Antzaat – For You Men Who Gaze into the Sun (Review)

Antzaat are a Belgian black metal band and this is their debut album.

I derived a lot of enjoyment from 2017’s The Black Hand of the Father, which was a solid slice of second wave malice. We now turn to For You Men Who Gaze into the Sun, with its 45 minutes of distorted darkness.

Antzaat’s music is of the classic occult black metal school, and the band clearly know their subject very well indeed. These songs are soaked in darkly blackened vibes, the sort that should be familiar to anyone who knows the style. However, the key here is the quality of the music, rather than how original it is, and Antzaat have this sussed; they know how to write songs that leave a mark.

The band’s use of engaging melodies is striking, and they burrow into your brain easily and effortlessly. With furious aggression and frosted atmosphere these songs will slay you, and you will thank them for it. For You Men Who Gaze into the Sun has a powerful instant appeal as it reaches out with its melodic claws to grab hold of you. Scything blackened rhythms and pummelling drums smash you down as the singer’s grim screams and howls lacerate your flesh.

For me, it’s incredibly hard to dislike something as well-played and considered as this is. Despite my undeniable soft spot for the classic blackened sound though, Antzaat are a particularly capable and enjoyable example of the style, and I heartily implore you to not sleep on this. For You Men Who Gaze into the Sun has a lot to offer fans of old-school black metal.