black metal

Christ, this is awful. A lot of this “magick metal” stuff is known for being somewhat less than stellar (it’s part of the charm, oddly), but this record is bordering on fucking abysmal. Musically, it’s not so bad, pretty mediocre but the vocals on this record are incredibly bad. They really drag it down to the point where it’s almost unlistenable. A shame.

I enjoyed the group’s split release with Behrosth but on their debut full length they are almost completely falling over themselves. The various styles at play here in this concoction of “magick metal” (or whatever you want to call it) seem to sit apart from each other rather that come together to make a cohesive whole. That’s not to say that the record is bad; there are a few decent songs here, but generally the…

Black metal just the way I like it, fam. Fucking stinking! Yes, MK sounds like he’s drumming on an industrial-sized tub of full fat mayonnaise instead of a snare drum, but if anything this “rustic” approach to drums adds to the janky, raw nature of this uncompromising assault of the sense. 666 (what a title!) verges on the tropes of war metal ever so dangerously, but retains a smattering of icy cold riffs and precise…

A great evolution from the EP which came the year before. It is a shame that this band did not continue past their debut. The cover is a bit half-arsed, but do not let it put you off. The songs from the EP reappear here in a more well-produced form; it is still frosty, and at moments remind me of Dimmu in the Enthrone… era, but this is the keyboard work’s doing. Production wise, idk,…

Came for the art, stayed for the fragile, frosted tunes. I love it when I find black metal from the 90s that I haven’t heard before. Ishtar has a cold, unforgiving atmosphere and a brittle production on Diabolical Hymns, but these three tracks unfold beautifully over a moderate 25 minute run time. Opening track “Morkrets Furste” dominates the EP but closer “Dismal Paradise” has a lot of promise too. Great stuff.

Collection of various demos and misc. tracks from Epäkristus, some are great quality, some are quite raw. It is not the “necro” kinda raw either, but like a rehearsal room kinda raw, like some sort of black metal Agathocles. As almost always with collections like this, the quality is hit and miss. It’s a demo compilation though, so it is to be expected.

Dim, dark, dismal, raw, lo-fi, miserable black metal. Tidy! Not to be confused with the “other” Sort Sind which also plays black metal, this “Sortsind” merges drab, “necro” black metal with tense atmospheric passages and troubling vocal performances to invoke a harrowing and haunting experience. Many thanks to JohnsonBruckheimer on YouTube for the recommendation.

Bosh! Is this reel lyfe? Or is this juste phantasee? I’ve kinda unintentionally managed to avoid the whole “keller synth” movement so I’m massively unfamiliar with the style. All I know is that this sounds like a strange mix between like, 8-bit or video game music, and dungeon synth style keyboard pieces. Oh, and a touch of bad black metal on top! Honestly, this cauldron of a cacophonous creation is actually quite endearing.

It’s hard to shake the disappointment with this one. Beherit returning to their black metal style? Sign me the fuck up! Right? Right!? Unfortunately, Engram not only fails to ignite the spark from the original mystical days of old, but doesn’t really offer anything new in regards to modern black metal either. It fails on both fronts. Throw in a sterile, Watain-ass production, and yeah, this isn’t a winner. Don’t get me wrong, there are…

Great shit. Sounds like Impaled Nazarene (perhaps a bit obviously once you know who’s involved here) but a bit more “straight up” – there’s less nonsense here, let’s just put it that way. Also reminds me of Beherit and Blasphemy in its own way. Great little 7” EP.

Cold Winter Blades is a cool little EP that’s sitting on the boundary of Darken’s fairly savage “solo” Graveland work and the more triumphant and orchestral incarnation that the band would become with Thunderbolts Of The Gods or Hour Of Ragnarok. I don’t know if it’s just me, but the drums here seem absolutely overpowering, but that’s my only criticism really. Otherwise this is solid Graveland stuff.

Incredibly, consistent black metal with a raw and honest production. Song structures are generally long and quite progressive, which is nice to hear when it comes to rawer more rehearsal room feel stuff like this.

Don’t let the shit-tier art put you off; this is a decent listen. Sometimes, things get lost in the reeds in production terms, but from a songwriting perspective this is pretty good. The duelling guitars (not in the Iron Maiden sense haha) keep the songs interesting, as does the interspersed dapplings of keyboard. The vocals and drums are quite “OK”, but nothing to write home about. Worth checking out if you are off the beaten…

On a first listen of this record, I couldn’t get over the “wall of sound” production. The album has however, grown on me. It is a feverish and chaotic, intense and over the top. Only such a wild and in your face production could house such a barrage of different sounds, right? The highlight of most of this record for me is the vocal performances, which range from impressive to completely feral.

Quite possibly the band’s worst album sleeve for their whole discography? Haha! Outside of the one about angel’s bums, the majority of this record blurs together for me. It is, however, a fairly savage attack for latter-era Impaled Nazarene. It has the crisp production, and the same kind of ferocity that Pro Patria Finlandia has. This one seems to go just as hard as that record, in all fairness.

Ooo she’s a very spicy meatball! Impaled Nazarene haven’t exactly come full circle since their original sound, but the break after V&LD seems to have done them a world of good. That previous album blended their 90s and 00s styles nicely, and Eight Headed Serpent serves as a contiuation along that path. This shit is easily, hands down, the best thing they have done since the early 90s. I say that without hyperbole; I say…

UGH what a vigorous and liberating return to form, amirite??? I could just tell from the artwork alone, before pressing play, that I was going to like this one! It shows a correcting course for Impaled Nazarene; not that I believe they have ever put a foot wrong. It’s just disgusting primitive savages such as myself have an unquenchable thirst for caveman material such as earlier Impaled Nazarene, and whilst V&LD is not a step…

I enjoy all eras of Absurd, but the original demos continue to elude my tastes. Honestly, these things are so badly recorded that it because almost impossible to enjoy them. Couple that with the band’s how shall we say, “budding” musical skills, and this is a painful listen.

Manifest is far from a fan favourite but there is very little that this band has done wrong over the several decades that they have been spilling their sleazy, thrashy black metal out into the world. Therefore, Manifest should not be underestimated. In fact, I prefer it to the previous few albums; the production on this is just far more satisfying IMO, even if the songs are perhaps not as great. It’s a strange balance….

All That You Fear is not as good as the albums that proceeded it and started a lull for the next few releases. It’s one of my least favourite Impaled Nazarene records even though in truth I enjoy them all. This one also has the honour of having one of my favourite IN songs, “Armageddon Death Squad” as the second track. Production is nice and balanced too. Things sound great, I’d just prefer other records…

A marked change in the Impaled Nazarene sound happens around this record. There were signs before, with Nihil, in a maturity in the songwriting process. This course continues further with Absence of War… but into a more thrash metal direction. The finished result is then an extra venomous blackened thrash attack, with plenty of blast beats, fast sections and machine gun double bass kicks. Production is a bit crisper, a bit clearer, and it works…

Choppy, messy, yet absolutely satisfying early demo from the wonderfully perverse Impaled Nazarene. Oath Of The Goat, which came the same year as their other demo, Shemhamforash, sees the band experimenting with music that is much closer to their hideous debut album than what we get on that other demo. The death metal is dialled back a bit, and we get the potent mix of grind/crust and black metal (almost like war metal) that Impaled…

Nihil displays a maturity to Impaled Nazarene’s sound that I must admit I did not see coming. The punk / black / war metal blend is still there, but some tracks have a morose melody to them; a more developed and dare I say grown up sound to them. The production isn’t as laser sharp as Rapture, but the balance is still great (the bass sounds fantastic) and the songs hit home as you would…

Rapture, despite it’s unassuming artwork, feels like a return to form and focus. It’s not that previous LP Latex Cult was bad, but it definitely leant to the cheeky, silly, perverted d-beat punk stylings more than the previous records (of which there were only elements, rather than a full theme of). Rapture feels almost uncompromising in comparison, with a fuller production and a much more urgent style of songwriting. I’ll refrain from comparing it to…

Beautiful compositions of meandering riffs and excellent accompaniments in the forms of various keyboard sounds and other traditional instrumentation (whether virtual or otherwise). The easiest comparison I could make would be early Winterfylleth, but the vocals here are much more harrowing, and the guitars are little bit more “evil”, if I could be so trite as to use that as a descriptor. Production is fantastic; clear and vivid, with the drums in particular sounding absolutely…

Lush, infinitely-unfolding atmospheric black metal is the order of the day. This is a project that is highly regarded and it is not difficult to understand why after a listen to De Svarta Riterna. It’s one of those albums where you can just stare at the record sleeve and get lost in the trees as the seemingly endless music unfolds. Good stuff.

Excellently fuzzy yet majestic black metal from Geheimnisvoll. So far, the project has been incredibly consistent with the quality of its releases, and this first demo from 2019 is of no exception. Expect 20 minutes of excellent lo fi black metal. Highly recommended, for what my fucking opinion is worth.

Compiles the 2019 demo and the tracks from the split with Borda’s Rope into one disk. Honestly, as good as this is, you’re better off just hunting down the originals because the split with Borda’s rope is fucking fantastic (including the other band too).

Beautiful split, if I could be so bold as to say so. Geheimnisvoll remind me a little of Satanic Warmaster, but the riffs are a bit more morose and with that trademark “2nd wave repetition”. Vocals are barely decipherable and sound like whispers from a deep and unfathomable tomb or cave. Borda’s Rope are very lo-fi but the guitar work on this thing is second to none. A bit more bare bones all in all…

In a word: confused. Satarial have always been messy, but Blessed Bright lacks the charm which acts as the glue that holds all the disparate parts together. On Blessed Bright, unfortunately that magical charm seems to be in short supply. However, “Horned God”, for how awful it’s lyrics are, is a fun listen, but generally the better tracks are the “Pagan”-heavy instrumental synth/folk/tribal pieces, such as the closing title track.

In isolation, this single is a confused mess of a song. The vocals and guitars are fantastic, everything else is just falling over itself in a competition to be heard.

This shit goes harder than an erect goat penis attached to the mega sado Satan fuck goat incarnation, who has been beamed to earth realm to fuck you, via your stereo of course. Everything is dialled up to 666 out of 10 here.

Solid third album from legendary Finnish “black metal” outfit Impaled Nazarene. It shows more… dare I say, progression than the first two albums, but still retains all of the core ingredients that make IN so fucking entertaining. The production is surprisingly good; the bass sounds fucking incredible and the drumming here is really impressive. A really great album all round.

Heralded as one of the best war metal / grindcore crossovers in existence, and for good reason, I guess. I tell you what though, it’s weird having spent a life time listening to shit like this to just find some random project one day that is praised to all manner of high fuck for doing exactly what a bazillion goregrind/noise/digigrind bands already do, but hey, it doesn’t matter really, Konflikt is fucking great. Proper hard…

What a strange release. Personally, if I’d known it was all covers before I’d pressed play (go me for researching!) I probably wouldn’t have bothered, but sunk cost fallacy and all that… Musically, things are a mixed bag here. The sessions seem all over the place, especially on the Nachtmystium front, but the fact that this is a compilation of different sessions explains all that. The quality of each cover song varies wildly. Oddly, the…

How fantastic is that cover photo? Simple, yet extremely effective. It’s what drew me in. Unfortunately, I found this album, which is in the “atmospheric black metal” vein to be something a little too one-note for me. Production is very polished, all things considered, and I don’t think that helps in this regard. But hey, if you’re massively into the atmospheric side of things, this could be for you.

Stardust contains everything that you could want from a Grausamkeit or BSOD-adjacent project of any kind (well, except maybe the noisecore stuff maybe). Shaky yet endearing “dungeon synth” (it always feels weird referring to stuff that predates this genre name as such) gives way to barely audible black metal lost in a thousand layers of distortion and tape hiss. Audio fidelity you shall not find here, but atmosphere is instead brought to you by the…

Inside you are two wolves… lmao sorry I couldn’t resist. Seriously though, this Aufnorden project is absolutely fantastic. This record is no exception. The Bathory cover(s) in the middle of the album’s run time is a weird inclusion, but in all fairness the song choice blends in rather nicely with what Aufnorden is trying to achieve here. If you take the complexities of acts like the covered act Bathory, or even the scope of the…

Fucking great shit. An epic mix of more “trad” metal styles like thrash / power metal but dosed up with some savage hold overs from the more heathenistic pagan black metal world. Both songs on this thing really surprised me by how great they are. To top it off, the production is pretty solid too. Highly recommended.

Unfolds with much more subtly and nuance than one would expect from a band named Anal Blasphemy. There are some interesting ideas / motifs present throughout the runtime which are varying degrees of experimental but all sufficiently sound evil as fuck. The best track(s?) are the ones with t the female guest vocals – those are genuinely haunting and bordering on terrifying.

Having only previously been familiar with the early Goatpenis demo era I was therefore totally unprepared for the sound of the latter day releases such as Biochemterrorism. This album fuckin’ rules. It’s war metal / bestial black (whatever) and of course comes with all of the carnage that those genres promise, but also has this innate catchiness to the songs that a lot of artists in that world can’t seem to achieve. Production is a…

Messy yet incredibly enjoyable black metal with a rough and ready production. This does genuinely sound like a war machine that’s seen its fair share of battles, grinding on to the next confrontation.

Black metal side project from Mick Kenney of Anaal Nathrakh (which featured his brother on vocals and some other vocalist who I’m not entirely sure about). Good mix of styles. Not too much industrial influence like the more punishing parts of Anaal. Frost has, if you’d forgive me, more cold riffs. I’ve had this 7” for years and I keep forgetting about it.

“Mom, I want a new Graveland CD!” “No, son, we have Graveland at home.” Graveland at home: Undeniably wonky, especially in the drumming department, but if anything this oddly adds to the atmosphere. The production is also fairly terrible. As you can imagine from my opening remarks, Feel the Anger of the Wind (please resist the temptation to make fart jokes) is far from perfect, but those who are inclined to find enjoyment in long…

I’m going for it – I’m gonna give Now, Diabolical a 4. This is probably because of nostalgia reasons, I can clearly see that. Objectively, it is easy to see why long-term fans of the band do not enjoy this one. But, for me, this is where I came in to Satyricon’s world, at least in terms of full-length albums. I remember this coming out, and I saw them on this tour. So I guess…

The fucking samples on this thing lmao – they really lower the tone. Musically, this shit goes hard as fuck. The riffs are sinister as hell. The production is great and the drums sound fantastic. The fills and interesting variations around the blasts send these songs from good to great, but the whacky sampling pulls things back down a little. A strange one. Also, NS as fuck, if that wasn’t obvious.

Really fucking great raw guitar playing and harsh, rabid vocals that had me hooked even if the drum machine had me scratching my head. These drum patterns just do not fit black metal, but after a while, it all started to click into place and I really enjoyed this weird, off-kilter approach. Super cool off the beaten track kinda shit. I am all about it.

Initial reaction was not great, but I sat with this for a while and it really started to grow on me. The mix of acoustic folk and black metal is stranger than it reads on paper. There is something endearing about the tracks, especially the closing title track, which has a really nice vocal melody. Leave your production expectations at the door, however.

It is rather commendable actually how straight-forward and one-dimensional the music of Ildjarn is. Truly, there is a singular focus here that is not present in most other black metal, even that which is precise and calculated. However, precise and calculated are not words that I would use to describe Ildjarn. At first, Ildjarn’s music can appear repetitive and annoying, and I suppose yes, it is rather repetitive and annoying, but there is also a…

Der Tod und die landsknechte (forgive me if I have fucked that up, German is not my strong point) is the project of former Absurd vocalist “Wolf”. On the fact of his inclusion alone, before you get to instrumentation (although that too contributes), it is easy to compare Der Tod… to Absurd, particularly the 2000s era in which Wolf was main vocalist. This album contains the same bouncy yet morose folk-like riffs that Absurd proliferated…

Fucking excellent, super under-rated black metal. Reminds me of a mix of the first Peste Noire record, War 88 and Deathspell Omega, if I could be so bold. The songs on Všehorovnost je porážkou převyšujících managed to be both cold and clinical as well as produced with a warmth and a balance that makes this intense and uncompromising black metal record almost a pleasure to listen to. Highly recommended.

Nordland II continues where Nordland I left off, but my interest is not as high for this one. Perhaps it would have been different in “real time”, with a year or whatever between the two albums, but back-to-back these two feel like one bloated, overly-long record. It is also an unfortunate reality that many of the least interesting songs are placed here on Nordland II. Don’t get me wrong, I need to speak plainly in…

Nordland is something of a return to form after a series of what many perceive to be rather wishy-washy albums. I’ve enjoyed all of the various detours in the Bathory catalog, but have to admit that Destroyer Of Worlds was one of the weakest. It is with great relief then, that it’s follow-up, Nordland, starts off incredibly strong. Unfortunately, the record is somewhat top-heavy, with my interest waning as the record goes on. The first…

Entirely enjoyable yet also somewhat unremarkable EP from the controversial Graveland. I think some of these tracks are on Creed Of Iron (they sound familiar at least, but it is easy for me to confuse the various and multiple versions of Graveland songs / eras / album rerecordings and what have you). Production is probably “down the middle” as far as Graveland goes; not too disgusting yet also not too polished.

Not a patch on Longbow III. Raw as fuck, and with an interest concept in the crossover of themes from both oi and black metal, but not really all that great in execution.

A set of very interesting songs led by a prominant synthesizer which dominates the mix and the songwriting in general. Unfortunately, the record is let down by fairly underwhelming whispered vocals (think post-prison Varg but twenty times worse) which really detract from the overall atmosphere. I’m sure there’s plenty of people out there who like it, but personally I think this would have been better with fully clean vocals throughout (of which there are some)…

Fucking excellent black metal. Production is pretty shite, but not to the detriment of the record. The atmosphere conjured here is one that I hear many people talking about, perhaps overzealously, in regard to NSBM: triumphant. Blood Of Patriots is just that; an excellent balance of mystic, obscure black metal and “triumphant” melodies. Really good shit.

Some decent morose riffs and some good vocals on top. Rigid drum machine programming makes there bare structure of the song very plain to see sometimes, but what it loses in atmosphere due to the drum machine it gains back with the excellent synthesizer work, which reminds me of Rob Lord’s work on Discworld II, of all things…

Fukken dirty ass HM2 blackened punk that sounds like it was recorded in Fritzl’s basement. I would highly recommend it to everyone, from my neighbour to my gran.

Would it perhaps be too overblown to say that this is lo fi art at its finest? (No, I’m not just saying that because she has her baps out on the cover). Expect shaky, wobbly, messy keyboard and synthesizer pieces, augmented by flurries of barely audible programmed drums and screams buried in enough dust, wow and flutter to almost make them redundant. Folelse Dod truly is a record that is greater than the sum of…

Raw, punk-influenced black metal from Canada. To War is played with a looseness that no doubt will turn some people off, but if the messier / noisier end of the stick is your bag when it comes to hellish black metal then look no further than this disgusting 4 track demo / EP.

A stunning document of absolute chaos, both musically and in reality. This semi-official (I guess) debut from this seminal but messy project is one that every fan of war metal / raw death metal should check out. The sound is not the greatest but the guitar tone is fucking fantastic. Features Pete Helmkamp on bass and vocals, who some of you may know from the early Revenge records.

An interesting entry into the Wolf / Unhold years in that it is devoid of Unhold. This gives a slightly different vibe than usual but the overall RAC / punk / folk march that drives Absurd through all eras is still here. Drums are a little thin production-wise but the drummer himself is really great actually. The riffs are as good as usual and Wolf’s vocals are excellent as always.

Pointless release containing some of the better tracks that would later appear on Grabgesang, consigning this to fodder for collectors and completionists only, it would seem. Still sounds pretty fucking great, though.

Doesn’t reinvent the wheel but expands upon the “Goatmoon-worship” beginnings of the Moosegut project. Production is still thin and drastic, but the compositions are very very good indeed; drumming is excellent, and the layers of folk music and synths blur so well with the “core” of the black metal. Interesting and evocative, and more is revealed to you on repeat listens.

As other more articulate listeners have already pointed out, From The Deepening Gloom draws a lot from the Finnish Steel Storm school of thought; terrible production, punky drumming and some rather sprightly jigs consisting of bouncy riffs, catchy synths and a raspy yelped vocal style. This is far from a carbon copy however, and stands quite nicely on it’s own feet. There is an air of mystery to this record, which coupled with the more…

Weird, dissonant and oddly hollow, yet inventive and engaging black metal from the same mind that brought you the (excellent) Ynkleudherhenavogyon. It is probably a very lazy / amateur summary on my part, but if you mixed the most grimmest, underground black metal with, idk, fucking Neurosis or something, then you’d get something like this.

If you can take one look at that record sleeve and resist listening to this thing then you are a stronger man than me. The guys are wearing “corpsepaint” but this predates most Norwegain stuff, which is kinda cool. I’ve been coming back to this thing on and off for a while, and despite its unsatisifyingly short run time (it is a single after all, I guess), I am hooked on the messy, uncompromising nature…

Interesting vibes and songwriting, ranging from folk to the slower, more “traditional” elements of “pagan black metal” stripped down to its very core. This is another project of Alexey from M8l8th, but the star of the show here is his wife Ekaterina, who’s vocals breathe life into these tracks. Not my usual type of thing, but a pensive and enjoyable listen all the same.

Great warm sound and a smooth analogue production overall (at least it sounds that way – the way it should!). Vocals remind me somewhat of wolves yapping away in the woods but the guitar riffs and drumming are more than enough to keep my attention throughout. A solid side-project from M8l8th’s Alexey. So far, I’m far preferring KoenigsGrab to any M8l8th release.

The AI cover art probably sums up the state of this thing more than the band ever intended it to: yes, it’s not so bad, but the longer you spend with it the more you realise that it’s just a generic pile of nothing that goes absolutely nowhere. It’s not the worst thing I’ve ever heard, but it seems oddly stifled and confined, even with a fairly big modern production and soundstage that allows the…

An interesting mix of stuff. Anything djent-related usually is an instant turn-off for me but there is something about Multicam’s dissonant mix of super-downtuned chuggy riffs and electronic-led black metal. There is a lot of atmospheric work between the main “bulk” of the songs (being either in a black metal or djent style) which is also very nicely done and weaves the whole album together into a coherent whole.

Sinister, evil black metal with razor sharp, uncompromising riffage. Raw, but fully audible and dynamic production. Doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but doesn’t need to.

A clear yet balanced and organic production sets the stage for an excellent cache of songs, betraying of course (always!) the Finnish scene’s sensibility of melody underneath the racket. Drums, guitars etc. sound fantastic, and are very well played. Vocals are probably an acquired taste, if I’m honest, but it all works together nicely. Some more cleans like on the last track would go a long way to striking more of a balance. Good stuff,…

Excellent songwriting, slightly marred by middling production. You totally adjust to it all however, like going back and watching a 90s TV show that’s in standard def / aspect ratio. In fact, generally, Ashes Of Purification gets better and better as it goes on, with my least favourite songs being at the very start of the album. That being said, I don’t think I want to know whatever the fuck “Paedophilic Orgasmatron” is about, and…

A strange and perplexing effort, even for the weirdness associated with Mutiilation. Black Millennium has the odd distinction of getting less and less interesting as it goes on, being heavily front-loaded with such unholy invocations as “The Hanged Priest” and “The Eggs Of Melancholy”. Generally, the album has some very, how shall I say, unusual production choices, with a dense and bassy sound.

An EP of covers material, but excellent efforts from both bands, especially Drudkh who just have the perfect mix here. Not to shit on Winterfylleth, their Hate Forest cover here is pretty majestic, considering the pummelling / repetitive nature of the source material.

Peste Noire continues to entertain at the least, with the ongoing twists and turns of his – or their – uh, music. This one contains a lot of dancey industrial beats, which was not what I was expecting, I’ll be honest with you. Again, as I’ve said a few times now regarding Peste Noire, when it sticks to the black metal, that shit is fierce and incredible. And I’m not one to piss and moan…

I appreciate the innovation and experimentation present in this release, in fact I find it more enjoyable than the previous three Peste Noire albums (but it does not hold a candle to my sweet, sweet love that is La sanie des siècles). Moments of flat out, uncompromising black metal are rare, but when they hit, they hit hard. Otherwise, this thing comes on like some mad French painter throwing shit at a barn wall, or…

Came to this because the art was so fucking cool, but my god this is fucking deplooooorable. Ok, maybe it’s not that bad, but the vocals are all over the place, back and forth between this whole My Dying Bride / Paradise Lost thing, and the more standard black metal approach. I never know what’s coming next and the whole album is a mixed bag of random tropes of “pagan shit”, like you fed a…

Veles stuff here is stuck under some sort of murky swamp or bog deep in a dark forest. As long as you are aware of the subterranean sound before you enter, then you’ll be fine. Good stuff but not as great as the full lengths. Legion on the other hand is particularly unhinged, at least in the vocals department. Sound is generally a little clearer than Veles but they make up for the sonic clarity…

On today’s episode of black metal that sounds suspiciously like goregrind, we have the first (I think?) Hate Forest demo, Scythia. I have always appreciated Hate Forest’s super heavy low register vocals and uncompromising approach to black metal, but that approach is pared back to its most base and inferal core here on this debut. Frenetic drum machines act as a backbone to a sludge of – let’s be fair, quite melodic – riffs, topped…

Kommodus – for better or worse – has become one of those Goatowarex darlings that people end up snapping and braying like wild animals for trying to get copies of the latest vinyl drop, or what have you. I can safely say however – whilst without wanting to really understand that level of hype for absolutely anything, i’ll be honest with you – that I can see why people think that this shit is really…

I gotta get one thing out of the way: I appreciate what they were going for, but hooooollllyyyy shit the drumming on this thing sucks ass. Man be dropping mad beats like Pantheon are the Dillinger Escape Plan of NSBM. This blows, really really hard. Have you ever been sat there listening to a wanky tech death album and have thought to yourself: “hmmm, this would sound really cool with zero triggers and also if…

Frosty, icy, thin production that is so brittle it sounds almost hollow. If it wasn’t the for excellent blanket of orchestral / keyboard elements slathered over the top, this would be a pretty poor release, but the two almost conflicting elements work surprisingly well together. The vocals are of the Darken / Abbath / Dagon “frog” stock but not really as ridiculous as any of those I’ve just listed. An interesting demo, for sure.

A really beautiful piece of work! A tapestry of fantastically woven riffs lead this mesh of atmospheric harmony. The synth work is second to none, especially when it goes all out on record closer “Victoria Solis”. There is excellent cover art to boot, the only complaint I have is that it’s only 26 minutes long. Alas, there is always more Bilskirnir. A brilliant release.

Some excellent moments, but others which have a really weird slant to them, almost sounding completely artificial like a fuggen pornogrind band or something. Nevertheless, the compositional quality is very good. I’m gonna give Wolfnacht the benefit of the doubt on this one.

Only the trvest, most intense vampires need apply for this one. It seems almost mandatory that you listen to this one on the shittiest pair of earphones ever, or with a chewed up cassette copy complete with wobbles and surface noise. It is however to these gent’s credit how they conjure up such fantastic paranormal atmospheres from what is essentially a very basic template. The drums are truly abysmal, and the vocals aren’t better. The…

An interesting pairing of songs – long, of course, in the true “epic pagan metal” style of later Graveland. Production is probably in the middle on the Grave-o-meter, half way between “kvlt as fvkk” and “clear as day”. Great stuff, but not all that much can be said about two songs. Good if you just want to dip your toes in, as it were.

Good, but fairly “middle of the road” and – odd for me to say despite the name and content – fairly inoffensive black metal. Some of the Der Sturmer stuff is fantastic, but this isn’t it.

I seem to be in the minority here but I think the Absurd stuff here is some of their best. The drums, for quite possibly the first time in their original run, are incredible. The vocals here, seem extra rabid and angry and disgusted with the world. Like someone took the Totenlieder sessions and injected some steroids into them. Gourmet Burger Kitchen are the weakest band here, easily, but even their session has grown on…

One of the greatest black metal releases that I have ever heard, and I am not exaggerating. It is easy to throw scorn at Vothana’s approach to black metal. You can argue that once you’ve heard one album or demo then you’ve heard them all, but the devil really is in the detail here. There is a track at the mid-way point, I think perhaps “Mồ chôn tập thể / Mass Graves” which just has…

Almost inaudible, subterranean, unholy black noise. The grinding low rumble is not dissimilar to that offered by bands in the gorenoise / noisecore scenes, or even reminiscent of harsh noise itself. Very repetitive, dark and disgusting, making the 5 minutes run time feel a lot longer than it actually is. I can’t imagine getting this from a distro in 1993, throwing it on the turntable and hearing it for the first time with no context….

The Kristallnacht stuff is good, the Seigneur Voland stuff is excellent, but the Blessed By Sin stuff is pretty bad to be honest, with the drunken “Gate Of Nanna” cover at the end just killing the vibe of the whole disc.

Peak Daggerfall-core. Honestly, the “dungeon synth” elements here are to die for, and whilst I do appreciate the longform beauty of Summoning’s black metal compositions, I do sometimes find my mind wandering. The album on repeat listens however, truly reveals itself. One is rewarded for repeat listens, as the epic reveals its secrets for you with each passing journey. It’s easy to consider Summoning overrated, but it’s also easy to see why so many hold…

Gorgeously weaved black metal with a deep, repetitive ambient feel. Think along the lines of Drudkh or Burzum but also wholly unique in its own way. This is the second in a series of EPs that are well worth checking out.

Spookier than a granite coffin filled with hallucinogenic toads, Spheres Like Death is a well-produced, crystal clear slice of sinister black metal. There is some excellent riffery afoot here, more unusual or explorative than a lot of stuff, but not too angular, weird or dissonant, which makes for some interesting compositions. The snare cuts through the mix like rifle rounds. Cool compilation! Impressive stuff!

I’m all for raw black metal, but some of the other Revenant Marquis records are so impenetrable it is nigh on impossible to get any real enjoyment out of them. Anti Universal Compassion on the other hand, stands out from the other subterranean offerings from this mysterious project to offer something far more enjoyable and unique. Yes, the record is buried in a thousand layers of dust and cobwebs, emerging from some forgotten basement like…

There’s something about Kanonenfieber that I can’t quite put my finger on. The songs are – at the surface level – enjoyable and engaging, but as soon as you try and scratch further, to dig deeper and form a more meaningful connection with the music on the record, there is something that is blocking this from happening. It seems that the band’s black / death metal is only skin deep, and after you scrape away…

Mysterious, plodding black metal with a ponderous mix of synths and guitars. Vocals aren’t the greatest thing in the world but the rest of the composition plays back nicely. I prefer the longer songs, such as “Frozen Emotions in the Naked Northwind”, but even here at this early genesis of the production it’s easy to see why Nargaroth is laughed at and not taken all that seriously, there is a very goofy edge to things,…