Darkthrone – Page 8 – Wonderbox Metal

Hegemone – Luminosity (Review)

Hegemone are from Poland and play Post-Black Metal. This is their début album.

With an album cover that promises mystery and rich rewards to those who reveal the music within, this is an album that doesn’t give up its secrets lightly. Even when they’re being overt there are hidden delights to be had here.

Luminosity is a sprawling album stretched across 6 tracks of dark Post-Black Metal with a good amount of Sludge thrown in for good effect.

The guitars sound like they’re coated in tar and the melodies are Blackened and deep. It’s a surprisingly heavy affair and the Sludge influence to their sound allows the band to get away with all sorts of mischief under its banner.

The vocals barks forth brutal noises over music that can be either harsh or beautiful depending on the mood of the band. The music itself may be capable of subtlety and nuance but his is a commanding presence that demands attention and floors all in front of him.

At times recalling second-wave Black Metal, at others recalling the darker side of Post-Metal in a Cult of Luna style; this is a heavier and Sludgier proposition than a lot of Post-Black Metal out there. Yes, they are perfectly capable of creating atmospheric and awe-inspiring musical soundscapes, (and they do), but they also like to make sure that the good old Darkthrone/Satyricon groove is felt to full effect when needed.

There are moments of unbridled creativity and flair displayed on these songs as well. Unexpected delights include appearances by a saxophone that don’t sound incongruous and rivals anything artists like Ihsahn have used.

This is a very accomplished, ambitious and rewarding listen. Hegemony have put together something special that they should be proud of.

This is a cold-hearted gem that’s just waiting to be discovered.

Tarnkappe – Tussen Hun En De Zon (Review)

Tarnkappe are from the Netherlands and this is their début album.

As soon as it starts it makes an impression. The band have the classic-era Darkthrone/Burzum feel in spades and I can’t help but get a bit excited. It may be an old style but it’s a very welcome and enjoyable one.

Their cold-hearted Black Metal has a great sound that’s raw and organic whilst retaining a clarity and strength about it. Quite simply they sound fantastic.

The vocals are evil croaks that are genre-perfect and adequately portray the evil and disgust that’s spewed out. They also sound suitably demoniacally demented on occasion. It’s a flawless Old-School delivery that fits the music perfectly and the entire package is authentic and historically accurate.

Tarnkappe are their own masters though and are not simply Darkthrone clones. This is an album which has a darkness all of its own and the songs fill me with a deeply personal satisfaction in that special grim way that only Black Metal can.

Listening to this album is a real joy. The Blackened melodies and mid-paced icy rhythms have infected the pleasure centres of my brain and won’t stop.

It’s not new, it’s not perfect but it’s Old-School Black Metal through and through. If you still enjoy this style then you’ll enjoy Tarnkappe.

Myrkur – Myrkur (Review)

Myrkur is a one woman Black Metal project from Denmark. This is her début EP.

Myrkur combines the rawness and bleakness of second-wave Black Metal with ambient and atmospheric sounds to create frostbitten and ice-filled sonicscapes that scar the imagination and enchant the brain.

Ethereal clean female vocals and raw Black Metal mix in such a way that helps the music to transcend the usual genre constraints and become something greater than the sum of its parts.

There are medieval influences to some of the guitar sounds, (when they’re not wrapped in grim darkness of course), and even a touch of the Post-Metal/Post-Black Metal on occasion.

Think a pared down Wolves in the Throne Room, or a more atmospheric Darkthrone, or a less synth-powered Vinterriket; add angelic female vocals and this is the space Myrkur inhabit. It’s not all beauty however as she can also scream and shriek with the best of them when needed.

It’s rare that you find harsh Black Metal skilfully interweaved with music that’s atmospheric and epic in scope. Here the two are thoughtfully and flawlessly intertwined. Usually this is only accomplished by the elite and cream-of-the-crop bands like Agalloch.

Add to this a softer feminine touch that usually, if incorporated into Metal at all, just sounds tacked on; here it’s an integral, fully embedded and realised part of the Myrkur experience.

And to think, this is only a début EP. Imagine what she can do with a full album of material? The mind boggles. The mind can’t wait.

Sterbenzeit – L’Oltrenotte (Review)

Sterbenzeit are from Italy and play Black Metal. This is their second album.

This is raw Black Metal with slight ostentation mixing the style of early-era bands such as Dimmu Borgir, Darkthrone and Satyricon.

There are no keyboards so the ostentation comes in the form of some of the guitars – the band’s riffs are highly atmospheric; the impression of mystery and of a boundlessly vast and uncaring cosmos is a powerful one.

Blackened rhythms and icy melodies propel the songs and I really like the fact that the band have succeeded in creating atmosphere with dark riffs alone.

The drums are low-key but prominent enough to be a integral part of the songs. The bass is very subtle but is actually audible beneath the fuzzy guitars. It provides a bedrock of support for the tracks and shouldn’t be discounted.

The shrieking screams of the vocalist accompany the music and are befitting the style they play. It’s a standard Black Metal scream but it’s done well and there are no complaints from me about it; his voice scrapes and bleeds Blackened aggression and passion for the cause.

L’Oltrenotte is true to the early Black Metal style and the band have created a worthy piece of Black Metal art.

Skiddaw – Skiddaw (Review)

Skiddaw are from the UK and play Black Metal.

Skiddaw offer us 4 tracks across 13 minutes of Black Metal.

The first track Skiddaw Forest is a short opener that’s Blackly melodic and suitably raw and frostbitten. It does its job amiably and whets the appetite for the show to begin proper. Nice use of bass, also.

Skiddaw Towers follows this with a scream. Skiddaw have a classic Black Metal sound that’s somewhere between Darkthrone and Mayhem and this song does both of these spiritual parents proud. The track rumbles along with menace and a solid double bass foundation.

The third track is named Gates of Beleth and is faster then the previous tracks with a winding riff leading the way before descending into murkier climes. There’s a sense of urgency and escape, as if being pursued by something unnameable and indescribable. Enjoyably raw, with the vocals in particular sounding especially savage on this song.

Finally we have Even Titans Fall which is even faster, more melodic and has a touch of Satyricon about it. It’s a good closer and leaves you wanting more.

Skiddaw have an energetic and enticing sound that’s bleak, windswept and icy; just how Black Metal should be.

Check them out.

Ondfødt – Hexkonst (Review)

Ondfødt are a Finnish Black Metal band and this is their début album.

This is Old-School, underground and raw Black Metal that clutches influences from both the Norwegian and Swedish scenes in its grim claws.

The band utilise a firm Old-School Darkthrone-esque base that they start off from and they incorporate other elements into this. Not content with merely copying their heroes they inject their own personality into the album and add their own touches to the style.

The vocals are Black Metal rasps for the main part. These are punctuated by Viking-styled heroic cleans, forceful semi-cleans, unhinged screaming and pretty much everything in between on occasion as well. It adds up to a full package of quite characterful vocals.

The production may be raw and fuzzy but not overly so. The band have a good dark sound suited to this style and the guitars make the most of it.

Energetic dark melodies form the lion’s share of the riffs and the songs tear along nicely under their self-created veil of Blackened hatred.

This style of raw Black Metal is an easy style to do but it’s also an easy style to be bad or boring at as it essentially all comes down to the quality of the riffs, for the main part anyway. Ondfødt are neither bad nor boring and have managed to congeal a good collection of riffs into a good collection of songs. They then add to this with some strong drumming and a vocalist who certainly puts 100% into his performance. The end result is that Hexkonst is a worthwhile listen and manages to avoid being a Darkthrone clone by virtue of the band’s personality and strength of will.

Block out the sun and have a listen.

Hellhate – Retsonretap (Review)

Hellhate are a Black Metal band from the Ukraine, and this is their début EP.

This is a short EP at only 15 minutes but it functions as a good introduction to the band.

Hellhate have a raw sound that is nonetheless clear and functional. It wraps darkness around the already grim riffs and holds them tight.

The high pitched rasps are demonic and maniacal, giving the impression of an angry imp not entirely dissimilar to the cover.

Each song is a good collection of Black Metal riffs in the Old-School style mixing Darkthrone and Satyricon with a even a little hint of Black Sabbath now and again to the guitars.

Hellhate seem just as comfortable playing slowly as they do when blasting, and they do both producing a well-rounded release that I have really enjoyed.

When they blast they sound tight and focused and when they get a good Black Metal groove going then it’s all I can do to keep still while I’m listening. Up to the Stench is a particularly good example of when the band exhibit both traits in an extremely satisfying way.

It may be little more than a taster EP but this is the kind of Black Metal that it’s easy to like; simple, well-written and evil. If you like Black Metal you can’t fail to like Hellhate.

Mortals – Cursed to See the Future (Review)

Mortals are from the US and play Black Metal. This is their second album.

This is a Crusty form of Black Metal that takes the Darkthrone sound and kind of crosses it with a band like High on Fire to create something a bit different yet recognisable instantly.

This is an album of long songs that are primitive but not in a negative way. There is a sort of primal power to the riffs and energy that the band offer the listener.

The vocals are serrated rasps that call out to the darkness and the terror within. They’re ably produced and a satisfying listen, the same of which can be said for the album as a whole really.

The song lengths give the Darkthrone-esque riffs time to germinate and seed, allowing the band to develop them fully.

The tracks are bleakly emotive and hit the spot whether the band are playing fast and sharp, slow and dirge-like or mid-paced and rocking. Whatever, it all hinges around razor sharp riffing and a guitar tone to die for.

A very nice release indeed. Old-School Black Metal with a helping of Sludge and arrogance. Just what the doctor ordered.

Septekh – Plan For World Domination (Review)

Septekh are from Sweden and play Death/Thrash Metal with a Blackened edge.

Based on the album cover I was expecting something a bit calmer than this, but what bursts from the speakers when the first song Into the Void of My Mind starts is a frenetic and excitable beast covered in spikes and claws.

This reminds me of a mix of bands like Darkthrone, Audio Pain and Aura Noir, with the stylistic nature and playfulness of a band like Die Apokalyptischen Reiter.

The vocals are straight form the nails-down-a-blackboard school of throat shredding. They do the job well and manage to avoid the faceless nature of this kind of vocals by having a clear identity and personality behind the bark.

At an hour in length this is a long release with a lot of content to digest. This album works best over repeated spins though as it takes a while for the Blackened melodies and rhythmic patterns to imprint themselves on the psyche. But imprint they do as first and foremost these tracks are songs and as such have hooks and catchiness more than you would expect for a band of this ilk. Death/Thrash/Black they may be, but there’s a firm core of out and out Rock running through this album.

Satisfying and enjoyable, Septekh have produced a solid slab of Metal that will have you coming back for more, again and again. Perhaps world domination isn’t as unlikely as you first thought…?

https://www.facebook.com/septekh

Suffering – Chaosatanas (Review)

This is the first EP from Polish Black Metallers Suffering.

They blast off straight away into hyper-speed Satanic Black Metal with fingernail-scraping vocals and a sound that can kill small animals.

They also know when to slow down though and lock into a prime Darkthrone-esque groove that lets the Blackness develop and embrace the listener fully.

The riffs are as sharp as swords and the bleak melodies are as cold as death. Each song passes by in a daze of frozen distortion and melodic twilight.

The vocals are to be commended as they are ultra scratchy and are absolutely full of venom and hatred for all. Spewed out over blast beats and icy melodies it can be quite the Hell-raising experience.

Almost 29 minutes of darkness and Devil worship. Who doesn’t love Black Metal, eh?