about hive worlds and power armour while gently flicking a brush over the moulded plastic, but in actuality, the painting monopolised all of my concentration. The reveries simply came before or after a painting session, when I was happy to ponder all things 40K in my quieter moments. I prefer it this way and I do feel that it has added another dimension to my love of the 40K universe.

An element that I also enjoyed was how long it takes to paint a miniature. Even if you ignore the time that it takes the paint to dry between coats, I didn’t realise the degree to which you layer colours or brush in shades. This was particularly gratifying when you bring the price of miniature painting to mind, as for me, the longer it takes to paint one, the more I’m getting out of the hobby. I think that this kit is priced very nicely, but looking around at the general cost of the miniatures, and of course, the paints that you’d need to paint them, the prices can become pretty eye-watering. I understand that the design and manufacture of such things has a lot of costs involved, but when you are paying £20+ for one small plastic disassembled figure in a box, it’s hard to shake the feeling that it feels a bit much.

If you are anything like me and have enjoyed the Warhammer 40K universe in other forms, but have never picked up the model painting side of things, I think that this kit is a brilliant way to see how you might get on. It gives you pretty much everything that you need to paint your first space marines, and the tutorial video that I already mentioned will show you what to do. I found it really satisfying to paint my own miniatures, and I picked up a further five Infernus Marine sprues on Ebay so that I can continue practicing on figures that don’t cost that much. Beyond that, I don’t know what I’ll do next. I may pick up one of the more expensive characters that appeals to me, but at this moment in time, I’m quite content with my little blue friends.

Item: Space Marines: Infernus Marines + Paints Set

Contents: 3 push-fit Infernus Marines, Citadel Starter Brush, 6 X Paints, 3 bases.

Age Limit: 12+

Manufacturer: Games Workshop Ltd

RRP: £22.50

My Dark Ambient Album Winding Down At The Edge Of Oblivion Is Out Now

I just released my ninth dark ambient album on Bandcamp: Winding Down At The Edge Of Oblivion.

It is themed around an android slowly losing function, sitting at the end of civilization, surrounded by ruin.

I tried to make a slowly building, subtle album, one to listen to with a nice comfy pair of headphones and a comfy bed to drift off into imagination on. I'm quite pleased with it.

If you'd like to check it out, you can find it on Bandcamp for £1.95. If you decide to pick it up, many thanks :)

Casey aka Reality Scruncher.

 Dark Ambient Review: Nephilim

Review by Casey Douglass

Myths are an endearing and enticing source for creative inspiration; the way that some of their elements seem shared by disparate cultures being an added tasty enticement for minds that are happy to ponder such things. The Nephilim fall into this category, and they are the subject of Nephilim, a dark ambient album from the Spanish music project Hiemis.

I’d heard the word “nephilim” before, but beyond some vague notion that it was a biblical thing, I knew little else about them. The album description relates how these beings are “fallen”, and also mentions that they liked to share forbidden wisdom, when they weren’t too busy boffing eligible women who were game for a bit of fun. The result of these couplings happened to be the birth of a race of giants, which caused a fair bit of a ruckus before things settled down again. Sorry, I don’t know why I went all “British 60’s seaside postcard humour” in this paragraph. I guess I`ll never know.

The Watchers is the opening track, one with fuzzy vibrating tones, dense echoes and a light shimmering that wafts through the soundscape. The space seems to throb and thrum, and it put me in mind of some kind of a dark temple fizzling with energetic manifestations. Around the midpoint the track quietens into a smoother pulsing space, with hollow chiming tones resonating into the perceived darkness.

The second track, The Decent, begins with a low, rough drone and an echoing space. Tension begins to grow, and it begins to feel like sensing the sound through your skull rather than with your ears. Hints of other tones insinuate and then burst into life, soon joined by low, string-like notes.There is a buffeting feeling at the edge of things, and distortions that pick at the threads of the soundscape. This track is a fun excursion into an energetic and wind-blasted realm of low bassy turbulence, and is one of my favourites as a consequence.

Track three, Forbidden Wisdom, opens with light plucked notes and a vibrating drone. An airy static hiss comes and goes, and the drone evolves into a meditative Om-like sound. The various elements begin to build into a busier soundscape, hinting at energies collecting. The static is harsher, sharper and more distorted as time passes, almost as if it is abrading something. Things stop suddenly around the halfway mark and the listener is left in a smoother, larger space. I wonder if this track depicts the way that we might take in forbidden wisdom, the way that the mind churns as it digests something new, and the sensation of horizons expanding once we have integrated our understanding. This was another track that I really enjoyed and would call it a favourite.

The next track, Heavenly Lineage, opens in a more abrupt way. There is a kind of ricochet-like pop of wind sound, which then goes on to settle into a distorted vibrating space with drones and lighter tones as the backdrop. Vibrating electronic tones judder and arc away, sometimes taking on the mantle of screams, in my own ears anyway. The second half of the track quietens into a calmer, more peaceful space.

Track five, Abyss, is another track that starts with an echoing, windy feeling. This one also features a feeling of movement or tension by way of a low rhythm that gently agitates the space. Small swells of hissing air or voice punctuate the fringes, and help to create a pleasing impression of the soundscape throbbing with some kind of pregnant presence or potential. As the midpoint approaches, the soundscape feels like it begins to whir and shimmer, and a female chant-like vocal seems to appear at times. 

Chaos is a track that opens with a slowly growing drone. There is a subtle impression of air currents that soon fill with beguiling high tones that throb and nestle. A short time later, a bassiness gently pumps the ears, accompanied by a wailing-like tone. Things quieten for a while and then a hint of whispering emerges at the edge of hearing. High tones impinge again, bringing a ghostly choral vocal effect along with them. The second half of the track quietens and then swells into life again in a similar way to the first half.

The penultimate track, Darkness, sees a return of the string-like notes. A low drone is their companion, and everything pulses and distorts in a bouncing, throbbing manner. Things become quiet and then as they build again, clearer notes begin to describe a brief, slow melody. After further periods of quiet and swelling, and after the halfway point, chiming notes coming from the right of the audio field set the soundscape reverberating. There is a subtle falling cluster of tones in the centre of the space, a bassial throb and a falling hissing sound. For me, this track had a sad, hopeless feeling, and the various effects made me think of something gently imploding.

The final track, Apocalypse, opens with a horn-like blare, one backed with a low drone and a shimmering throb. This is a juddery, echoing soundscape, with a chime-like quality that softens the harder effects. The track reverberates and increases in tension, the pulsing pressure intensifying as the horn-like blares repeat at intervals. This feels like a desolate space, one wiped clean of anything that might come close to warmth or kindness.

Nephilim is a dark ambient album that is full of restful, yet interesting, droning spaces. Each track felt like it made a great use of busyness and quiet periods, and the soundscapes themselves had plenty of subtle details and textures for the listener’s mind to focus on and to explore. Nephilim is an ominous yet peaceful trip into myth, and if you like your dark ambient on the more soothing end of the spectrum, you might like to take a look at Nephilim on Bandcamp.

I was given a review copy of this album

Album Title: Nephilim

Album Artist: Hiemis

Label: Noctivagant

Released: 22 September, 2024