Mystras - Empires Vanquished and Dismantled

#FOR FANS OF: Medieval Black

During the last two years the Greek scene has given so many great albums that it is quite difficult to highlight which ones have been the best. In any case, one solo-project has caught my attention already after its excellent debut. This project is called as Mystras and it was founded in 2019 by Ayloss, an artist involved in many different bands, being the most well-known, at least for me, Spectral Lore. Mystras debut album 'Castles Conquered and Reclaimed' received quite good reviews as it was an excellent example of black metal with a raw yet melodic nature. It also had a quite particular concept, as the project could be defined as medieval black metal, but focused on the point of view of the working class people of that time and with an anti-imperialistic approach, due to its underlying left-wing ideas.

The debut album left the fans waiting for the next step as it seems that Ayloss has many ideas as he only needed one year to release it sophomore effort entitled 'Empires Vanquished and Dismantled'. Although it was difficult to improve the surprising debut, I can safely say that this new effort is, at least, on the same level with its predecessor. Again, what we can find here is a medieval black metal which musically can be defined as raw black metal, with a combination of straightforward fury, pure rawness, an unquestionable melodic touch, and some delicate and tasteful folk touches here and there which make us travel to ancient times. It is not easy at all to combine all these elements which, at first glance, would have difficulties to cohabit, but Mystras has the talent and ideas to merge them appropriately. The production seems to have made a step forward in terms of balance. The sound is still raw, particularly in the line of the guitars, but they sound a bit cleaner and not so distorted and fuzzy as they sounded in the debut album. I think this is an adequate change, though some may prefer the previous production, even though I am pretty sure that no one will accuse this album of sounding too polished, that’s for sure. As it happened in the debut, 'Empires...' has again a superb work in the guitars, being the shining instrument through the whole album. Just check out the impressive first single of this album, "The Fall Of The Kingdom of Jerusalem", where the listener can appreciate a torrent of riffs through this monumental piece of fourteen minutes, where there is room for brutality, speed, slower sections and lots of melody behind the crude production. The album, as this track, is full of ups and downs in terms of intensity, combining furious pieces as "On the Promises Of Angels" or "To The Builders!", where it is literally impossible not to break your neck headbanging in certain moments, with atmospheric folkish pieces like the delicate and beautiful "Ah Ya Zein", or the more tribal and mysterious "Cheragheh Zolmezalem". The remarkable point here, is that these pieces are excellent and keep the listener in the correct mood to stay interested in the music, something that doesn´t happen many times as I have personally considered the albums that contain many instrumentals, a bit unbalanced and unfocused. Thankfully, this is not the case. 'Empires Vanquished and Dismantled' has a top-class ending with two great tracks, which maintain the extraordinary equilibrium between the fury and the aforementioned melodic touch. I personally highlight the album closer "In The Company of Heretics" which summarizes all the characteristics of the Mystras sound. The initial impetus, with the relentless blast-beats accompanied by the sharp riffing, progresses to a more mid-tempo section which sounds truly epic, thanks to the inclusion of a clean vocal choir in the background and, again, a tasteful guitar work, whose melodies are, once again, superb. The song and the album beautifully end with some very nice acoustic chords, what a great way to close this second chapter in Mystras existence.

For the second time in only one year Mystras has created an impressive piece of black metal, full of interesting elements and great compositions. The combination of rawness and melody is again original and top-notch, making 'Empires Vanquished and Dismantled' an excellent record. (Alain González Artola)

(I, Voidhanger Records - 2021)
Score: 85

https://i-voidhangerrecords.bandcamp.com/album/empires-vanquished-and-dismantled

Rift - To Quench the Thirst of Wolves

#FOR FANS OF: Atmospheric Black

The Australian band Rift is one of those obscure projects that remained in the shadows so much time since its inception, that some could think the debut album was never going to come. Founded indeed in 2004, Rift has been predominantly the solo-project of Balam, a tremendously active musician, who has been involved in several projects like Drowning the Light or Pestilential Shadows, among the others. Rift released a demo in 2006 but since that time, the project was apparently left at rest, maybe because of Balam’s many projects. Anyway, the musician seems to have spent part of his time composing music for a tentative release, which has finally seen the light. The addition of a permanent vocalist, known as A.S., has for sure played an important role in this final release.

With the support of the Australian label Seance Records, Rift, now as a duo, released its debut album entitled 'To Quench the Thirst of Wolves'. The evocative album artwork is quite representative of the music we will find inside, which I must admit, it has been a nice surprise. For some reason, I was expecting some straightforward and brutal stuff, but contrary to my expectations, Rift plays a black metal rich of atmosphere and with a certain melancholic touch, although it doesn´t lack some epic moments and a necessary degree of fury. In any case, the album escapes from the speedy monotony of some albums as it focuses its main attention on the mid-tempo sections. Production wise, the album has a good balance between vocals, guitars, and the rhythmic base. The raw touch is there, particularly in the guitars with this characteristic “fuzzy” sound, although the riffs are thankfully distinguishable. The atmospheric arrangements in the form of keys in the background are also audible and give an extra point of an evocative ambience. The vocals have the traditional echoing production with a very solid performance. The album begins with strength and speed with the song "Acolyte of Worms". The early perception could make us thing that this is going to be a monotonous album, pace wise. We couldn’t be more wrong. The song rapidly introduces some tempo-changes and a distinctively melodic touch in the guitars, which are composed and executed with a great taste. The tempo varies between the aforementioned fast sections and the increasingly present mid and slow tempo sections, including some nice interludes which make this song even more immersive. The contrast between fury and atmosphere is even greater in the following track, "Night Glare". This one is pure atmospheric black as its very best. Captivating keys embrace the rest of the instruments, giving profundity and atmosphere to the song as the galloping guitars and drums progressively slow down their initial impetuosity. Here, we can find one of those moments where Rift sounds even epic with a very nice guitar riff, an excellent track without any doubt. The longest tracks, like the self titled one and "Posthumous Rapture", focuses specially in the mid-tempo sections, although they introduce some variations which include interludes or slightly more vibrant parts. All this is made with the purpose of keeping the listener interested and, at the same time, creating a hypnotic piece of music. On the other hand, tracks like "Innards of Malevolence" and "Sermon of Blades" are the heaviest ones, with speedier sections, here more prevalent than in the rest of the album. Despite of this, the melodic and atmospheric essence of the whole album is still retained here, so these songs can be seen as the spiciest side of a dish with different flavours.

'To Quench the Thirst of Wolves' is definitively an excellent debut and a pleasant surprise. The combination of rawness, melody and atmosphere is excellently executed. The somber tone of the compositions is enriched by a beautiful atmosphere and some small touches of majesty. Highly recommended. (Alain González Artola)

(Seance Records - 2021)
Score: 83

https://seancerecords.bandcamp.com/album/to-quench-the-thirst-of-wolves

Ars Magna Umbrae - Throne Between Worlds

#FOR FANS OF: Dissonant Black Metal

Poland has undoubtedly an impressive extreme metal scene in terms of quantity and quality. There is no need to mention all the notorious bands that almost every fan knows, but yes to spend a few minutes to carve below the surface and discover more obscure projects which may be quite interesting. The solo-project Ars Magna Umbrae is one of those musical efforts which may require our attention. This project was founded in 2017 by Petros Xolaiathyos, who had a previous experience in the scene with a black/death metal band called Cultum Interitum. In Ars Magna Umbrae Petros (aka K.M.) focuses his interest on the black metal genre and more particularly in a form of a atmospheric black metal with a certain degree of dissonance. The project has been quite active, having released three albums in the last four years.

'Throne Between Worlds' is the third one and continues, in terms of music and lyric concept, a similar patterns of the previous ones, as this album still keeps strong ties with esoterism and occultism as it happened also in the previous efforts. The atmosphere of 'Throne Between Worlds' is particularly dark and melancholic, feelings which are maintained strong through the whole record. Pace-wise, it’s not a particularly fast album as it focuses more on developing mid-tempo structures. There are ups and downs in the pace with certain moments of relentless fury, but they never last a lot. A quite clear example of it is the opener "Into Waters of the Underworld", a mainly mid-tempo track where the faster section of the middle shows a particularly dissonant touch. As we can appreciate, the main role is shared by the rasped vocals of K.M. and the distinctive riffs that will be a trademark of this album. As said, the guitar work is quite relevant in this opus with a good dose of work behind it. The riffing is multi-layered and with an important dose of dissonance, but thankfully not as predominant as it can be found in certain experimental albums. There is also a room for more delicate chords, which try to create a mysterious ambience in the most quite sections, as it happens for example in "Consecrating the Shrine of Undoing". This attempt to always create a cryptic essence in the music is the logic consequence of the conceptual background behind the music and it is a key element to create an honest album. The contrast between the most dissonant parts and the calmest and most atmospheric sections is particularly well-done and prominent in the track "Treader on the Dreamless Path" which is actually one of my favourite songs, if not the favourite one, as the combination of elements is quite inspired and somehow works better for me than in any other song. "Metempsychosis (Transmigration of the Soul)", the longest track, closes the album and it servers as a summary of the whole record as it contains all the aforementioned characteristics. It contains mid-tempo sections, an elaborated guitar work and that touch of dissonance through the entire track. We can also hear abrupted tempo-changes with furious rages and captivating calmer sections, all mixed to create a hypnotic track that fades out in the form of a gloomy ambient outro. I believe this is the perfect example of what Ars Magna Umbra wants to offer.

All in all, this is a quite interesting album with many elements on which to put some attention and an interesting lyrical concept behind it. It’s not an outstanding piece of work, but a quite interesting and enjoyable one. (Alain González Artola)

(I, Voidhanger - 2021)
Score: 75

https://i-voidhangerrecords.bandcamp.com/album/throne-between-worlds

Runespell - Verses in Regicide

#FOR FANS OF: Pagan Black Metal

Runespell is one of those solo projects with an obscure origin. It was founded in Australia some years ago, by a quite active musician known as Nightwolf, who has been an active part of the local black metal scene. He was a member of projects like Drowning the Light or Necrostrigis in the past, among others. Currently, he shares its time between Blood Stronghold and Runespell. The second one is his best-known project, thanks to a quite solid discography and the exposure given by the fact that he signed a early deal with Iron Bonehead Productions, which has released all his albums so far.

Runespell plays pagan black metal with a raw nature, but at the same time strongly melodic. Music’s rawness principally comes from the production as it is far from being over polished. The vocals sound distant and dark, but not buried in the mix, which is maybe one of the most classic characteristics of tradition black metal. The instruments sound well-balanced, and they have a quite natural, if not “warm”, feeling, like if the songs had been played live as they seem not to have excessive adornments in the production and mixing. I think this is a good point as this kind of music sounds more authentic when it doesn´t sound too packed and artificial. Contrary to some other pagan black metal bands, which have a quite more upbeat sound, like a heroic march towards the war, Runespell’s music has a slightly darker approach as it is perfectly depicted in the excellent album cover art. In any case, the melodic touch of the guitar gives to the compositions the expected epic touch for bands that are influenced by medieval times. So, what we can find in this album is a very well achieved balance between darkness and light, perfectly executed in the very interesting five tracks included in 'Verses in Regicide'. We can also listen to two short, beautiful instrumentals songs with a quite strong melancholic and interesting atmosphere, that serve, in the case of the piece "Windswept Burial", to close this quite enjoyable album. The album opener "Structures of Collapse" is one of my favourite tracks, as it creates the appropriate mood to enter the album with a great initial section, that gains in intensity until the rasped vocals and the excellent guitars make a furious appearance. The initial rapid pace is modulated by a quite variable pace with its ups and downs in terms of speed. Nevertheless, the main role is for the excellent riffs with its strongly melodic nature that leads the song all the way through. This melodic excellence is kept in the following song called "Vengeance Reign", which has an opposite evolution in its structure. The first part is a mid-tempo composition with a quite up-beat main melody, until a clear change comes in the second half with a clearly faster approach. Pace-wise, this album has its variations, although Runespell seems to be more comfortable in the mid-tempo sections, where the melodic nature of its compositions can shine in its full glory as we can appreciate, among other fine examples, in the longest composition "Tides of Slidhr". Fortunately, the pace changes are appropriately place here and there to avoid this feeling of be listening to the same song all the time. Apart from that, the energetic nature of the riffs makes the songs to have an extra point of interest regardless of the pace.

In conclusion, Runespell’s 'Verses in Regicide' is a very good album of pagan black metal. The raw production contracts with the strongly melodic nature of the compositions, even though the combination is excellently done and the final result sounds robust and credible. (Alain González Artola)

(Iron Bonehead Productions - 2021)
Score: 80

https://ironboneheadproductions.bandcamp.com/album/runespell-verses-in-regicide

Noltem - Illusions in the Wake

#FOR FANS OF: Atmospheric Black

Noltem is a tree-piece band coming from Connecticut, US. It was founded in 2003 by Max Johnson and it seems that for some reason, the mastermind spent many years without being particularly active, with only one demo released in 2005. Fortunately, the inclusion of a drummer into the line-up, Johan Kerr, also as singer, reactivated the project with a release of a second EP in 2015. The return to a more active life of the band was finally fulfilled with the incorporation of a third member in 2018, Shalin Shah, who plays the bass. Noltem, at that point finally a trio, worked hard to present a debut album that would make possible to give some notoriety to this obscure project.

Twenty-twentyone is the year when Noctem’s full length has finally seen the light of the day, with the support of the always active label Trascending Obscurity Records. 'Illusions in the Wake' is the title of their debut, which contains seven songs, lasting around forty minutes. The colourful artwork, which depicts a misty mountainous landscape, rightfully represents the band’s musical vision as there is a quite clear strong connection with nature. This closeness is not only lyrically, which is easily demonstrable taking a look to the nature and mystical-themed lyrics, but also musically, as Noltem plays a very personal atmospheric black metal with some folky connections. This influence is not so obvious, although it can be felt in the way the melodies are build and played. The album begins with "Figment", where the guitars play a key role. The riffing is tasteful and mesmerizing displaying a variety of different melodies in terms of textures and richness. The strength of the guitars marks the intensity of the song with some nice up and downs, enriched by some acoustic sections which are simply beautiful. The drums are solidly played and establish the necessary ground for the songs, where the vocals have a deep tone, like being in a mid-point between the death metal vocals and the black metal ones. As said, the intensity varies very frequently, having this song a multitude of tempo-changes, which is always a good proof, when it is done in the right way, that the composition has a great amount of work behind it. The homonymous track offers another menu of excellent melodies, accompanied by slightly more rasped vocals and some clean voices in the background. One of the melodies even has a a bit of medieval touch reminding me the excellent Obsequiae. I don't know if this was made on purpose, but this is what I felt and I sincerely have no complaints about this influence. As the album goes on, the songs seem to take a more intimate tone in certain moments, having a greater contrast between the heaviest sections and the softest ones. This is something I notice in "Beneath the Dreaming Blue", mainly in the initial part which progressively carries to a final heavier section; the opposite is done in "Ruse". This song has a quite intense beginning which hits you, then the pace and the intensity progressively slow down, offering to the listener a clearly calmer and more, as said, intimate tone which is quite hypnotic. The album closer, entitled "On Shores of Glases", includes some hypnotic melodies and even a psychedelic section, making it the most different and experimental track of the whole album. It may not be my personal favourite, but it’s a good way to close thi work, as it keeps the general absorbing tone of this record and it doesn't lack the expected good dose of nice melodies.

To conclude, 'Illusions in the Wake' is definitively a very good platter with a quite personal sound thanks to the great amount of work put in the compositions. The guitars are excellent and always display a great palette of colours in terms of melodies. The compositions try to avoid sounding stereotyped and create a quite absorbing atmosphere. (Alain González Artola)

(Trascending Obscurity Records - 2021)
Score: 80

https://noltemband.bandcamp.com/album/illusions-in-the-wake-atmospheric-black-metal

Orgrel - Red Dragon’s Invocation

#FOR FANS OF: Black Old School

Let`s go with another interesting project, which literally comes from nowhere. The Italian project Orgrel has signed a deal with Iron Bonehead Productions to release its first opus entitled 'Red Dragon’s Invocation'. As this label usually releases quality stuff, it is clear that the band’s first effort must have something which should be worth of our time.

As I have no more info about this obscure project, I immediately decided to focus on the most important thing, the music itself. One needs only a couple of seconds to realize that Orgrel plays black metal in its purest and most iconic form. Every second of this powerful debut is a sincere and passionate tribute to the genre’s gold era, the never forgotten '90s. Production wise, 'Red Dragon’s Invocation' is an album with a good balance in terms of merging the current production standards and a devotion to that era. There is no crystal-clear sound here, but a quite good production, where the main instruments can be easily distinguished, while the overall sound is enough raw to fit the music. The vocals sound high and powerful, just in the front but without being over present, as they share the main role with the guitars and drums. As mentioned before, Orgrel plays black metal as quintessential as the genre can be, so there is no need to lose time trying to give a more refined definition of the band’s sound. 'Red Dragon’s Invocation' is an album where speed, ferocity and melody are fused together in a very natural way, like black metal has always been, as least when it has not been perverted. There is no black metal if we only find brutality without melody and this Italian project has perfectly understood this indispensable condition. For that reason, the seven songs of this debut album have a healthy balance of these elements, including a good dose of tempo changes, which is always a welcome aspect in this genre. The album opener "Burning Ruins", which is actually one of the top songs of this album, summarizes all the strong points of Orgrel’s music. It’s a fast track with ferocious vocals and an excellent work with the guitars, which sound equally strong and melodic and with a good degree of elaboration, as they guide all the tempo changes of this track. The composition has a handful of them, as it flows easily between fast, medium, and slow sections which make the song truly captivating. The tremolo riffing is the king in songs like "Amor Fati" or the album closer, the massive "Carved in Blood", especially in the fastest sections of these songs and in general in the whole album. On the other hand, we can find slightly more distorted guitars in the slowest parts, being maybe the clearest example the headbanging inducing "Gate of Eternal Life", which could be defined the slowest song of the album, although it doesn´t lack a pinch of power.

Orgrel’s debut 'Red Dragon’s Invocation' will please of the fans of classic black metal, as the album keeps a quite good level through the entire work. It won´t shake the genre as the classic gems did, because I can´t find a song which is outstandingly brilliant, but I can´t either find a mediocre song or even section. In conclusion, everything here sounds packed, focused and consistent, giving us over thirty minutes of undoubted enjoyment. (Alain González Artola)

(Iron Bonehead Productions - 2021)
Score: 74

https://www.facebook.com/orgrelofficial  

King of Asgard - Svartrviðr

#FOR FANS OF: Viking Black

The Swedish band King of Asgard has had a quite solid career since it was founded thirteen years ago in Mjölby. With four albums so far and a quite stable line-up, the band only suffered two changes in more than a decade, which is not as common as one could think and you know, the metal scene is full of changes in the band’s line-up due to several circumstances. As they play a mixture of Viking and death metal, the comparisons with quite famous bands like the very successful Amon Amarth or classic outfits like Thyrfing or Einherjer is quite usual. I would ignore the AA comparisons as this band is closer to the later projects. Still, the King of Asgard has forged its own sound and should be judged without losing too much highlighting the similarities.

Going back to the most important thing, it is time to take a listen to the band’s new effort entitled 'Svartrviðr' which is obviously firmly rooted in the always present Viking influences. Unlike other bands playing this genre, King of Asgard sounds much closer to the sombre tone than pagan black metal bands have. Even though the band’s compositions have certain epic moments, the songs sound darker to me and less like a victorious march to a battle as some Viking metal bands sound. The album opener "Frôðr" is a fine example of it with these austere riffs, that sound powerful and as heavy as could expect from a death metal band. The tone is darker transporting us to a desolate scenario, more similar to bleak grassland full of corpses after a bloody battle. "Rifna" follows a similar pattern with a more atmospheric touch thanks to the tastefully placed arrangements. Apart form the obvious already mentioned influences, King of Asgard sounds as a pure death metal band, with remarkably heavy riffs, which create a true wall of sound reinforced by a quite solid work in the rhythmic base. The drums sound dense with a generous use of the double-bass, mainly in the long mid-tempo sections where the band seems to be very comfortable. This doesn´t mean that the pace is always the same as the band knows to introduce certain faster sections to make the song more varied. I especially like how "Hæimr" ends with a combination of the aforementioned mid-tempo sections and a blasting part, which is accompanied by a background clean choir. This addition gives to the song, one of the previously mentioned slightly epic touches. The bleak tone is present in the rest of the songs, where the contrast between the slowest and fastest parts is remarked in certain songs like "Kvikr" for example, although the riffing and the pace is predominantly not very fast as the songs are composed to sound dense and heavy. One of the best points is that almost every song has an arrangement here and there, nothing very common or abundantly used, but something that enriches the songs in the form of clean vocals, a simple but effective piano or an acoustic guitar, like it happens in the instrumental track "Harmdauðr", among others.

'Svartrviðr' is definitively a quite solid album by the Swedish King of Asgard. I can´t find anything incredibly outstanding to rate this album as masterpiece or album of the year, but it certainly has not weaknesses. If you like this genre but with a darker touch, this album should appeal to you. (Alain González Artola)

(Trollmusic - 2021)
Score: 75

https://kingofasgard.bandcamp.com/album/svartrvi-r

Felled - The Intimated Earth

#FOR FANS OF: Atmospheric Black/Folk

Felled is an interesting project founded in Oregon in 2014. The band was born from the ashes of Moss of Moonlight, a project previously located in Washington, where Jenn Gruningen and Cavan Wagner sang about a hypothetic independent Cascadian land. Felled, now relocated to Oregon, has become a four-piece band, and continues similar conceptual paths, but with a broader connection to nature and paganism. Felled combines black metal with some neo-folk influences, which is not an unknown combination in that area of the country. These neofolk influences usually come in the form of melancholic melodies, making this sort of bands to have a certain somber atmosphere.

In its seven years of existence, Felled hasn´t been particularly prolific, releasing a demo in 2017 only, but the band has finally signed a deal with the respected underground label Transcending Obscurity Records, and releasing in these days the debut album 'The Intimate Earth'. As soon as the album begins with the first track "Ember Dream", we have a clear picture of how Felled sounds. Aggressive rasped vocals domain accompanied along the song by guitars with a raw tone, yet melodic when its needed. The pace varies constantly between fast and slower sections, creating an interesting piece of music. But what stands out is generous use of the violin, an instrument I personally love and that has a brilliant participation in this album. Tiffany’s mournful melodies add the expected neo-folk touch to Felled’s music, not sounding straightforwardly depressing, but with this melancholic tone that a genre like neo-folk usually has. The second track "Fire Season on the Outer Rim" follows similar patterns, even though it adds a greater contrast between the heaviest parts and the calmer ones, including some short atmospheric and folk interludes, which serve as a bridge between the different sections of the song. The addition of occasional clean female vocals, usually done by Jenn, with the help in the backing vocals by Tiffany, also enriches the compositions, which are tastefully composed and executed. As mentioned, the mixture between the raw guitars, which include also melodic riffs, and the violin, create a truly hypnotic atmosphere, which makes you feel the profound connection to nature, specially to the vast and beautiful landscapes that can be found in Oregon and Washington states. The album contains only five songs, but their length is quite long as they have an average of almost seven minutes. This length usually works well with this genre as the compositions need time to expand and create the wanted absorbing atmosphere. Its hard to pick a favourite song, but the album closer "The Salt Binding" is a wonderful way to close this excellent debut. The feeling is strong in this track as the melodies are truly outstanding. The mournful beauty of the riffs is captivating, the violin is as beautiful as you can expect, but the novelty here is related to a more presence of clean female vocals in the first half, which gives a truly unique touch to this song. They sound like a farewell song sung in the middle of distant forest. Moreover, when they are combined with the raspy vocals in the heavier second half of the song, they sound like a storm suddenly appearing in the horizon. This is indeed a classy song to leave the listener totally satisfied with this album.

In conclusion, 'The Intimate Earth' is the remarkable debut album by Felled, which has created a quite emotional release full of great melodies, where the violin has a predominant role, though the rest of instruments, and obviously the excellent vocals, help to create a very recommendable album. (Alain González Artola)

(Transcending Obscurity Records - 2021)
Score: 85

https://felledblackmetal.bandcamp.com/album/the-intimate-earth-folk-black-metal

Dordeduh - Har

#FOR FANS OF: Atmospheric Black

Romania’s extreme metal scene hasn´t been one of the most notorious ones, but it has always offered undoubtable quality every time I have had the chance of checking out something new. If someone thinks about this scene, there is a particular name which always comes to our mind, Negură Bunget. This project began as a pure atmospheric black metal project, which included absolutely hypnotic keys and excellently composed and executed compositions. Their first songs were, indeed, something closely related to the purest form of this genre. In any case, as time passed NB’s compositions became more and more original, which was something clear in its third opus ‘'N Crugu Bradului', a much more experimental album, which included progressive influences. But it was with the subsequent album, entitled 'Om', where the band perfected its sound with an outstanding mixture of black metal, atmospheric keyboards, progressive sound and a strong connection to the Romanian folklore and folk music. Thanks to this album, the band gained a great recognition in the scene, but as all good histories the end was near, as the disputes between original members Huppogramos and Negru, ended with the departure of Huppogramos and the long-time member Soul Faur. Negru decided to continue with the band and released the excellent 'Vîrstele Pămîntului', before NB lost almost every inspiration with the last and disappointing two works, prior to Negru’s unfortunate death. Meanwhile, the other two members created Dordeduh, whose debut album 'Dar De Duh' received great reviews. This album continued the path that was previously developed in 'Om', though I must admit that I didn´t fall in love with that album, at least completely. The good ideas where there, but it lacked something, including a more suitable production.

After this convulsive time and the well-received debut Dordeduh continued as an active band, though sadly we have waited a full decade to listen to something new from them. Was the long wait worth of our time? For sure. With 'Har', Dordeduh hasn´t changed a lot as the irremediable influences from the magna work 'Om' are still there. But the band’s members have put a lot of work on it and have made an undeniable step forward in terms of composition, musical evolution, and production. Now yes, the production seems to be perfectly balanced, leaving the room to these compositions to sound experimental, but at the same time with a strong feeling and ambience. 'Har' is an impressive album with no weaknesses, as every single song has an incredible quality, richness of details and its own personality. The album opener "Timpul Intilor" has the expected immersive introduction, as spiritual and hypnotic as you could expect from these guys. The change of tempo is also brutal, as the band sounds smashing with a powerful production, where guitars, drums and a solid and quite present bass guitar do their work perfectly well. The riffing is original, complex, but at the same time absolutely captivating. The vocals, courtesy of Huppogramos, are top-notch, with intimidating growls, wisely combined with the excellent cleans used for the most atmospheric sections. The pace is as rich as the rest of elements integrated in this composition, flowing from straightforward aggressivity to calmer sections, always with a flawless naturality. One of my favourite tracks of this album, and to choose one is a quite tricky track, is the second song "In Vielistea Uitarii", where the band’s trademark atmospheric keys are absolutely absorbing. Every element of this album is made to transport you to a distant place, not only the keys, but also the tasteful guitar lines and the primordial voices, which give the necessary rawness to the music. The balance between originally and ‘true’ atmosphere is something that Negură Bunget mastered back in time, and now Dordeduh unsurprisingly shows the same enormous talent. Even the clean vocals have something spellbinding, which make them special. And if this is not enough, the always excellent folk elements appear to perfect, which is already an astonishing piece of music. "Descent" is one of the softest pieces, though it still retains the expected originality and complexity. The particularity of this song is that the clean vocals almost sound catchy, which is always a surprising element in bands like Dordeduh. Anyway, this shows the level of inspiration that Dordeduh has reached with 'Har'. "Desferecat" is another impressive piece with a ritual touch in its pace, slow and hypnotic, where the always flawless combination of deep grows and fine clean vocals catch your attention from the very first moment. In this song the listener will find one of the most beautiful keyboard interludes which serves as a bridge to the final part of this extraordinary song. Huppogramos and Soul Faul has always shown an enormous talent with the keys, and this is another proof of their marvellous capacity. The album closer, if we don´t take into account the short, yet great outro "Vaznesit", "De Neam Vergur", is another long piece which includes most of the elements which make this album a quite special release. The ambient intro evolves and gains strength with a clear progressive evolution, showing again the experimental soul of this band, as the song become heavier and more intense. The combination of the most progressive elements and the extremer influences is made once again with taste and naturality, as the different sections are built up with sense and musical cohesion. The end is intense and majestic, a perfect ending without any doubt.

In conclusion, Dordeduh’s sophomore album 'Har' is nothing less than an immense album, that enriches the legacy of these incredibly talented musicians. If the debut was praised by many fans, this second album will convince all the fans who will find rich and complex details, always with an enthralling atmosphere, to digest and taste with time and all the listens that this album requires and deserves. A must for everyone who looks for originality and quality. (Alain González Artola)

(Prophecy Productions - 2021)
Score: 90

https://dordeduh.bandcamp.com/album/har

Mare Cognitum - Solar Paroxysm

#FOR FANS OF: Atmospheric Black

In few subgenres there are as many cases of solo projects as atmospheric black metal, and most of the times, these solo projects are better than actual bands. This can happen, maybe because the artistic vision of its creator is presented in its purest form, which is a key element to create music that touches our soul, even if technically it could be more complex or enriched by different points of view. The feeling is strong in these projects and black metal is a genre, where the feeling is particularly important. Ten years ago, it was created one of those projects in California, under the moniker Mare Cognitum. Its creator, Jacob Buczarski, has been quite active as he released splits and five full lengths, always with a solid level of performance which has given to this project a certain respect in the underground.

'Solar Paroxysm' is the newest offer by Mare Cognitum and it presents five long tracks, clocking each one of them around ten minutes. Stylistically, this album is a perfect example of black metal with an atmospheric touch, where the guitars play a key role. You won´t find here predominant keys as the guitars are responsible of creating both the most brutal and fastest sections of Mare Cognitum’s music, and also the most atmospheric sections. The album opener "Antaresian" shows a nice work with the guitars. They sound absolutely sharpy, yet with an intense emotional touch, creating a very addictive song, although the pace is quite intense in its eleven minutes of existence. The album gets more brutal with the subsequent track "Frozen Star Divinization", where the riffs lose the emotional touch in favour of extremer and biting touch. This initial part shows compositions with a relentless pace, predominantly furious and with a fast pace, that maybe would welcome a greater variety in terms of speed. A nice example of this expected diversity its exemplified in the third composition, entitled "Terra Requiem". This song has clearly a greater atmospheric touch with some excellent riffs, the tremolo guitars sound in this track beautiful as they create a hypnotic atmosphere. It also helps the fact that the song has in a great part of its structure, a much slower pace, where this type of riffs can shine more. It is also interesting to listen to how the song abruptly changes its pace as it has a very intense and fast final section, which I especially enjoy. The contrast between slow atmospheric parts and the furious black metal trademark, yet atmospheric, speed is always great ingredient when it is done right, like in this occasion. The final part of the album brings back the blast-beats and the furious guitars. In any case, the riffing is quite good and though the songs can lack some variety in terms of pace in certain moments, the guitars compensate this weaker aspect of the compositions, with an excellent performance. The riffing is very well elaborated and executed with plenty of intense melodies, which make the songs captivating. Just give a listen to the last song "Ataraxia Tunnels", which has excellent melodies and a very intense final part, where different layers of guitars create a brilliant ending.

'Solar Paroxysm' is, in conclusion, not a game-changer, but a quite solid album of black metal with an intense atmospheric touch, where the strongest aspect is the excellent guitar work which always leads the compositions, reining above any other instrument. (Alain González Artola)

(I, Voidhanger - 2021)
Score: 73

https://marecognitum.bandcamp.com/album/solar-paroxysm

Dødsferd - Skotos

#FOR FANS OF: Hellenic Black Metal

The Greek trio Dødsferd is one of those interesting projects, that lives under the long shadow of legendary acts like Rotting Christ or Septic Flesh. Being the Greek scene so rich in terms of quality and quantity, it is particularly difficult to gain some recognition, but this project, founded exactly twenty years ago, has managed to build a long career with some quite good releases. Maybe, they won´t have a particular masterpiece, which could have helped them to reach the top of the scene, but their music undoubtedly deservers our attention.

Having said that, its time to focus on the most important thing, the band´s new album, which is released in the twentieth anniversary of its existence and it should be a representative opus of this current sound. 'Skotos' is the name of the new beast, which is unfortunately a short EP of two songs, being extended by the previous full-album 'Diseased Remnants of a Dying World' as a bonus track. In any case, our attention goes for the new pieces. This stuff is firmly rooted in the black metal genre, which will not surprise its fans, though we are talking about a band that has experimented with DSBM or black/punk influences during its career. In contrast to its predecessor, 'Skogos' contains clearly shorter songs that get to the point. "Skotadi" is the EP opener, and it is a furious piece, whose pace varies between remarkably fast sections and a few slightly slower ones, but with a clear predominance of the speediest sections. The mixture is done quite well as the mid-tempo parts give us the chance of headbanging a little bit. This is traditional black metal as its best, with a tremolo main riff, that gives a hypnotic touch to the song. The vocals are vicious and high-pitched screams, nothing new, but they are solidly performed. The second track, "Cursed to Die at First Light", follows quite similar patterns, as it is another fast track dominated by a relentless rhythmic base. It also contains a tasteful main tremolo riff in the speedy sections, and a slightly more dissonant ones in the slower parts, which are nevertheless combined with more tremolo riffs here and there. One aspect I like is how audible the bass is, something that sadly doesn´t happen many times.

'Skotos' is a good release, which doesn’t offer anything new, but it contains two very enjoyable tracks that makes us expect more stuff, which sadly doesn´t happen. Let´s see if Dødsferd can release a full album with the same characteristics, even though a greater variety would be welcome. If not, the first positive impression would be ruined in case that we have a bunch of songs, that follow exactly the same structures and main characteristics. (Alain González Artola)

(Transcending Obscurity Records - 2021)
Score: 69

https://dodsferd.bandcamp.com/album/skotos-atmospheric-black-metal

Esoctrilihum - Dy'th Requiem for the Serpent Telepath

#FOR FANS OF: Experimental Black

It is quite clear that the obscure French project Esoctrilihum is as its best moment. The solo-project leaded by Asthâghul, released only one year ago a vast release untitled 'Eternity of Shaog', which made feel again very interested in this project. This album tastefully mixed the atmospheric nature of its debut CD with the greater experimentation of its later opuses. The album was a long piece of one hour, so I felt surprised when I saw that Esoctrilihum returned with another album, which is even longer, as it lasts around 77 minutes.

Could Asthâghul keep with the great level of inspiration and particularity of its predecessor? Well, the short answer is yes, and this is very impressive. The new opus is entitled ‘'Dy'th Requiem for the Serpent Telepath', and it is without any doubt a beast of an album in terms of quality. The album contains tons of excellent melodies and a healthy degree of experimentation, reaching the same balance and the previous album, but maybe with a greater atmospheric touch. For this reason, I consider the new album as the logic successor of 'Eternity of Shaog', but it has nevertheless its own distinctive touch. Aside futile discussion of how different or similar these albums are, this is a demanding piece work due to its details, complexity, and length. On average each song lasts seven minutes and this album has twelve, so you can imagine the amount of work behind it. 'Dy'th Requiem for the Serpent Telepath' is by no means a relentless piece of nonsensical fury or a hyper repetitive BSDM album. This is black metal with tons of details, pace variations, excellent arrangements and a perfect equilibrium between relentless fury and slower sections. This album has plenty of details to dig in, but I have to highlight the arrangements as they are simply superb. Songs like "Sahln" or "Agakuh" have astonishingly beautiful violins, which are tremendously touching. It is pure beauty uniquely mixed with excellent riffing, ferocious vocals, and song structures, which flow naturally from slower to mid-temp and to faster sections. The ups and downs in terms of intensity and melodic pulchritude is simply perfect. A song like "Eginbaal" shows that Esoctrilihum can be as heavy as any other band with a smashing rhythmic base, whose smashing double bass makes this song a particularly impressive one. As it happened with the album opener "Ezkihur", this track also has a remarkable work with the keys, which sound absolutely epic and absorbing. As you will appreciate in many moments the experimentation can appear anywhere, and the quite personal guitar melodies in the slowest part of this song shows that Esoctriliihum can mix both aspects of its sound in a natural way. These more bizarre melodies don´t sound out of place, but perfectly integrated in the song. "Dy`th" goes up the level of brutality as it has, again, a smashing work in the drumming part and the most brutal vocals of the album. In any case, it also has a very nice final part with another unique guitar melodies, that give to the song a necessary point of uniqueness, avoiding it to sound out of place. As the album advances, we will notice that each song has its own personality, and it is tastefully composed. You will find more or less brutality depending on it is needed or not, as it happens with the degree of experimentation. In any case, there no weak songs and as it has been, the arrangements are authentically masterful. The violins, the keys, or the organs like the ones we find in "Baal Duthr" are excellent, and you will enjoy each one. Vocally, Asthâghul has a rasped voice but not a high pitched one. His voice sounds rough, like a mid-point between the usual deep growls of death metal and the hight pitched screams of black metal. Anyway, he adapts his performance depending on the song as we hear him including some deeper growls in certain moments, or even clean vocals like it happens in "Baal Duthr", for example. Each instrument, and this includes the vocals, are used in its full potential to create complex and rich compositions, that must be tasted with time and attention.

My logic conclusion is that 'Dy'th Requiem for the Serpent Telepath' is an impressive album. There is little chance to complain about this work, maybe the fussy ones would complain about its length, and it is true that this album lasts much more than what I usually want. But believe me, the level inspiration and richness are worth of your time. Give it a chance and enjoy what is an album that shows how to be extreme, beautiful, and experimental at the same time. (Alain González Artola)

(I, Voidhanger Records - 2021)
Score: 88

https://i-voidhangerrecords.bandcamp.com/album/dyth-requiem-for-the-serpent-telepath

Tvaer - Uvaer

#FOR FANS OF: Black Metal

Tvaer is a quite new project founded four years ago in Minnesota, USA. It is currently a four-piece band, that just suffered a sole change in its short career. It seems to be composed by novel musicians as they don't have previous known projects, with the exception of the drummer. In these less than four years of existence, the project has been quite active releasing several demos and even a live album. Thanks to this activity and to a reasonably good potential, they have managed to release the debut album with the reputed underground label Bindrune Recordings, which is always a good sign.

'Uvaer' is the name of Tvaer’s debut and it is a ferocious declaration of black metal with a subtle atmospheric touch. Unlike other bands tagged as atmospheric black metal, Tvaer focuses much more on building a smashing wall of guitars, rather than creating intensively atmospheric compositions. This first opus consists of five tracks, where speed and aggression are occasionally accompanied by calmer moments which enrich the compositions. Even if Tvaer`s compositions have an aggressive nature, the expected atmospheric side of its music is still present, but with a subdued tone and in a form of more melodic guitar lines as it happens in tracks like "II", with the main riff that has an undeniable melodic tone. This second track and the following ones are fine examples of Tvaer’s strongest points, as guitar lines are excellently composed, with plenty of quite solid riffs varying from the more melodic ones to the more straightforwardly aggressive ones. In these tracks we can appreciate how the band varies its tempo adding some slower sections to the more common intensively fast ones. Another quite used resource in the album is to abruptly break the song in order to introduce some acoustic accords, that serve as momentary calm before the fury returns, also suddenly. These ingredients basically conform what Tvaer offers in this album, if we leave apart the much calmer closing track "V", and I must admit they are successively mixed and executed, although I miss a greater room for variation in the compositions as one could listen to these songs as a sole track, without noticing great changes. I think the band should make an extra effort adding more arrangements which could make easier to create more varied songs. This is the only great problem as riff-wise the performance is faultless and the rhythmic base sounds quite solid. Vocally, the work done by A.C is convincing with quite high-pitched screams, and even DSBM influenced desperate shrieks. He does also a nice job adding some clean vocals as a form of a background ghostly choir, which gives a nice atmospheric touch to a song like the remarkably inspired track "IV".

'Uvaer' is undoubtedly a quite solid beginning by Tvaer as it clearly has some strong points and overall a good work compositionally. As it usually happens with debut albums, the band needs to give a step forward in terms of variety, if it wants to create memorable pieces. The aforementioned "IV" is probably the best one in this aspect and should serve a good example for future releases. (Alain González Artola)

(Bindrune Recordings - 2021)
Score: 72

https://bindrunerecordings.bandcamp.com/album/uvaer 

Midnight Odyssey - Biolume Part 2 - The Golden Orb

#FOR FANS OF: Atmospheric Black

The Australian solo-project Midnight Odyssey has achieved a great reputation among the fans of atmospheric black metal since its impressive debut 'Funerals from the Astral Sphere', released in 2011. The project created by Dis Pater has shown since its inception, a tendence to release grandiose works, not only sonically, but also in its length. Midnight Odyssey’s works are not for impatient fans, due to its remarkably long songs and entire duration. Its first two works last around two hours, which means a lot of stuff to digest. Thankfully, the overall quality of those albums makes them a worthy listen, even though it is irremediable to find certain moments of dispersion in those compositions, especially in the longest songs. Listening carefully to a double album can be demanding and this requires tight compositions if you don´t want to sound scattered at certain moments. This happened here and there in those albums, although the conclusion was usually positive, because the positive aspects were superior to the negative ones. In any case, Midnight Odyssey and its mastermind appeared especially inspired, as maybe he had learned some lessons from the first works, when he released the first part of a new trilogy in 2019, the magnificent 'Biolume Part 1-In Tartarean Chains'. This album reached a new level in terms of quality. The length was no so long, even if it was more than 70 minutes long, and more important, the compositions were tight, focused and very well elaborated.

Two years later and having this first part in mind, Midnight Odyssey returns with a second half entitled 'Biolume Part 2-The Golden Orb'. The project’s trademark style and core-sound are still there, although Dis Pater has created this time a different beast. In contrast to the previous album, this opus has a brighter sound in general terms and undoubtedly it sounds more epic. This is indeed a truly majestic album and it shows a less dark side of MO’s soul, obviously related to the concepts developed for this second part of the current trilogy. One of the most important aspects that makes this album have a brilliant and epic one, is the much more generous use of the clean vocals, which have a shining role. The use of this kind of vocals occurs in almost all the tracks, though this does not mean that the extreme vocals are not there. Their presence is a fact, but this time the melodic voices have a greater presence leading to achieve an intended epic feeling. Songs like the opener "Drawn-Bringer" or the followings "The Saffron Flame" and "Unconquered Star", are mainly focused on those vocals, in the form of a sole clean voice or an epic choir. This use marks a great difference from the previous albums, making this new opus the most luminous one. The guitars and rhythmic-base follow similar patterns if we compare them to older works. Nevertheless, the guitars sound thinner this time, maybe due to the production, but I have the feeling that its production is not as crushing or dense as it was in the past. The difference is not enormous, but I can notice a change in this direction. The keys are unsurprisingly a key factor here. Like it happens with the vocals, this instrument plays an essential role in the search of a grandiose tone. The variety and quality in terms of key-based compositions is phenomenal. I am sure no one can complain about the keys, apart from preferring darker synthesizers than these ones. In any case, the opener "Dawn-Bringer" is just an example of how epic this album is. The keys are absolutely solemn and remind the most breath-taking film soundtracks. I can even feel a medieval touch in the arrangements used for tracks like "The Saffron Flame" or in the hypnotic beginning of "Below Horizon", which transports the listener to an ancient civilisation. Midnight Odyssey surely knows how to create a hypnotic and immersive sonic experience through its compositions. The most classic dark and space-related keys return for a quiet and beautiful final track entitled "When the Fires Cool", ideal for this vibrant journey.

Although I consider its predecessor a superior album, due to its incredibly focused compositions and greater balance in the use of the different vocals, 'Biolume Part 2-The Golden Orb' is also an impressive work. Perhaps, this album is not the dreamed work for those who desired more extreme vocals and a darker sound. In spite of this, the excellently achieved grandeur, the richness and the quality of the arrangements, make Midnight Odyssey’s last opus an excellent album and a must for every fan of atmospheric metal. (Alain González Artola)

(I, Voidhanger - 2021)
Score: 81

https://i-voidhangerrecords.bandcamp.com/album/biolume-part-2-the-golden-orb

Empyrium - Über den Sternen

#FOR FANS OF: Black/Doom/Folk

The German duo Empyrium is without any doubt one of the most personal and exquisite projects out there. The project, founded in 1994 in Bavaria (Germany), was from its early inception already a quite unique creature. Its personal and remarkably tasteful combination of neofolk influences and doom metal with epic touches, shocked the scene with it almost unbeatable inspiration and quality. Early works like 'A Wintersunset' and especially its sophomore masterpiece 'Songs of Moors & Misty Field', made this band a truly respected project. In this second opus the mixture of an intensely melancholic doom beauty and the folk influences was nearly perfect. Vocally, the band was also original with the combination of extreme vocals with baritone-esque voices, which gave an even stronger solemn and melancholic touch to its music. Afterwards, the band left behind the metal influences and focused sorely on folk and neo-folk sounds, which was a pity from a metalhead perspective, although the music continued to be very personal and excellent. With the band’s split-up, the classic members focused their efforts on new projects, though thankfully they returned some years ago with a slightly more modern yet tasteful opus 'The Turn of the Tides'. This effort didn´t receive a so warm welcome, although it pleased the fans in reasonable way.

Still, many fans deeply missed the early works of Empyrium and there was a cautious excitement when the band announced a new album entitled 'Über den Sternen', that was supposed to bring to black many influences from the classic works. This "back to the roots" is usually no more than a marketing strategy, but thankfully this hasn't be the case with Empyrium. I don´t imply that this is a replica of the early albums, but the influences are strong and completely present. A more modern touch in the production, already seen in the previous work, is still there, but as previously announced by the label, the doom metal and folk influences are back in a way we haven´t seen for a long time, and also the extreme vocals, largely missed by many metalheads. 'Über den Sternen' obviously tries to mix the most known two sides of Empyrium´s coin, the metal influences and the folk/neo-folk ones and they successfully do it. If I could complain about something from this album, it would be the following two aspects. Firstly, that the central part seems to be too focused on the softest and more folky influences, unbalancing the final result of the album. Secondly, maybe I had expected more shrieks based on my early impression from the first self-titled single. In any case, this is a magnificent album with many great tracks. The initial part is almost faultless with two compositions that bring us the best of their early works. The album opener "The Three Flames Sapphire", that has been presented with a beautiful video, is a perfect blend of the calmer and folk influenced side and the most metal one. The song evolves from its more folkie and melancholic start to a final heavier section as a delicate piece with a excellently executed ‘in crescendo’, just to end acoustically. The magnificent clean vocals with this baritone style and the undoubtedly nice flute are 100% Empyrium, and this means quality and style. The following track "A Lucid Tower Beckons on the Hills Afar" is a more metal oriented song, bringing back the best of Empyrium’s second and legendary album. The combination of extreme vocals, baritone voices and background vocals, alongside the always exquisite melodies, is a pleasure for the ears. The guitar lines vary from metal riffs to acoustic tones with elegance and naturalness as it happens with the intensity of the music. Doom metal and folkish music embrace together in a unique way. The central part of the albums focuses, as said before, much more on the folk side and though it does it with indubitable quality. The contrast with the rest of the album makes me feel think that another harder composition, would have been more than welcome between the purely calm songs like "Moonrise" and "The Archer". Its not a big deal, but I personally think that this would improve the overall impression and result of this album. The problem is not the neo-folk influenced tracks, but the impression that they are wrongly placed as they follow a song like "The Oaken Throne", which is still quite tranquil. The album recovers its initial momentum with the beautiful "The Wild Swans", once again the sophomore album’s greatness is back with an extraordinary track, that mixes with success the fury and the calm, the strength and the delicacy in one single composition. The album ends with the aforementioned self-titled song, that is undoubtedly a great way to end the album on a high. The final song summarizes all the trademark influences that have made Empyrium a so beloved and unique band. Pure elegance and beauty.

In conclusion, 'Über den Sternen' is an excellent work by Empyrium and aside minor complains from me side, this is a brilliant album. 'Über den Sternen' will make happy all Empyrium fans around the globe and should be a mandatory listen to all who like music made with taste. (Alain González Artola)

(Prophecy Productions - 2021)
Score: 85

https://empyrium.bandcamp.com/album/ber-den-sternen

Crypts of Despair - All Light Swallowed

#FOR FANS OF: Brutal Death Metal

Even though the Lithuanian scene is not one of the most well-known ones, it has always delivered some interesting bands. Personally, I had some previous experience with some black and doom metal bands, but this time is the moment to discover one of those obscure bands that plays a clearly more brutal style. Crypts of Despair is a four-piece founded almost twelve years ago, though the band required almost a decade to release its first effort entitled 'The Stench of the Earth'. This was a self-release with a good quality that made possible that the always prolific underground label Transcending Obscurity Records showed interest in them. So, thankfully we did not have to wait so much time and after three years, Crypts of Despair are going to release its sophomore effort 'All Light Swallowed'.

Crypts of Despair plays death metal with a modern and clearly brutal touch, although it doesn´t reach the level of relentless speed and brutality to be tagged as brutal death metal band. Anyway, the ferocity of its sound is out of discussion. 'All Light Swallowed' has a very strong production, dense and profound, which sounds totally professional and fits the style of the band. Stylistically, as said, this is a pure death metal with a modern touch as the guitars have a distinctive disharmonic touch, that makes them sound more chaotic and smashing. Here we can find two tips of vocals, deep growls combined with more high-pitched ones. Anyhow, the first ones have a greater room, but the combination of both is always an interesting touch of diversity. The album opener "Being-Erased" is a clear example of it, with maybe a greater presence of the screaming vocals in this case. This first opus is one of the fastest of the whole album, albeit it has some nice changes in the tempo, especially in the second half with the inclusion of some mid-tempo and even slower parts. This diversity of pace is a constant touch, even if we can always expect the speedy fury so common in this genre. In any case, Crypts of Despair likes to make a clear contrast between the sections full of blast-beasts and the much slower and heavy parts. We have plenty of examples like the excellent "Anguished Exhale" and "Synergy of Suffering", where the song evolves abruptly from super-fast sections to mid-tempo ones, and in these parts the double-bass sounds absolutely smashing. No one can deny that Crypts of Despair tries to extract all the potential from this formula and they actually do it in the right way, creating songs with an undeniably crushing sound and strength independently of the chosen pace. The album flows between tracks with this aforementioned formula, where the songs, whose structure maybe doesn’t differ that much, achieve a very effective combination of rhythmic changes, making this album a fun listen.

All in all, 'All Light Swallowed' is a super solid death metal album from a band that has done a good step forward in terms of production and refinement in its compositions. A refinement done to achieve a focused brutality, that will satisfy fans of modern death metal done right. (Alain González Artola)

(Transcending Obscurity Records - 2021)
Score: 74

https://cryptsofdespairdeath.bandcamp.com/album/all-light-swallowed-death-metal

Malice Divine - S/t

#FOR FANS OF: Death/Black

The global pandemic situation we all are suffering has nearly made impossible to enjoy live concerts, putting many bands under a difficult economic situation. On the other hand, many other bands, especially solo projects, are focusing more than ever on creating new music, prior to a hypothetical solution to this tricky situation. Malice Divine is a solo project hailing from Toronto, that took the advantage from such situation to give the final touches to its self-titled debut album, to be released this February. Ric Galvez, the musician behind this new act, had a previous band called Astaroth Incarnate. After leaving this band, he focused on composing a full album for his solo project, where we could have the creative control expressing in one project all his musical influences. Twenty-twenty was not obviously an easy year to record an album but with the support of a session drummer, he was able to record this opus, that combines black, death and thrash metal influences, always with a strong melodic touch.

Malice Divine´s self-titled album lasts almost an hour and it is indeed a melodic fest of excellently composed guitars. It is pretty clear that Ric has some classic influences when he draws the guitar lines, especially the frequent and well-executed solos, that have a remarkably vintage influence. As it is quite obvious, this is a guitar led album where the riffs play a shining role, flowing from more black metal influenced riffs to some death metal, thrash metal and even heavy metal ones. The guitars are excellently composed and executed with very well-crafted sections, that change frequently pace and intensity. With regards to the vocals, Ric’s voice is quite good, typically rasped and enough strong so as not to pale in comparison to the powerful rhythm base and guitars. The songs are quite varied in terms of pace, combining fast and medium sections with a remarkable naturalness. There are indeed some nice examples of relentless fury as we can enjoy in "Malicious Divinity". Other compositions like the short "Intuitive Realization" are not as fast as the aforementioned one, tough they don't lack the expected forcefulness. In any case, Malice Divine sounds more comfortable with mid-tempo sections full of intensity, with very powerful drums that create a relentless rhythmic section, making the songs sound stronger overall. "Ancient Visions" is probably the song with a clearer contrast between the fast sections, with blast-beasts and typically black metal influenced tremolo picking guitars and the calmer sections, making it the most personal composition of this album.

All in all, Malice Divine’s debut is a quite impressive first effort, that shows the great amount of work done by its mastermind. The well-made confluence of styles makes this album very appropriate for any fan of extreme metal. (Alain González Artola)

(Self - 2021)
Score: 80

https://malicedivine.bandcamp.com/releases

Grabunhold - Heldentod

#FOR FANS OF: Death/Black/Epic

The German band Grabunhold is a four-piece project created four years ago by extreme metal musicians and Tolkien lovers to merge both passions in a unique project. This combination is pretty well-known in the scene as black metal, alongside with power metal, has maybe been the subgenre with more bands influenced by the legendary writer. Anyway, these Tokien-esque lyrics are not the only source as some lyrics have a strong melancholic nature. The combination of both topics is undoubtedly something, which always can fit with the dark and powerful essence of black metal.

After a demo and a promising EP, the ensemble focused its efforts to release the always decisive debut album, which should show the project´s true potential. 'Heldentod' is the name of the beast and its firmly rooted in the most iconic elements of the black metal genre, with the always distinctive touch of the German scene, which usually has this effective mixture of fury, aggression and a yet melodic background in its music. We won't see a lot of it in the impetuous beginning of the album opener "Wolkenbruch über Amon Sul", with a furious and straightforward attack of some vicious vocals, merciless drums and sharp guitars. Regardless of it, as the song evolves, we can appreciate an increasing melodic touch in the guitars, occasionally accompanied by majestic clean vocals, which give an epic touch to a song that was initially pure brutality. This contrasted combination of elements define perfectly what Grabunhold offers in its debut album. As it happens quite usually, the longer tracks offer a greater scope to introduce more changes, influences and arrangements in the songs, being the ideal compositions to create more epic tracks. It happens with the first song, but this feeling is stronger in the excellent "Morgenröte am Pelennor" and in the final song "Der Einsamkeit Letzter Streiter". The first one includes some acoustic guitars, a tiptop melodic riffage and heroic clean vocals aligned with the lyrical theme, being at the end my favourite track of the album. The final song shares some characteristics with Pelennor’s song, though it has a more melancholic tone. In any case, these longer tracks allow to create compositions with more variations and the aforementioned epic touch. On the other hand, we can find more straightforward songs like "Hügelgräberhöhen" or "Fangorns Erwahen", which a quite sorter and therefore, they are focused on being fast and aggressive. Although we can appreciate that the riffing is still remarkable, it varies from darker tones to more melodic ones with a respectable naturalness.

Grabunhold’s debut 'Heldentod' is clearly a quite sold first effort and shows an interesting evolution in the band’s core sound. The expected German black metal style is there but it has a quite distinctive touch and balance which makes this opus a quite interesting and enjoyable experience. Personally, I prefer the longer tracks as per their epic touch showing the variety the band is capable of. (Alain González Artola)

(Iron Bonehead Productions - 2021)
Score: 76

https://ironboneheadproductions.bandcamp.com/album/grabunhold-heldentod

Hulder - Godslastering: Hymns of a Forlorn Peasantry

#FOR FANS OF: Raw Atmospheric Black

Hulder is a solo-project founded only two years ago by the Belgian musician Marz Riesterer who is currently located in Oregon, USA. From its inception the project showed some potential, combining raw black metal with some medieval influences, not only conceptually but also with some small musicial touches. Anyway, Hulder couldn't be defined as a pure medieval black metal project, at least in its first stage. In these two years, the project has been quite active releasing several demos, singles and a EP, always with a very raw production and a potential yet to be fully delivered.

Twenty-twenty has been a remarkable year for Hulder that finally released the debut album entitled 'Godslastering: Hymns of a Forlorn Peasantry' with the respected underground label Iron Bonehead Productions. This debut opus marks a great step forward in terms of composition and production and it is exactly what I was expecting from this project as a logical and needed musical evolution. 'Godslastering: Hymns of a Forlorn Peasantry' doesn't differ so much from the previous works but it is undoubtedly a more mature work. First of all, the production has still its rawness, but it is clearly cleaner and more powerful. All the instruments are much more audible and the sound is perfectly balanced. The compositions have an appropriate equilibrium between clearness and agression. Musically speaking, the songs are clearly rooted in the black metal genre, both instrumentally and vocally. Marz’s shrieks sound pretty rasped and powerful and they fit the music perfectly well. Pace-wise, the songs are generally fast though they have a good dose of tempo-changes with a quite well composed guitar lines, which sound archetypal but never boring or dull. The album opener "Upon Frigid Winds" is a nice example of well-composed riffs and a relentless pace, although thankfully the rhythm varies enough to prevent the song to become boring. Moreover, it has a nice and short atmospheric interlude in the middle of the song which gives a nice medieval touch to the track. The aforementioned medieval vibe is here clearly stronger if we compare it with previous releases. This feeling is achieved thank to different arrangements, like some keyboard sections in several songs, for example, the already mentioned album oponer, or traks like "Lowland Famine", among others. Other arrangements come in the form of acoustic guitars, like in the more calmed track "De Dilje", which serves as a peaceful moment in the middle of a sonic storm. These arrangements enrich the album making it has a credible medieval vibe, but they never overshadow the absolutely loyal black metal sound. The achieved balance is excellent and the expected aggressivity is well accompanied by these atmospheric touches, which improve the final result. Another nice example is the excellent track "A Forlorn Peasant’s Hymn", with a surprising calm and beautiful first half, where Marz also shows us her heavenly voice. This ethereal start is suddenly broken by a furious change, giving wat to a second full black metal part, where she shows its strenght, it is indeed a well-done great contrast.

'Godslastering: Hymns of a Forlorn Peasantry' is undoubtedly a excellent step forward in Hulder’s career. It stays loyal to its core sound as it shows a necessary improvement in terms of production, compositions and a stronger medieval atmosphere. Absolutely recommendable for fans of the black metal genre. (Alain González Artola)

(Iron Bonehead Productions - 2020)
Score: 82

https://www.facebook.com/HulderUS/

Revolting - The Shadow at the World’s End

#FOR FANS OF: Swedish Death, early Entombed, Edge of Sanity

The Swedish metal scene is undoubtedly one of the most prolific ones in almost every subgenre of this music. Moreover, if we speak specifically about death metal, no one will deny that this Scandinavian country has given to us some iconic bands, both in classic death metal and also in the more trendy melo death, with some notorious examples that we all know. It was during the '90s, when some bands forged what was a particular form of death metal, being its influence in the scene undoubtedly huge. From that time and including some highs and downs in the popularity and level of inspiration of the scene, new bands appeared playing this iconic form of music, staying loyal to this particular sound. The Swedish trio Revolting is one of them. The band was formed in 2008 and has maintained a very stable line-up, being quite active as the band has released seven albums, including the new opus 'The Shadow at the World's End'.

As mentioned, Revolting plays death metal in its purest essence. There is no need to add more adjectives like melodic, brutal o technical. Revolting's formula is clear and honest, and it includes all the main and expected features of the genre, including profound growls, a pretty heavy and strong wall of guitars, and a consistent rhythmic base. The new album doesn't differ from this formula, so if you want some great surprises or novelties, you will feel disappointed. On the contrary, if you want some strong stuff with the aforementioned characteristics, 'The Shadow at the World’s End' will be an album that you will enjoy for sure. This work is iconic also in its artwork, with this mysterious and dark painting depicted in the cover album, which I consider excellent. Starting from the opening track "Defleshed", you will notice that the band´s sound is totally linked to the genre core aspects. Rogga’s vocals are excellent with super consistent growls, exactly what the genre requires. Both the guitars and rhythmic base have a powerful and clear sound and thanks to the good production, they are very distinguishable. The guitar work is excellent, being equally crushing and diverse when it is needed. I would like to mention that some short, yet melodic solos are also introduced, giving a melodic touch to the overall dense sound of the band. Pace-wise the band’ compositions flow between mid-tempo sections and some faster or slower sections, but never falling into ultra-speedy sections, so typical in the brutal death metal scene. The cadence here always calls for a good session of headbanging. The second track, "1888", is a good example of it, varying from slightly faster to mid-tempo sections and some slow and super heavy sections, where the band sounds particularly well. "Dragged Back to the Cellar" is maybe more representative of the general pace of the album, being generally faster, but with a slower final section which sounds great. Apart from it, as said, the album has a slightly faster pace but with a controlled speed, giving room to implement some great riffs, the expected crude aggression and lite melodic touches here and there.

In conclusion, 'The Shadow at the World’s End' is a pretty consistent album, it won´t break the scene but it is a good addition to the band’s career and will please any fanatic of old school death metal. (Alain González Artola)

(Transcending Obscurity Records - 2020)
Score: 76

https://revoltingdeath.bandcamp.com/album/the-shadow-at-the-worlds-end-death-metal