Black metal – Page 168 – Wonderbox Metal

Spectral Lore – III (Review)

This is the fourth album from Greek Black Metallers Spectral Lore.

Spectral Lore play atmospheric Black Metal which courses with malevolence and a feeling of exploration without too much experimentation.

The songs are long, (as indeed is the album at just under 90 minutes), and they’re not afraid to develop their Progressive and Ambient sides. Well, I say “they” but Spectral Lore is actually only one person, which makes this album even more impressive.

The songs have a good amount of interest and variety during their long playing time which is essential for a work such as this. The Blackened melodies slip out of the speakers and the howling vocals are perfectly judged.

Even the bass is audible and does its own thing irrespective of the guitars in a rare show of autonomy.

Each track is emotive and lavishly bestowed with depth and character. A classic and masterfully judged recording harks back to the early glory days of the genre when Black Metal was already straining at the seams of its genre definitions but had yet to burst out completely. The sound in general is reminiscent of early Emperor and Satyricon and evokes nostalgic feelings whilst simultaneously earning it a stamp of high quality.

II is a veritable work of Black Metal art. It’s worth investing in this as its true value will only increase in time.

Lysura – II (Review)

Coming form the US, Lysura play Black Metal and this is their latest release.

II has two tracks, each clocking in at 8:41. This is Dissection-inspired Black Metal with a hint of Emperor.

Seasons in Exile starts off with some soft sounds and a gruff spoken voice barely audible. This slowly and inexorably builds to a rather grand set of riffs and noises reminiscent of Enslaved.

Once the song speeds up the screeching high vocals take the fore and we’re in icy cold territory with some bleak melodics and just a subtle hint of Thrash. Some Doom and even proto-Death Metal passages are allowed into the song enhancing it with their presence.

The second track Tome of Suppression starts with a rumbling, chuggy groove with razor blade vocals propelling it forwards before dropping off into lighter atmospherics with some almost 70’s noodling going on. Things soon get heavy again and add in a few Classic Metal riffs and we’re good to go.

The track demonstrates Lysura’s competence in weaving in small snippets of other genres into their sound without neglecting or weakening the Black Metal core that they’re founded on. Like the first one, this track is a winner.

II has a good energy about it and the band seem comfortable with their songwriting skills, even throwing in solos and leads.

Although this is billed as a demo the sound quality is perfectly fine for the most part and doesn’t get in the way of the enjoyment factor at all.

This is the kind of Black Metal that it’s easy to like; even within the given framework Lysura provide enough variety and interest to sustain and have enough depth of composition to ensure they aren’t written off lightly.

They have yet to release a full album, but when they do it’ll probably by a stormer.

Check this out.

Streaming here – http://www.metalunderground.com/news/details.cfm?newsid=102767

Valdrin – Beyond the Forest (Review)

This is the debut release from US Black Metallers Valdrin.

Valdrin play Melodic Black Metal; if you think of Dissection, Old Man’s Child, Dimmu Borgir and Emperor as your starting points you’ll get the right idea.

That’s not to say this is overly symphonic or orchestrated though; Valdrin may tip their toe in that genre of Black metal but they firmly live on the darker, harsher side of the Melodic Black Metal spectrum.

The orchestration and effects they employ are subtler than the more overt side of Dimmu Borgir and even Emperor, and are mere enhancements to the songs rather than the driving force.

The band know how to effortlessly mix aggression and melody, and have a good amount of variety in their compositions for this genre. They even employ a few solos; unusual for Black Metal but a very welcome addition.

The pure-blooded Black Metal vocals work well and complement the darkness of the music.

This is atmospheric Black Metal with none of the pomp and plenty of bite. It’s good to hear a few bands playing this style recently and bringing back the good old days of harsher Black Metal whilst still retaining some melodies and a sense of atmosphere.

Highly enjoyable.

Favourite Track: Beyond the Forest. Epic and empowering.

Dimholt – Liberation Funeral (Review)

Dimholt are a Bulgarian Black Metal band. This is their début album.

This is abrasive Black Metal with an aggressive edge.

The band have carefully crafted these 10 songs into a dark piece of Blackened art ready to spread ice to the warmest of hearts.

Dimholt may frequently play at speed but there’s always time for a frigid atmosphere to be developed. They also slow the pace when needed though to take advantage of subtler melodies and some nuanced riffing.

The band have an interesting line in Black Metal riffs, with a few atypical ones rearing their heads and enhancing their songs. Chaos Reborn is one example of many, where one of the riffs in particular has quite a Rockabilly feeling to it almost, albeit all Black Metalled up.

The vocals are scathing and full of icy hate, as befits this style of music. Dimholt also inject some cleaner vocals into the mix on occasion and these sound quite grand and impressive. It’s all very good stuff.

A full and impressive sound rounds the entire package off, and this is a Black Metal album that’s easy to fall for.

Top quality Black Metal. Check it out.

Black Anvil – Hail Death (Review)

Black Anvil are from the US and this is their third album of Black Metal.

As the first song Still Reborn slowly unfolds you know you’re in for a treat. There is a Thrash influence to the band that allows their songs to have somewhat of an epic feel to them rather akin to classic Metallica; cross this with an expansive Black Metal feeling the likes of which Enslaved create, (minus Viking influences), and give this whole idea a frozen Black Metal makeover and you’ve an idea of where Black Anvil are coming from.

Initial impressions? …And Justice For All being slowly eaten by Mardraum – Beyond the Within. High praise indeed.

And some of these riffs! Dear me. Excuse me while I have a sit down and compose myself. The band have obviously hit their stride with this album; each song is a powerful collection of riffs, solos, ideas, emotive passages and pulse-raising sections. The overall song is never sacrificed for any of these though, and each track is a delight.

The main vocals are Black Metal screams done in an Enslaved style, while additional vocals consist of everything from gang shouts to mystical cleans.

At over an hour and eleven minutes of music this never gets old or stale; Black Anvil have a lot to offer the listener and it’s easy to get sucked into their world.

A warm, organic production complements the songs and allows them to get under your skin and into your brain. There’s something particularly satisfying about the drum sound especially.

This is an exceptional album written by people who appear to be channelling the essential essence of Metal. This album deserves to be in your collection.

Black Anvil are just too good!

Narbeleth – A Hatred Manifesto (Review)

This is the second album from Cuban Black Metal band Narbeleth.

This is the real deal – proper underground Black Metal come to terrorize and destroy all you hold dear.

At just over 30 minutes in length it doesn’t mess around; 7 original hymns and a Urgehal cover.

A glance at the song titles and you know what you’re getting. There’s not much mistaking a band with a song called Posercorpse.

But what about the music? It’s Blacker than Black with a better recording than you might expect, which lends the songs an air of freedom to breathe in their skins. A satisfying snare sound and a cold but vital guitar tone seals the deal.

The band play plenty of blast beats but also slow down when necessary to foster an icy, unholy air with twisting melodics; Land of the Heathen being a good example, especially as it unexpectedly features clean vocals. But then Narbeleth likes to throw in the odd unexpected move here and there; such as the guitar solo in Nihilistic Propaganda.

This is exactly what you want from Black Metal.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Narbeleth/369227176434482

Wrong – Pessimistic Outcomes (Review)

Wrong are a Black Metal band from Spain and this is their second album.

Created by two people; one from a Thrash Metal background and one from a Technical Death Metal background. From these unlikely roots an album has grown which is surprising in that it is both the epitome of what is meant to be but also pleasingly fresh and full of morbid life.

Wrong play creepy, fragile, melancholic Black Metal with a depressive/nihilistic edge akin to some of the work by Xasthur and Leviathan only not quite as minimalistic and with more of a Paradise Lost/Katatonia/etc. influence to some of the Doomier riffs; think Forgotten Tomb for some of the parts in fact.

The songs are long compositions and have many different facets to their delivery, from fast and sharp to slow and misery-laden. It’s an approach that serves them well.

The sound is suitably fuzzy and Blackened but it has a solid backbone of precise, focused drumming that grounds the band no matter what they’re playing.

Wrong take you on a Blackened nihilistic journey through the underworld, tastefully underscored by some subtle riffing and even subtler effects that hide underneath the torrent of darkness and the pounding drums.

Pessimistic Outcomes takes me back to prime-time 00’s underground Black Metal and all the associated feelings it has for me. This is a great album full of bleak melodics and nuanced moments propelled forwards by some powerful drumming, expressive riffing and scathing, slicing vocal emanations.

If you only have a choice of one album full of emotive Black Metal this month then make it Wrong.

Obsequiae – Suspended in the Brume of Eos (Review)

Obsequiae are from the US and play melodic Black Metal.

This is dark and atmospheric Black Metal with a strong medieval feel and influence to the melodies. Said melodies are thick and emotive, swallowing the listener and transporting them to another century.

Frequent interludes intersperse the songs, adding to the medieval theme of the album. These mini sagas add great feeling to an album already awash with melodic entreaties.

The rasped Black Metal vocals seem to glide out of the layered guitars, piercing the tuneful riffs with a harsh reality check before they quickly recover like nothing happened and it’s back in time we go once more. Not that they had Metal back in ye olde times of course, but if they had…

Imagine Dissection had they embraced the aforementioned medieval influence, this should give you a good idea of where Obsequiae are coming from.

The sound seems to flow organically and the riffs are like liquid nature distilled to their Blackest essence and allowed to root deep in the mind of the listener.

Obsequiae grow there, in the dark, quietly taking shape until they cannot be removed. Listen to Obsequiae and one day you’ll know what I mean.

Despot – Satan in the Death Row (Review)

Despot come from Brazil and play Black Metal.

This is Old-School Black Metal with a distinct streak of personality and individuality about it. The core is of the 80’s/early 90’s Black Metal fused with an unusual album art/band logo and with added musical flourishes such as a few more modern moments and unexpected guitar solos/leads.

Subtle keyboard embellishments haunt the tracks like a ghost of forbidden memory just playing around the edges of perception. It’s almost like it’s not there, but you can definitely sense something on the outskirts of hearing.

The riffs are interesting and inventive and the general structure of the songs is an impressive homage to all things dark Metal. The band use melody well and manage to infuse the tracks with a sense of wonder and awe in addition to the usual Black Metal trappings.

Not content with this there are some Celtic Frost influences at play here as well as a bit of a Death/Morbid Angel-inspired Death Metal influence on occasion. They even flirt with some almost sci-fi touches now and then.

The songs are ambitious and as the above description shows they are not afraid to throw different influences into the blender. It all works.

The same is true of the vocals; although primarily an Old-School Black Metal croak there are also deeper grunts and cleaner utterances as well as shouting and chanting.

The sound is authentically Old-School and could in fact be some long-lost gem from decades ago.

This is a top-of-the-line Metal album with lots to draw the listener in and keep them enraptured. This is one Despot to be listened to attentively.

Norse – Pest (Review)

Norse come from Australia and play Technical Black Metal.

Their latest EP is 6 tracks and 26 minutes in length; a decent amount to get your teeth into.

From the onset they’re striking with a bold sound and unusual riffing. Encoded Weakness is atypical Black Metal with interesting riffs stopping, starting, squealing and blasting. The vocals are snarled growls of Blackened hatred.

The rest of the songs follow in a similar pattern – it’s Black Metal but played in an unusual way that gives a very fresh interpretation of the genre, whilst still remaining recognisable as Black Metal. Irradiator is a great example – the riffs slide and slither over each other in serpentine ways delivering a refreshing listening experience.

The band have an excellent grasp of dynamics, songwriting and riff-construction. This, combined with flawless delivery and a strong, oily, sinuous production mean this EP is a real treat.

Highly talented. Australia once more proves it is a leader in the Metal scene when it comes to producing innovative and interesting Metal.

https://www.facebook.com/norse.official