A journey to the kryptik kingdom
THE KRYPTIK: A Journey To The Darkest Kingdom Release year: 2023Label: Purity Through Fire I was recently made aware of the “genre” of blue castle black metal: albums with a blue tinted cover artwork depicting majestic mountains, vast forests, gloomy … Continue reading A journey to the kryptik kingdom
Amidst Kvad’s thunder and demonic ecstasy
KVAD: So Old Release year: 2023Label: Purity Through Fire As anyone and everyone will know, Norwegian black metal is a bit of a thing. Not just the fact that once upon a time, a bunch of Norwegian teens spearheaded the … Continue reading Amidst Kvad’s thunder and demonic ecstasy
From the Vaults #1: Suomi Finland Perkele
“Synnyin tappamaan/Aiheuttamaan tuhoa/Tuottamaan tuskaa/moderni messias” So begins Vitutuksen multihuipennus, the first track proper of Finnish black metal act Impaled Nazarene’s third album Suomi Finland Perkele from 1994. And to me, like many kids of my age, it was my introduction … Continue reading From the Vaults #1: Suomi Finland Perkele
Through ordeals to triumph?
LÄJÄ ÄIJÄLÄ AND ALBERT WITCHFINDER: Triumph & Ordeal Release year: 2023Label: Svart Records When speaking of legends within Finnish extreme music, they don’t come much more legendary than Läjä Äijälä. Vocalist and band leader of hardcore pioneers Terveet Kädet (whose … Continue reading Through ordeals to triumph?
Like ghosts among the ruins
SACRENOIR: Comme Des Revenants Parmi Les Ruines Release year: 2023Label: Sepulchral Productions Hot on the heels of yesterday’s review of Trépas’ new album Les Ombres Malades (here), we continue our foray into Canadian territory. Sacrenoir might be a somewhat newer … Continue reading Like ghosts among the ruins
The sickly shadows of death
TRÉPAS: Les Ombres Malades Release year: 2023Label: Sepulchral Productions On their 2007 album F.O.A.D., Norwegian black metal legends Darkthrone had a song called Canadian Metal – a tribute to the 80’s metal classics of Canada, but also a sort of … Continue reading The sickly shadows of death
Ages of ascendancy for the servant
SERVANT: Aetas Ascensus Release year: 2023Label: MDD Records Servant, the German “black metal sensation”, eh? Promising to deliver an “unmatched black metal experience” on this, their second album, in part due to the “authentic vocals.” Yes, I am once again … Continue reading Ages of ascendancy for the servant
Extraterrestrial avulsion
AVULSED: Extraterrestrial Carnage Release year: 2023Label: Xtreem Music It’s been a while since long-running Spanish death metal act Avulsed released anything – six years in fact. As such, this fresh new release will probably not sate the thirst of old … Continue reading Extraterrestrial avulsion
Deimhal’s grand gathering
DEIMHAL: The Grand Gathering Release year: 2023Label: self-released One somewhat curious phenomenon is that of black metal projects by middle aged members of bands with more renown. There’s no shortage of these, and typically these projects don’t look to the … Continue reading Deimhal’s grand gathering
Corpsessed’s live grotesquery
CORPSESSED: Skeletal Grotesquery Release year: 2023Label: Krucyator Productions Live albums are something of a tricky thing to review. For the most part, live albums are essentially pure fan service, giving something to the fans they’ll hopefully appreciate. Very rarely does … Continue reading Corpsessed’s live grotesquery
Only Death Is Real 