Lmst

Blackened metal wanderers The Great Sea release their debut album, Noble Art Of Desolation. Review at FFR, https://flyingfiddlesticks.com/2025/04/22/the-great-sea-noble-art-of-desolation-aop-2025/ #metal #heavymetal #rock #hardrock #blackmetal #AOPRecords #TheGreatSea #Germany

Zéro Absolu – La Saignée Review

By Thus Spoke

La Saignée is Zéro Absolu’s debut, but the members already have a storied past. Not only comprised of notable black metal artists—from Alcest, and Regarde Les Hommes Tomber—Zéro Absolu is itself a reinvention. After their original name—Glaciation—was stolen and illegally registered as IP by a bitter temporary band member, they had no choice but to evolve. In concept, La Saignée defends the band’s integrity, and that of the wider (black) metal scene against the poisonous ideas that tear it down, its lyrics described by the members as “confronting [both of their] enemies.” It partially explains the odd cover art, which is not an AI abomination, as it might at first appear, but a photograph taken in the aftermath of the fire that devastated Noeseblod (formerly Helvete) Records in Olso last April. Zéro Absolu are here to make a statement, and the way they choose to deliver it in La Saignée says a lot.

Zéro Absolu’s black metal proper is distinctively French, with deep and exuberant guitar tones, gravelly vocals, and a vague sense of nostalgia hovering about its refrains. There is more than a hint of Glaciation, of course, as well as Abduction, Seth, and countless others. Yet, now more than in the band’s previous incarnation, the admixtures of styles from those who comprise it are given freer reign. Gazey Alcestian plucking and serene vocalisations, and dark post-black turns from the playbook of Regarde les Hommes Tomber play a larger role amidst the frosty second-wave tremolo and drum. La Saignée moves between its aspects as mood takes it, unspooling the manifesto that Zéro Absolu have created. This is where the album’s structure plays a crucial role, for La Saignée consists of only two songs. The first, title track—an epic of over twenty minutes—feels like the raison d’être for this record and for Zéro Absolu themselves, rising and falling anthemically. The second, “Le Temps Détruit Tout,”—comparatively short at 13 minutes and change—is more reflective and solemn overall, though not without its own blackened surges of ardour. This duality more or less completely dissolves La Saignée into one piece, making it more stirring and immersive, and thus serving as the apt instantiation of Zéro Absolu’s declarative (re-)entrance.

By marrying an evocative black metal core with the threads of post-black at their disposal, Zéro Absolu create something powerful. Dispossessed of a lyric sheet, my French is too poor to parse the words—from both vocals and the static-blurred samples that surface across the runtime.1 Zéro Absolu’s execution, however, leaves little room to doubt their sincerity. The howls and screams which cry out these verses in unison burn with fierceness. The sweeping rise and fall of melancholic refrains—just as much as their incremental, understated derivations— carry tides of emotion in blazing tremolos just as much as the latter drip it in subtly with resonant plucks. La Saignée repeatedly peaks between emphatic intensity and the musings of ambience, and this dynamism feels real to the process of delivering an impassioned disquisition. Yet the other face of the record, which is less straightforward, shows the far-reaching, introspected core. Not only the atmosphere garnered by the stripped-back mellifluousness of gaze, but also the time given over to more abstract soundscapes as the chiming, sometimes eerie synths, lend La Saignée further layers of intrigue, depth, and feeling. It culminates in a rich, emotionally nuanced, and flowing experience that makes you forget, at times, what exactly you’re listening to,2 and not care because it is that immersive.

None of the above is to say that La Saignée is mind-blowingly unique, or beyond devastatingly affecting. But this is partly due to how high the bar already is for modern French black metal, not to mention that set by Zéro Absolu themself, in their previous form as Glaciation. Putting that to one side, I’ll concede that the structure, ideal as it is for immersion and intensity, somewhat runs against memorability, and in a related sense, immediacy. It takes some patience, and more than a few listens, to really appreciate the magnificence of La Saignée, and while you’ll certainly enjoy each of those listens very much (if you’re inclined towards this genre at all), it lacks some supererogatory obvious excellence that demands your respect instantly. This could also mean that mileage will vary between listeners, though I do believe that with time, all will trend towards the favourable.

As a means by which the musicians of Zéro Absolu return to the black metal scene, La Saignée is a powerful choice. In its free-flowing, dual-partite structure, they are reborn and make an emotionally affecting, honest-feeling, and wonderfully executed statement. This is surely just the first step in a new and vibrant career for the band, and what a first step it is.

Rating: Very Good
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: AOP Records
Website: Bandcamp
Releases Worldwide: January 31st, 2025

#2025 #35 #Alcest #AOPRecords #BlackMetal #FrenchBlackMetal #FrenchMetal #Glaciation #Jan25 #LaSaignée #MelodicBlackMetal #PostBlackMetal #RegardeLesHommesTomber #Review #Reviews #Seth #ZéroAbsolu

Harakiri for the Sky – Scorched Earth Review

By Dear Hollow

Harakiri for the Sky is one of those bands that is consistently very good but constantly eludes greatness. The Austrian duo’s grasp on melody is second to none, pairing yearning atmospheres with blackened aggression and meditative tempos, resolute in its muscular weight and melodic motifs without devolving into either jadedness nor frailty. While devoted to the style’s trademark slow-burning growth, they constantly avoid the pitfalls of the “post-black” descriptor, refusing to fall into the weak and twinkly shenanigans of their counterparts. However, composition remains mid-tempo and largely too safely confined to the overlapping of predictable melodies and their organic resolutions. This is not a bad thing and Scorched Earth makes that clear.

Harakiri for the Sky has made its trademark unmistakable, and had five full-lengths of practice in doing so. Instrumentals provided by Matthias Sollak are richly layered with heart-wrenching melodies and bound by thick plodding riffs with the edge of blackened rawness, while J.J.’s formidable barks communicate both riveting charisma and rending pain alike in a bit of a post-hardcore spin. Career highlights like 2016’s III: Trauma and 2021’s Mære firmly establish this balance and run with it, while 2018’s Arson fell into forgettable territory by virtue of simply being in an excellent discography. Frankly, that’s a fantastic problem to have, and I had no doubts that Scorched Earth was going to be anything short of enjoyable. Featuring guests like Tim Yatras of Austere and Serena Cherry of Svalbard and Noctule contributing to this instrumental and vocal tapestry,1 Scorched Earth feels like the natural next step for Harakiri for the Sky in renewed vigor and intensity.

Harakiri for the Sky’s grasp on melody remains largely the same, retaining the “twinkly” description but imbued with a heartbreak reminiscent of more depressive styles. Scorched Earth descends deeper into this dirge, with solemn passages and slower tempos letting the breadth of harmony and desperation echo further across its empty outstretched hands. The approach remains very simple, with Sollak’s chord progressions doing the talking in all their natural crescendos and organic dissolutions. Tracks can take on a nearly folky feel reminiscent of melodeath greats like Insomnium or Amorphis (“Heal Me,” “With Autumn I’ll Surrender”), while the clever layering of riffs, leads, and melodic motifs offer a place of utmost emotional intensity between placid passages of yearning (“Keep Me Longing,” “No Graves But the Sea”), while notable tension in unorthodox chord progressions adds a texture beyond just “pretty black metal” (“Without You I’m Just a Sad Song,” “I Was Just Another Promise You Couldn’t Keep”). While Austere’s Tim Yatras performance is difficult to discern in “Heal Me,” Svalbard/Noctule’s Serena Cherry lends her sirenic croons in closer “Too Late for Goodbyes,” ending Scorched Earth on a solemn and desolate note.

Harakiri for the Sky’s melody, although front and center, is bolstered by tracks featuring a more unpredictable instrumental presence than before. A voiceless venom keeps the sound grounded, as more morose and beautiful movements are contrasted with heavier riffs and moments of darkness that bare a track’s teeth. While the rhythmic chugs kick through the beauty with recklessness (“Without You I’m Just a Sad Song,” “With Autumn I’ll Surrender”) and more upbeat punk rhythms and blastbeats inject a blasting vigor (“No Graves But the Sea,” “Keep Me Longing,” “Too Late for Goodbyes”), dissonance serves as a necessary and ugly thread to keeping the hyper-melodic palette from getting too much (“Heal Me,” “I Was Just Another Promise You Couldn’t Keep). While the vast majority of Scorched Earth is dominated by beauty, it’s nice to have more dimension and more humanity from Harakiri for the Sky in its darker passages.

At its core, Scorched Earth is quintessential Harakiri for the Sky. Setting out with more reckless elements such as heavier riffs, blackened blastbeats, or a touch of dissonance, it feels a tad more dangerous and experimental than in previous iterations.2 However, the epitome of “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” formula, Harakiri for the Sky plays it close to the vest with the true star of the show: layers and layers of melody. While shorter than Mære, Scorched Earth is nonetheless daunting in its hour length, and its hyper-melodicism can oft grow tiring while J.J.’s post-hardcore-influenced barks has always felt slightly out of place against the crystalline melody, Harakiri for the Sky remains amazingly melodic and always pleasant to listen to. Scorched Earth, once again, is frustratingly safe – truly the act’s signature.

Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: AOP Records
Websites: harakirifortheskyofficial.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/HarakiriForTheSky
Releases Worldwide: January 24th, 2025

#2025 #35 #Amorphis #AOPRecords #Austere #AustrianMetal #BackwardsCharm #BlackMetal #Groza #HarakiriForTheSky #Insomnium #Jan25 #Karg #Megadeth #MelodicBlackMetal #Noctule #PostBlackMetal #PostHardcore #Radiohead #Review #Reviews #ScorchedEarth #Svalbard

#Metal for the Morning

new #HarakiriForTheSky

#AOPRecords

fair warning those of you who do not know Harakiri for the Sky they do deal with some tougher themes like extreme depression and suicide

#HealMe

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=_07yw7z3rRI&pp

#WithAutumnIllSurrender

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=X3ROuY9lpW4&pp

Groza – Nadir Review

By Dear Hollow

Germany’s Groza has always been that 3.0rn in my side. While other bands have toyed with greatness that sends my head for a loop, albums Unified in Void and The Redemptive End have hemorrhaged potential, only to squander it on safe compositions. Owing Mgła just as much for their namesake and as their subtle and interwoven melodic style, while likewise hinting post-black, Groza has been releasing pleasant melodic black metal since 2016. This is part of what makes Nadir a bit of a “make or break” situation: the trio can choose to set out on their own or continue to dwell in Mgła’s shadow.1

Nadir represents a slight stylistic shift. While Groza retains its signature tremolo interwoven with crystalline melody, there is more post-black melody and rawer guitar to drive its darker tones. Featuring six tracks of meditative black metal, highlighted by textures of melodies and vicious vocals, you can expect an evocative listen that sweeps listeners away to a ruined world: scorched, desolate, but undeniably beautiful. Anchored by guitarist U.A.’s powerfully composed guitar leads and layers of melody, vocalist/multi-instrumentalist P.G.’s desperate shrieks and bellowing shouts, and T.H.Z.’s thunderous percussion, it’s consistently and competently built from minimalist foundations. While Groza remains stubbornly “good,” it’s a step in the right direction.

Groza does little to separate from the shadows of Mgła or Uada but Nadir is a far more scathing affair. From the shift of the 4/4 intro “Soul: Inert” to 6/8 “Asbest,” it feels like the second-wave teeth are bared throughout. The best tracks find a balance between the extremes of blackened intensity and melodic serenity. The textured guitars, and layers of melodies, are a conclusion whose build-ups revolve around vicious tremolo guided by manic shrieks, best actualized in tracks like “Dysthymian Dreams” and “Deluge.” These feature melodies seared into the brain with nearly melodeath heft, while good uses of spoken word among plucking calmness add charisma and a hush with bated breath. The most traditionally second-wave black metal rears its head in “Equal. Silent. Cold.,” the crystalline plucking granting the track an icy showering quality. Like fellow countrymen Harakiri for the Sky, Groza has an ear for melody, with fluid movement between disharmony and melody giving way to beautiful resolutions. The final track “Daffodils” features the most intense climax of the album, the buildup hitting immense satisfaction thanks to featured guests J.J. and M.S. of Harakiri and Karg, as well as choir provided by the Bandhouse crew. Percussion contrasts with the scathing intensity, providing a thunderous undercurrent that resounds best as mid-tempo dirges. Groza’s rawer sound does Nadir justice.

Nadir’s weakness is inconsistency. Every track aboard Nadir is pleasant, but Groza’s other tracks fall short compared to the highlights. “Asbest,” although its melody is one of the better on the album, jarringly switches to more minor and weaker movements halfway through. While the tasteful second-wave rawness elevates “Equal. Silent. Cold.,” its somewhat protracted length damages its memorability; blurring into a weaker version of “Dysthymian Dreams” by the end. Even the central melody of “Daffodils” is exhausting before the buildup enters to redeem it. Furthermore, while Nadir is ubiquitously pleasant, it remains far too safe. Groza finds itself locked into its own melodies, so any wavering from it feels ultimately damaging in these tracks; its safety is its worst enemy. While the percussion is solid and thunderous, tracks like “Asbest” and “Dysthymian Dreams” can lose blastbeats to the wild tremolo, and we forfeit our tether to the enjoyable cacophony.

Groza is always pleasant and Nadir’s rawer direction does not undermine that trademark. While it vaguely distances itself from the likes of Mgła or Uada and is a step on the right path, it has not escaped that shadow yet. With tracks like “Dysthymian Dreams” and “Deluge” leading the charge with the best music being released by this trio yet in their trademark usage of poignant melody, it’s hard to imagine future releases not being the stirring compositions that these guys are so clearly capable of. As it stands, though, Nadir keeps Groza in 3.0-land: good, but awaiting an amplifying adverb.

Rating: 3.0/5.0
DR: 8 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: AOP Records
Websites: groza-blackmetal.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/grozaband
Releases Worldwide: September 20th, 2024

#2024 #30 #AOPRecords #AtmosphericBlackMetal #BlackMetal #GermanMetal #Groza #HarakiriForTheSky #MelodicBlackMetal #Mgła #Nadir #PostBlackMetal #Review #Reviews #Sep24 #Uada

Bavarian black metal band Groza complete the troika with their latest LP, Nadir. Review at FFMB, https://flyingfiddlesticks.com/2024/09/19/groza-nadir-aop-2024/ #metal #heavymetal #rock #hardrock #blackmetal #Germany #AOPRecords #Groza #Bavaria

Firtan – Ethos Review

By Dear Hollow

Some revered Firtan’s Okeanos as the new age of black metal, but many of us were more skeptical. Some pointed to the pagan texture translated through a modern lens, while others, like the gone-but-unforgotten Akerblogger, critiqued the overload of ideas with little substance to chew on. I found that 2022’s Marter was an easy 4.0 on first listens, but its novelty wore off by the time AOTY’s rolled around—a punishing and bulletproof black metal album, but ultimately too safely constructed by the time its lengthy hour concluded for the longevity I so wished it had. Two years later we greet the epic Ethos.

Ethos is another honing of Firtan’s trademarks. The pagan black metal influence is still intact with bouncy 6/8 rhythms. At the same time, blazing guitars offer chugging and tremolo picking aplenty, with wild drumming to boot and Phillip Thienger’s manic shrieks and wails, overcast by Klara Bachmair’s haunting violin. Violin stands out as a more prominent asset, in fact, offering Ethos a more atmospheric feel than in previous incarnations, resulting in the most epic and memorable album of the act’s career. However, it remains a mixed bag of quality, with some songs SOTY-caliber in epic atmospheres and crushing performances and others coming up short in monotonous fallout. Thus, Firtan’s shot at greatness falls just short.

It’s hard to deny Firtan’s effectiveness when a sweet balance of layered execution finds alignment. Ethos kicks off with one of the strongest tracks – perhaps in their career. “Hrenga” is a haunting seven-and-a-half minute opus magnum, balancing mammoth chugging guitars with downright infectious violin overtures, interspersed by vicious and climactic tremolo passages. This spirit is carried throughout the album’s fifty-one-minute runtime, with tracks like “Zores,” “Moloch,” and “Komm herbei, schwarze Nacht” hitting the sweet spot of chuggy heft, razor-sharp blackened bale, and violin’s ghostly tones to an epic and driving degree. The more subdued tracks find Bachmair’s violin taking more center stage, with “Arkanum” and “Ruakh” providing a lurking horror beneath the slower tempos and overlaying strings. The piano-led instrumental conclusion “Wenn sich mir einst alle Ringe schließen” does a good job capping off a solid album with a worthy melody and gentle movements into choirs and strings. Violin acts as a ghostly tendril, avoiding the decadent bombast of the “symphonic black metal” label, adding to its enigma. As usual, Thienger’s performance is a barnstormer, the expected blackened shrieks maintaining an animalistic edge that descends into wails and growls as he guides the proceedings with nearly sermonic charisma. Likewise, drummer David Kempf seamlessly morphs from funereal plods to blastbeats to morbid marches, the snare feeling appropriately thunderous, always audible and supportive through Firtan’s busy palette.

While Firtan does a good job weaponizing tempo and rhythm for their epic aims, Ethos’ problem tracks have issues with overly enthusiastic usage of second-wave pvrity. “Wermut hoch am Firmament” and “Contra Vermes” adhere closer to the Darkthrone ’n Mayhem template in blastbeat- and tremolo-heavy passages that feel remarkably empty in comparison to the surrounding tracks, melodic motifs quickly losing their impact. The second-wave loyalty is admirable, but it can damage the tracks in relentless monotony when overused. Meanwhile, some inconsistencies appear: “Arkanum” features a misdirect of an intro that leads you to believe it will be a monster track when it just simmers down instead; “Zores” and “Ruakh” eventually find their footing amid the unhinged blackened attack, although listens are laborious up to their introduction.

Firtan strives for excellence, and Ethos is damn close. While “Hrenga,” “Moloch,” and “Komm herbei…” are some of the best tracks of the quintet’s discography, others fall short of the standard through its enthusiastic and unhinged second-wave tremolo-and-blastbeats formula. Ethos is carefully constructed, just on this side of too long, has moments of utter brilliance, and is consistently enjoyable and powerfully evocative of its warfaring artwork. It feels like swords pointed at our throats, dangerous and galloping across a battlefield in ensured victory, and I am so here for it.

Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: AOP Records
Websites: firtan.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/firtanofficial
Releases Worldwide: September 13th, 2024

#2024 #35 #AOPRecords #BlackMetal #Darkthrone #Ethos #Firtan #GermanMetal #Mayhem #MelodicBlackMetal #Review #Reviews #Sep24

Agrypnie – Erg Review

By Dear Hollow

Perhaps I misjudged Agrypnie in 2021. Perhaps that 1.5 was a little harsh – maybe I read the words “avant-garde” and saw red. Still, Metamorphosis was a hodgepodge of all things post-y and melodic, dragging the lake with melodeath and symphonic black in reckless abandon, sporting vocal tirades with more propensity for destroying its crystallinity than creating it. In this way, Erg is better, streamlining its attack. It’s still your favorite post-black, with all the frills and hearts prominently planted on their sleeves you expect, but armed with a more prominent riff and a trver vibe, your favorite German post-black duo is back and badder than ever.

I underrated Metamorphosis. Its lasting impression was one of stagnation rather than offensiveness, so I would rate it somewhere in the 2.0 ballpark if I reviewed today.1 Just like in 2021, Agrypnie focuses on subtle and interwoven melodies with plodding guitar riffs, juggled with vocalist/guitarist/bassist Torsten’s grungy barks, significantly toning down the outside influence for something that feels like a more rushed Harakiri for the Sky. Drummer Flo is a tour-de-force as usual, whirlwinds of blastbeats and catchy fills saturating the palette. Sporting a thinner, trver production that still manages muscularity periodically, Erg is nothing but consistent. Erg is redemption, and I’m gonna rate Agrpynie correctly this time.

Erg is at its best when subtle melodies shine through the blazing riffs, and instruments do this effectively. Tracks like opener “Aus rauchlosem Feuer,” “Sturm,” and “Blut – Teil II” offer this balance aplenty, Agrypnie letting its ghostly leads and subtle symphonics float in and out of the main down-tuned riffs. It adds an appropriately haunted aura, dark and unsettling, but ultimately forsakes its roots in sanguinity, a shapeshifting melody that balances between ominous and beautiful. The best tracks here are “Entitat” and “Geister,” due to their incorporation of more muscular riffage that balances out the fragile Deafheaven-esque melody and collaborates with Torsten’s rough vocals more effectively. Each track within Erg is a fairly lengthy affair, with instrumental interlude “Blut – Teil I” alone dipping below five minutes, so Agrypnie divides the workload. Particularly in the first half, each track is composed of two parts, the melody in the exposition creeping and ominous, only to explode in frantic climax in the second. This gives these tracks a definite sense of direction, a comfortable predictability, and a smoother dynamic – as usually the second halves compose the more memorable material. The paper-thin production benefits the more tremolo-guided tracks like “Meer ohne Wasser” and “Entitat,” giving them a razor edge.

The most glaring problem for Agrypnie is a remnant from last go: Torsten’s vocals. You would expect his bark to permeate more hardcore-influenced or post-metal-adjacent in bulkier stylings, but it remains a detriment to the fragile structures that compose post-black’s trademarks.2 Each track, even the highlights, grow weary with the bark swinging in like Miley Cyrus on a wrecking ball. “Meer ohne Wasser,” “Blut – Teil II,” and “Stunde des Wolfes” are derailed painfully by this element, and effective instrumental compositions feel all for naught. While the instruments are effectively performed, the frustration with the thinner production is that it puts all elements on the same level, with riffs, melodies, and vocals all battling for the spotlight, only Flo’s drumming anchoring the proceedings – worsened by Erg’s bloated fifty-four-minute runtime. Unfortunately for Agrypnie, the equilibrium between riff, melody, and vocals remain elusive, and remain in the shadow of better acts in a divisive style.

Harakiri for the Sky may not be upper tier yet, but their effective balance between heart-wrenching melody, head-bobbing riffs, and emotive vocals remains a highlight within post-black. Agrypnie can afford no such luxury. While Erg is a better accomplishment than its predecessor in a more streamlined approach that dispenses of unnecessary influences and scattershot songwriting, it is nonetheless held back by painfully anachronistic vocals and damagingly thin mix. It’s one step in the right direction for Torsten and Flo, but Agrypnie takes one step back. Behold, the correct score.

Rating: 2.0/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: AOP Records
Websites: agrypnie.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/agrypnie.official
Releases Worldwide: September 13th, 2024

#20 #2024 #Agrypnie #AOPRecords #BlackMetal #Blackgaze #Deafheaven #Erg #GermanMetal #HarakiriForTheSky #PostBlackMetal #Review #Reviews #Sep24

#TheMetalDogArticleList #GhostCultMagazine ALBUM REVIEW: Ellende - Todbringerin - Ghost Cult Magazine ghostcultmag.com/album-review... #Ellende #Todbringerin #AOPRecords #AtmosphericBlackMetal #BlackMetal #MattCook #AlbumReview #TaylorSwift

#TheMetalDogArticleList
#GhostCultMagazine
ALBUM REVIEW: Ellende - Todbringerin - Ghost Cult Magazine

https://ghostcultmag.com/album-review-ellende-todbringerin-aop-records/

#Ellende #Todbringerin #AOPRecords #AtmosphericBlackMetal #BlackMetal #MattCook #AlbumReview #TaylorSwift

ColdCell – Age of Unreason Review

By Thus Spoke

Sometimes an album’s artwork is just perfect. The art for ColdCell’s Age of Unreason is one such example. A man—his state of undress suggesting hermitude, a rejection of civilisation, or perhaps just haste—running across a landscape littered with skulls whose faces are frozen in grotesque masks, a burning sun dominating the scene, and everything save that rag drained of all colour. Escape, and freedom from modern society come instantly to mind; or perhaps it is our protagonist who is the barbarian—uncivilised, and literally stepping on others in pursuit of his own goal. Whichever interpretation one chooses, they fit equally well, as ColdCell “venture deeper into social abysses and explore the (un)reason of being.” It is not misanthropy, but a lament over humankind’s discordant, destructive ways, and apathy towards the suffering of others that characterises this album. And it pairs quite magnificently with ColdCell’s own brand of eerie black metal.

ColdCell don’t fix what isn’t broken, their black metal remains imbued with layers of drawling melancholic melodies that pleasingly blunt the serrated edge of harsh vocals and vitriolic tremolo. Having the drummer of Schammasch in their midst, it’s perhaps no coincidence that they have historically sounded a little like a less long-winded iteration of that band, while in terms of delivery coming close to Dymna Lotva. Make no mistake, however, they are a unique force all of their own. Misanthropic nihilism has always been the characteristic core of their music, and this comes through both in these undulating waves of sinister, desperate refrains, but equally through vocals that are not only barbed and bleeding with pathos, but also thoughtful and articulate. And ColdCell seem to be following their own conceptual and musical train of thought to its next logical step. Whereas prior album The Greater Evil felt like a cry of anguish and rage, Age of Unreason trades in something closer to apathy, dialling down on the humming atmospheres in exchange for a more balanced blend of ambient and progressive that trades some beauty for brute force, but keeps a strong emotional heart.

Because of this new approach, Age of Unreason strikes with a little more immediacy than its predecessor, whilst retaining a signature urgent atmosphere. The band have a knack for laying down drama in deceptively few strokes, keeping it at a constant state of urgency, without breaching the boundary of overwrought, and thus creating endless, shivery tension. Every track builds seamlessly, and there’s something undeniable about the endlessly circling, driving rhythm, the interplay between a dragging chord or a hanging note and the flutters of rollovers (“Left,” “Meaningless,” “Discord”), the muted flurry of riffs (“Hope and Failure”) and the pulse of ambience. Rushes of buzzing tremolo veiled in warm, electric smoke draw out the refrain into an adrenaline-fuelled charge (“Hope and Failure,” “Sink our Souls”), bridge the gap between a line-ending howl of a lyric (“Left,” “Discord”), or stalk upwards before exploding (“Meaningless”). Amplifying the pathos is the clearest vocal delivery of ColdCell’s career, making for some deliciously morbid moments (One thing in life is certain: that we are all going to die, eventually – “Hope and Failure” ), as well as pure thrilling ones where the album name (“Left” ) or song title (“Discord”) are belted out. All happening as percussion slips away; or a crawl turns to a stampede or the instrumentation erupts into a frenzy of panicked, fluttering black metal.

The record’s particular flavour of despondency emanates even through the very tone of the guitars, and the yearning key of minor themes that span each song, carrying a common thread. Just as in previous albums, this dour sentiment lends furious and atmospheric passages alike a solemnity, tinged with a discomfiting twist when a line slips into dissonance just for a moment (“Meaningless,” “Sink our Souls”). Despite this, Age of Unreason feels a little shallower, musically anyway than that which came before. It cleaves faster to the mind, but its wounds it leaves are less deep, certainly, at least, than The Greater Evil. While symptomatic of the record’s bleak concept, and coming with the benefit of more immediately striking compositions and stickier refrains, it feels, however slightly, like a kind of step down. This is no fault in production—the master is perfectly clear—but rather a case of the wails being less agonised, the climaxes less soul-rending, the songs reaching just a little less far.

Let not the above cloud your judgement; Age of Unreason is a very good record. In a world where black metal is so easily a regurgitation of a tired formula, or pleasant vibey-ness on the atmospheric end, ColdCell prove, again, that they stand out. Intriguing, compelling, and layered, it belongs in the upper echelons of modern extreme music, and deserves—and will easily get—many reslistens.

Rating: Very Good
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: AOP Records
Websites: Bandcamp | Facebook
Releases Worldwide: July 26th, 2024

#2024 #35 #AgeOfUncreason #AOPRecords #AtmosphericBlackMetal #BlackMetal #ColdCell #DymnaLotva #Jul24 #MelodicBlackMetal #Review #Reviews #Schammasch #SwissMetal

Servant set September release for new album Death Devil Magick; stream lead single "Litany"

https://metalnerd.net/servant-set-september-release-for-new-album-death-devil-magick-stream-lead-single-litany/

#Servant #AOPRecords #blackmetal #metal

TOMORROW’S RAIN – Ovdan
https://eternal-terror.com/?p=61513

RELEASE YEAR: 2024

BAND URL: https://tomorrowsrain.bandcamp.com/

With all the excitement of getting a new My Dying Bride album after 6 years, as good as A Mortal Binding²⁰²⁴ is, it’s easy to overlook other albums coming out on the same date, April 19th, such as the 2nd full length Ovdan²⁰²⁴ (released on AOP Records) by the […]

#AOPRecords #gothicMetal #Israel #MelodicDeathDoomMetal #melodicDeathMetal #TOMORROWSRAIN

Gothic doom band Tomorrow’s Rain release their sophomore album, Ovdan. Review at FFMB, https://flyingfiddlesticks.com/2024/04/17/tomorrows-rain-ovdan-aop-2024/ #metal #heavymetal #rock #hardrock #AOPRecords #TomorrowsRain #doom #doommetal #gothic #gothicmetal

LINUS KLAUSENITZER – Tulpa
https://eternal-terror.com/?p=59885

RELEASE YEAR: 2023

BAND URL: https://artofpropaganda.bandcamp.com/album/tulpa

Linus Klausenitzer is Alkaloid’s powerful bassist and on October 6th last year the man decided to release his solo album Tulpa²⁰²³ via AOP Records. To succeed in this endeavor he had asked many renown contributors to take part in it, among whom are […]

#AOPRecords #germany #grooveMetal #HannesGrossman #LinusKlausenitzer #melodicDeathMetal #metalcore #ProgressiveDeathMetal #TechnicalDeathMetal #TraditionalHeavyMetal