This is the debut album from Sloth Herder, a blackened grindcore band from the US.
Sloth Herder are a murky underground monster that’s slowly been rising up through the underworld over the last few years to claim its victims. With No Pity, No Sunrise, they’re finally ready to make their big assault. Continue reading “Sloth Herder – No Pity, No Sunrise (Review)”
Fides Inversa are an Italian black metal band and this is their latest EP.
Featuring almost 20 minutes of black metal art, this EP is occult, Satanic black metal that’s littered with dark incantations and grim atmosphere. Continue reading “Fides Inversa – Rite of Inverse Incarnation (Review)”
Colosso are a Portuguese death metal band and this is their second album.
I really enjoy Colosso’s earlier work, (Abrasive Peace, for example), so Obnoxious is a release I was looking forward too.
The band have a track record of experimentation with their sound and looking to better themselves however they Continue reading “Colosso – Obnoxious (Review)”
This is the debut release from Somnium Nox, a black metal band from Australia.
Somnium Nox are harbingers of esoteric progressive/atmospheric black metal that plays out over one 16 minute track, revealing an expansive tapestry of music that explores the underground world of black metal with aplomb. Continue reading “Somnium Nox – Apocrypha (Review)”
This is the second album from VIII, an Italian black metal band.
VIII have produced an ambitious release that spans 50 minutes across three sprawling, ugly tracks. This is not an album for people who like polished, shiny music. Oh no. This is the sound of dying, decay and forgotten dreams.
Decathexis sees the band playing raw, underground black metal with a mean, dispirited edge. Alongside the Continue reading “VIII – Decathexis (Review)”
Abisso are a black metal band from Italy and this is their début album.
Abisso specialise in underground atmospheric black metal that has an emphasis on the murk and grime of the underworld, rather than the starry, keyboard enhanced heavens that a lot of atmospheric black metal sets its sights on.
As such, this album contains atmospheric dissonance with Continue reading “Abisso – WRNSS (Review)”
Sov are a Black Metal band and this is their début album.
Sov play underground and honest Black Metal that might superficially seem like the standard fare at first glance, but a deeper scrutiny reveals a band with impressive creative power and a lot of raw talent.
This is an interesting release in that it manages to cultivate an air of both natural forest-dwelling and sophisticated blackened art. The music is suspended between the more naturalistic elements and the modern, progressive influences so that these six tracks are a pleasing blend of the early second-wave style and a more up-to-date interpretation of the genre, à la Watain and Deathspell Omega. Continue reading “Sov – Aklamerad Kalamitet (Review)”
Schammasch are a Black Metal band from Switzerland. This is their third album.
Here we have a bold, monster of a release; divided into three parts, each lasting about 35 minutes, the entire body of work clocks in at a massive 105 minutes in length.
Schammasch play forward-thinking music that’s rooted in Black Metal, but also visits other styles such as Doom, Post-Black Metal and Progressive Metal.
This is the third album by Swedish Black Metallers Mephorash.
Throughout the four extended tracks on this release Mephorash demonstrate their approach to elite, sophisticated Black Metal art. Theirs is Black Metal that conjures effective atmospheres without neglecting the rest of the music; the band have both heaviness and bite to them when they need it.
Managing to create music that’s both resplendent and uplifting as well as drenched in the occult and mysterious is no mean feat, but this album manages to juxtapose those two aspects of Black Metal quite nicely.
The band fuse the style’s core delivery with influences from Atmospheric/Post-Black Metal to create a contemporary spin on the genre that nonetheless has all of the essential elements in place to produce something both recognisable and special.
Featuring all kinds of additional enhancements, (keyboards, choral singing, guest vocalists), that work well within the music to add layers of depth to it, these songs are strong exemplars of the style of Black Metal that bands like Watain/Deathspell Omega pioneered so well.
There’s a vibrant unlife pulsing through these songs and they bristle with dark energy. It’s a joy to hear and the strong production allows them the space to do what they do unfettered.
Mephorash have created something really impressive with this album and I know I’ll be listening to it and trying to unravel its dark secrets for some time to come.
Animus Mortis are a Chilean Black Metal band and this is their second album.
This is an intriguing blend of Progressive and Post-Black Metal that lasts 40 minutes and makes a very good impression. It’s Black Metal for the modern age, taking influence from the aforementioned sub-genres to add to their Blackened pot, creating something unusual.
This sits nicely alongside albums from bands like Entropia, Thaw, Outre, Hope Drone, Tempel, Decline of the I, Wayfarer, Deafheaven and many others that play Black Metal with a non-standard spin on things. Bands such as these take up the mantle of Post-Black Metal, (willingly or not), to expand their musical horizons and add to their Blackened palette.
Chants, screams, growls and all manner of other vocalisations are used to great effect to provide a rich vocal performance. These are multifaceted and varied, allowing the singer ample avenues for exploration and experimentation. Wailing, shrieking and moaning torment appear to be his choicest methods of delivery; these are frequently layered on top of each other to create a nightmarish juxtaposition against the more resplendent music. I imagine it could be somewhat of an acquired taste for some people when confronted with his style, maybe rather preferring the more standard screams that appear less often.
The music is highly emotive and has an understated epic feel to it. It has a heart that’s twisted and warped though, kind of like Deathspell Omega with added Shoegaze. The music can be quite beautiful, with uplifting sections as well as parts that are more barbed and dangerous. The vocals supply the main ugliness and horror to the music, with the singer frequently sounding inhuman or possessed, adding a disturbing aura to the songs.
This is a compelling release due to the fact that it attempts to do something a little different from the norm and largely succeeds. The ubiquitous blast beats, the gleaming guitar melodies and the corrupted vocalisations all merge together to produce something greater than the sum of its parts.
This is music to become entranced by. Let Animus Mortis lift you up and help you explore the less-travelled paths that they wander. It may seem a daunting proposition, but it’s one that’s worth it.
Wonderbox Metal 