Lepra – Devil’s Blood in Her Tongue (Review)

Lepra - Devil's Blood in Her TongueLepra are a black metal band from the US and this is their debut album.

In a fit of pure laziness on my part, I’m going to just reproduce a line from the promo blurb to set the scene for this release – “It is not your usual cup of black metal, this one has a unique blend of black punk/and roll, folk, goth rock, doom… All played with drums, bass, flute, endless keyboards, and duelling vocals.” Continue reading “Lepra – Devil’s Blood in Her Tongue (Review)”

Blut Aus Nord – ​Disharmonium – Nahab (Review)

Blut Aus Nord - ​Disharmonium - NahabThis is the fifteenth album from Blut Aus Nord, a French black metal band.

Blut Aus Nord have an enviable discography, (see Triunity, Memoria Vetusta III: Saturnian Poetry, Deus Salutis Meæ, Hallucinogen, and this new album’s direct predecessor – Disharmonium – Undreamable Abysses, as a few examples), and they’ve now already added to it again with the 44 minutes of new material that is Disharmonium – Nahab. Continue reading “Blut Aus Nord – ​Disharmonium – Nahab (Review)”

Wooden Throne – Eternal Wanderer of the Night Sky (Review)

Wooden Throne - Eternal Wanderer of the Night SkyThis is the second album from one-man Finnish black metal band Wooden Throne.

Brought to us by a member of October Falls, Eternal Wanderer of the Night Sky is a 34-minute atmospheric black metal album that incorporates elements of doom into its dark framework. Continue reading “Wooden Throne – Eternal Wanderer of the Night Sky (Review)”

Urfaust – Untergang (Review)

Urfaust - UntergangUrfaust are a black metal band from the Netherlands and this is their seventh album.

Untergang contains 38 minutes of idiosyncratic black metal. Urfaust craft music that has impressive worldbuilding properties, and on this album they excel at bringing their dark vision to life. Continue reading “Urfaust – Untergang (Review)”

Cvinger – Doctrines by the Figures of Črnobog (Review)

Cvinger - Doctrines by the Figures of ČrnobogCvinger are a Slovakian black metal band and this is their third album.

It’s been ten years since Cvinger’s debut EP Monastery of Fallen, so now seems like a good time to see what they’re up to on their third album. With a promo blurb that mentions bands like 1349, Marduk, Mayhem, Gorgoroth, and Morbid Angel, you have a pretty good starting point for Cvinger’s hostile, yet mood-rich assault. Continue reading “Cvinger – Doctrines by the Figures of Črnobog (Review)”

Nixil – From the Wound Spilled Forth Fire (Review)

Nixil - From the Wound Spilled Forth FireNixil are a US black metal band and this is their second album.

From the Wound Spilled Forth Fire presents us with 43 minutes of black metal that is intimately acquainted with a darker side of the style that’s both vicious and mood-rich. Continue reading “Nixil – From the Wound Spilled Forth Fire (Review)”

Pyrkagion – The Katechon and the Unending Fire (Review)

Pyrkagion - The Katechon and the Unending FireThis is the debut EP from US black metal band Pyrkagion.

The Katechon and the Unending Fire is a 26-minute EP consisting of two tracks. Brought to us by members of Bell Witch, Human Effluence, and Hissing, Pyrkagion deliver a strong lesson in modern black metal. Continue reading “Pyrkagion – The Katechon and the Unending Fire (Review)”

The Circle – Of Awakening (Review)

The Circle - Of AwakeningThe Circle are a German black metal band and this is their second album.

Of Awakening is a 33-minute black metal album of sorts that incorporates elements of doom, ambient, symphonic, and post-black metal. While black metal is the obvious tag for this, and it’s superficially the correct one, it doesn’t tell the whole story of Continue reading “The Circle – Of Awakening (Review)”

Nordicwinter – This Mournful Dawn (Review)

Nordicwinter - This Mournful DawnThis is the seventh album from Canadian one-man black metal act Nordicwinter.

After enjoying 2020’s Desolation and 2021’s Sorrow, I was pleased to see This Mournful Dawn appear. I was then surprised when I subsequently found out that the artist has released two other Nordicwinter albums between Sorrow and this new one! Has being this prolific impacted upon quality levels since I last encountered this act? Continue reading “Nordicwinter – This Mournful Dawn (Review)”

Earthen Altar – Earthen Altar (Review)

Earthen Altar - Earthen AltarThis is the debut album from US black metal band Earthen Altar.

Earthen Altar play nature-inspired atmospheric black metal informed by the Cascadian style., but not restricted to it. Earthen Altar contains three tracks with a total duration of 27 minutes. Before we start, prepare yourself, as this is a colossally strong release. Continue reading “Earthen Altar – Earthen Altar (Review)”