LVTHN are a Belgian black metal band and this is their second album.
LVTHN play occult black metal that’s dark and obscure. The Devil’s Bridge contains 43 minutes of their esoteric brand of sonic violence, delivering both an aggressive blackened assault and grim ritualistic atmosphere.
For an initial idea of where LVTHN are coming from, think of a mix of bands such as Antaeus, Aosoth, Black Curse, Funeral Mist, Misþyrming, Spirit Possession, and Teitanblood. It’s only a rough starting point, but should give you the general idea. LVTHN are their own malefic masters though, and have a ghastly voice all of their own.
The songs on The Devil’s Bridge are lethal and serrated, with an edge of malice that cuts through the toughest defences. The music courses with venomous toxins that mean even the slightest damage caused is fatal. Arcane mystery permeates everything, thoroughly coating the cruel intensity of the music in mood-dense tension and darkness. LVTHN are a band that take no prisoners. These tracks are potent exemplars of deeply felt ferocity married to inscrutable auras. LVTHN are skilled at channelling violence, but do so with an atmospheric shroud that cloaks their hostility in threat and menace.
The Devil’s Bridge is awash with poisoned melodies and warped distortion. Guitars both cursed and abstruse power the songs, although LVTHN also occasionally unleash forceful riffs that hook themselves firmly in your flesh ahead of the main assault. Combined with the punishing drums and daemonic screams, LVTHN build the songs up into something that exists in a state of rarefied intensity.
The vocals primarily consist of the aforementioned screams, but the singer does have a wider repertoire of vocals than this, and these are used well. Also of note though is the fact that the bass can actually be heard making a valuable contribution in key places, casting webs of corruption across the rest of the music. The latter part of Cacodaemon is a great example of this.
The Devil’s Bridge is a hymn to ruin and darkness, and it’s an extremely satisfying and enjoyable one. LVTHN offer hardened adherents of underground black metal a world of fierce intensity and esoteric atmosphere to explore.
Very highly recommended.
Wonderbox Metal 