Vígljós are a Swiss black metal band and this is their second album.
Tome II: Ignis Sacer contains 43 minutes of material from this enigmatic act. Vígljós’ style is rooted in the second wave, but brought to life with expressive synths, mellotron, and an occasional hard rock feel to some of the riffs. Continue reading “Vígljós – Tome II: Ignis Sacer (Review)”
Doom Cult Commando are a German black metal band and this is their debut release.
Originally seeing the light back in January, Das Erwachen der Schlange is a 19-minute assault of raw black metal. Across four tracks, Doom Cult Commando reveal their iron grip on what it takes to make old-school Satanic black metal. The production is grim and raw, but not overly so, and the band weaponise this in their war against the light. Continue reading “Doom Cult Commando – Das Erwachen der Schlange (Review)”
This is the debut album from Italian black metal band Blutsauger.
Nocturnal Blood Tyrants contains 34 minutes of primal, atavistic black metal. Blutsauger play it hard, nasty, and grim. It may be 2025, but around these parts it’s 1993. I liked this one a lot. Continue reading “Blutsauger – Nocturnal Blood Tyrants (Review)”
This is the second album from Lust Hag, a solo black metal act from the US.
I didn’t expect a new Lust Hag album so soon after the artist’s first one from last year, but I shouldn’t have been surprised I suppose. After all, since then, she has also released Prayers Unanswered, (a split with Reaping Fields,), and a split with Genital Shame. As a big fan of Lust Hag, the 44-minute Irrevocably Drubbed is very well-received. Continue reading “Lust Hag – Irrevocably Drubbed (Review)”
This is the third album from Enevelde, a Norwegian solo black metal band.
Following on from 2020’s Enevelde and 2023’s En Gildere Død, Pandemonium delivers 38 minutes of new material from the artist behind Enevelde. It’s both an unforgiving and immersive record, one destined I fear for underground obscurity, rather than the wider acclaim it deserves. Continue reading “Enevelde – Pandemonium (Review)”
Cryfemal are a Spanish black metal band and this is their latest release.
Despite it being their ninth album, I only got into Cryfemal last year, on 2023’s La Gran Victoria del Mal, and I’ve still got much catching up to do. Apparently there’s no rest for the wicked though, as the band are already back and raring to go, with their 23-minute new release Puro Carbon. Continue reading “Cryfemal – Puro Carbon (Review)”
This is the fourth album from Swiss black metal solo act Ashtar.
I enjoyed both 2015’s Ilmasaari and 2020’s Kaikuja, so wanted to check out Ashtar’s latest. Since those albums the band have become a solo endeavour, and I missed the artist’s 2023 album Wandering Through Time somehow. A little over a year since that record though and we have The Return of the Frozen Souls, which features 45 minutes of black/doom metal, (including a Samhain cover). Continue reading “Ashtar – The Return of the Frozen Souls (Review)”
This is the second album from Perchta, a black metal band from Austria.
D’Muata offers a 48-minute atmospheric blackened folk experience that’s compelling and immersive. Perchta have crafted a strong personality of their own on this record, and it’s one that serves them well for almost all of the album. Continue reading “Perchta – D’Muata (Review)”
This is the debut album from German black metal band Nimbifer.
I unfortunately missed this record when it came out in April, but there have been enough rumblings about it that I wanted to check it out. I’m glad I did. Der Böse Geist contains 36 minutes of raw black metal, and it’s a real underground gem. Continue reading “Nimbifer – Der Böse Geist (Review)”
This is the debut album from US one-woman black metal band Lust Hag.
It’s here! It’s finally happening! A full Lust Hag album! Rejoice! This artist was one of my favourite new finds of 2023, so I have been massively looking forward to the day a full album would appear. And now it has – 37 minutes of elite black metal to get to grips with. Let’s be clear from the start – Lust Hag is so damn good it hurts. Continue reading “Lust Hag – Lust Hag (Review)”
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