This is the latest release from Danish black metallers Arkæon.
Originally a demo that came out last year, Når Bjerge Bliver til Støv is being unleashed anew, with an extra song, bringing its total duration to 29 minutes. Arkæon caught my eye by containing a member of Tongues, but seem more than capable of standing on their own merits.
Når Bjerge Bliver til Støv is a raging inferno of blistering wrath. It’s raw and harsh, but not without melody or atmosphere, albeit of jagged, warped varieties. The songs are serrated and dark, delivering a fierce outpouring of venomous aggression across each track.
Arkæon’s music hovers between chaos and order. It’s riven with seething dissonance and tumultuous melody, while also diving deep into black metal’s esoteric darkness to conjure forth atmospheric anarchy and geysers of emotive colour. Cold and unforgiving it may be, but it’s also a many-hued eruption of melodic uproar that celebrates entropy and embraces mayhem.
The songs control and channel these furious esoteric energies as best they can, to varying degrees of success. Occasionally the band tame their frenzied impulses long enough to craft a coherent display of blackened worldbuilding, but mostly they unleash savage Hell on the listener, clawing and biting from multiple angles with their mercilessly cruel assault. The drummer in particular seems Hellbent on punishing everyone and everything with an inhuman display of chaotic brutality.
The important thing is – it all works. Arkæon’s black metal seems unstructured and unrestrained, but there’s a method to this madness. There’s a skeleton of traditional black metal beneath Når Bjerge Bliver til Støv, it’s just been fleshed out with a compelling mix of unbridled raging savagery, rippling melodic sharpness, and grim blackened extremity.
Highly recommended for fans of near-unhinged black metal that’s controlled enough to deliver a worthwhile listening experience.
Wonderbox Metal 