Lmst

📰 New #Alkaloid news item

✍️ By me
🎶 #whiteroomreviews
💿 #SeasonofMist

🔗 https://www.whiteroomreviews.nl/nieuws/alkaloid-brengt-klassiek-en-extreme-metal-samen-op-nieuwe-liveplaat-bach-out-of-bounds

Danheim – Heimferd Review

By Mystikus Hugebeard

Ah, the Viking Age. One of the most mythologized eras in history, and a bottomless well of inspiration for cool things like video games, shows, books, tattoos, and bad things like obsession over ancestral purity, shockingly racist ideologies, and lutefisk. But the best thing of all, and most importantly, music! Which leads us to Danheim (Literally “Danish Home”). Danheim is the solo Nordic folk project by Reidar Schæfer Olsen, and Heimferd is his first full album in four years, which might as well be an eternity. Danheim is usually very prolific, with eight albums released between 2017 and 2021, with about a gazillion singles released during and after those 4 years. Furthermore, Danheim is one of the more well-known Nordic folk artists; he has numerous collaborations with, to name a few, Gealdýr, Sigurboði, Heldom, and has, like Wardruna, been featured on the History Channel’s Vikings. In other words, Danheim is something of a titan of the genre—is Heimferd worth the wait?

Danheim’s music, and by extension Heimferd, is a sonic extension of the version of the Vikings that has embedded itself within people’s imagination and contemporary media: an intoxicating image of a powerful and mysterious people, plunged into a captivating world of violence and mysticism.1 Most might immediately connect Danheim’s sound to Wardruna (not unjustifiably), but that paints a rather flat picture. The music is cinematic in a way that calls to mind a less avant-garde Heilung, it vibrates with a slightly electronic, tribal weight that, at this point, belongs more to Danheim than any of his peers (but one might still compare it to Vígundr or Heldom), and it’s atmospheric and densely layered like, well, Wardruna. But I believe it’s the simple immediacy of Danheim’s that has made him the Nordic folk titan that he is. It’s just so easy to fall under the spell of electronically augmented droning chants set to the rhythm of deep, beating drums, heard in some form or another in nearly every song on Heimferd.

…and yet, there sadly wafts an air of shallowness across Heimferd. There is an unfulfilled relationship between Heimferd’s sound and its songwriting. Heimferd’s stellar production and the variety of instruments create a captivating soundscape, but so rarely do songs breathe or evolve in a way that gives the songs life. This is felt all throughout Heimferd. “Heljar Skuggar” and “Rúnmyrkr” each utilize engaging, distorted chants in the vein of Heilung, but feel stagnant, without peaks or valleys. Songs are often lacking in stakes or tension, the worst of which is heard in the lifeless “Valvejen” as it flits loosely between tagelharpa melodies and excessive downtime. For songs meant to sound almost hypnotic in their droning, much comes off as forgettable, like “Kominn Dagr” as it switches from monotone chanting into a toothless tagelharpa melody, neither section given ample time to grow or make an impact. Clearly, Danheim places a lot of emphasis on atmosphere, and Heimferd is indeed viking-y at a distance—but up close, there is little to sink your teeth into.

This is not always the case, however, with a handful of songs towering above the rest. The vocal-heavy closer, “Yggdrasil II” (a sequel to “Yggdrasil” from 2018’s Fridr), has a quiet majesty to its rhythmic and beautiful chorus. “Vindfari” is an unassuming song that really sneaks up on you, as the drums march behind a simple chanting melody with a peculiar, percussive vocal delivery to some words that adds unique character to the song. Heimferd’s best song is “Haukadalur,” though. This song moves and breathes like a living thing, as distant haggard exhalations augment a powerful beat which heralds a coarse, dancing tagelharpa. These songs have such richness to their melodies, making the most of Danheim’s accessible and engaging style. It feels as if this has been my experience with every Danheim album: two or three genuinely stellar tracks that speak of an artist capable of amazing things, surrounded by songs that sound great but leave little impression.

Danheim has ever been frustrating for me, and Heimferd reaffirms that feeling. His infectious soundscape sufficiently conjures a Viking-age atmosphere and energy, but with base songwriting that so rarely transforms the music into something lasting or impactful. It’s strange, because my first listen of Heimferd was the most positive one, and I think it’s because Danheim’s style of Nordic folk can be cathartic in a way not many other artists within the genre are. But on each subsequent spin, when I listen closer, probing, pleading for depth, I’m left wanting. Heimferd is the distilled essence of the modern perception of Vikings, but with little drama or tension. It’s fun, but ephemeral.

Rating: Mixed
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps
Label: Season of Mist
Websites: official | bandcamp
Releases Worldwide: October 31st, 2025

#25 #2025 #Danheim #DarkFolk #Gealdýr #Heilung #Heimferd #Heldom #Neofolk #NordicFolk #Oct25 #Review #Reviews #SeasonOfMist #Sigurbodi #Vigundr #VikingMusic #Wardruna

Tonight's 📷🎥 office will be #thornhill + #oceangrove + #bloom for 📍 #DeHelling (SOLD OUT) 📷

Who will I see there?

Today I wrote a #WhiteRoomReviews item about #rottensound 💿 #seasonofmist

Go check it out on WR 🫶

Beanie from this fit is from #mercenary 🖤 #oktoberpromotion

Throwback to 📍 #Alcatraz

🎥 By: Sethpicturesmusic
ℹ️ Captured for: #whiteroomreviews

🗓️ 8/8/2025
🌱 #thycatafalque
💿 #seasonofmistofficial

Tamás Kátai
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#concertphotography #concertphotographer #musicphotography #musicphotographer #bandphotographer #bandphotography #seasonofmist #seasonofmistrecords #sethabrikoos #sethpicturesmusic

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HOODED MENACE - Lachrymose Monuments Of Obscuration [FULL ALBUM] 2025 (lyrics in 'pinned' comment)

https://peertube.gravitywell.xyz/w/pb54ctAMFQqemz3wrvpdki

Hooded Menace – Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration Review

By Steel Druhm

I’ve been hot and cold on Finnish doom-death act Hooded Menace over the years. I enjoyed the heavy, ugly sound of their early albums, but as they slowly progressed into more melodic realms, I felt they lost a bit of their primal sting. I enjoyed albums like Ossuarium Silhouettes Unhallowed and 2021s The Tritonus Bell and respected their reset into more jaunty, trad metal melo-doom soundscapes, but it just felt like something was missing. That brings us to their latest release, Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration. They’re still moving in the melo-doom direction, and what you get is a wild mish-mash of 80s trad metal, Peaceville-esque Goth doom, and hard rock. It’s ambitious and skillfully executed, but it’s not without bumps and thumps along the way.

After a throwaway intro, Hooded Menace clubs you like an Easter seal with the 7-plus minute riff-o-thon “Pale Masquerade.” You will detect flavor notes of Sentenced, Cemetery, and Cathedral as the terrible trio rocks hard and rides free with more riffs than you can process, all backed by grunting death roars. It’s a wild trip as things twist from doomy passages to straight-up arena metal rocking and every stop in between. The transitions are smooth, and nothing feels duct-taped together as styles and genres ebb and flow. The problem is the length. At multiple times, I felt like another song had started, but nope, it was the same track meandering all over the map. It packs a lot into the 7 minutes, but it feels like too much. This is an issue across Lachrymose, despite a lot of cool moments in each song. “Portrait Without a Face” pays big homage to the Peaceville days of Goth doom with weepy cellos sighing alongside the heavy doom leads, and nods to Paradise Lost are impossible to ignore. Then, around the 3:40 mark, they dump all that in favor of hard-charging Black Royal-esque power chugs, and it’s glorious. It still runs too long, though.

Elsewhere, “Daughters of Lingering Pain” is painfully Paradise Lost in the guitar piece, but the vocals skew to Cemetery classics like Godless Beauty and Black Vanity.1 This one in particular packs a wicked nostalgia punch that takes me back to the early ’90s when Goth doom was new and shiny. “Lugubrious Dance” also goes back to the band’s early days of straight-up doom worship, and you get some massive riffs on what is the album’s high point and the only track (save for the shocking cover version) that doesn’t suffer for running over 7 minutes. Toward the end of the album, you’re graced by “Save a Prayer,” which took me about 3 minutes to realize is a cover of the classic 80s hit by Duran Duran. Somehow it works very well beaten into a Goth doom style, and as much as it shames me to admit it, it’s one of my favorite moments on the album. Closer “Into Haunted Oblivion” clocks in just shy of 10 minutes, and after an album of 7-minute epics, your ability to swallow another family-sized doom biscuit will be compromised. It’s not a bad tune, and parts remind me again of my beloved Cemetery, and the Peaceville cellos float back in for added atmosphere. It ultimately just tottles on for too long, and by the 6th minute, I start losing my mental grip. At just under 47 minutes, Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration feels considerably longer due to the bloatimus maximus.

Although I have issues with the overstuffed songs, I have only good things to say about Lasse Pyykkö’s wild guitar work. He’s an infernal riff machine, and his leads race across several genres. His launching pad is classic doom, but he’s more than happy to shoehorn in scads of traditional/classic metal influences as well as touches of arena rock. You can’t listen to this guy’s playing and not be impressed. I especially enjoy when his rocked out doom style approaches that of prime Cathedral. He’s basically a metal history tour guide, and he knows how to make a riff stick in your head. Harri Kuokkanen’s vocals are fairly one-note, but his rough death roars are effectively raw and grizzly. He does inject personality into the mix, though a few clean passages would be a boon. The template works well; it just needs a touch of restraint.

Hooded Menace have talent to spare, and when they hit their groove, you will be rocked muchly. The songs on Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration vary from very good to merely good, with the lesser tracks held back by their sheer length. If you want to do the rocking melo-doom thing, the songs need to be pared down to rock song lengths, and Hooded Menace refuse to do that. To their credit, this is still almost a 3.5. There’s a lot here to enjoy, but there’s also a lot here. Mileage will vary accordingly.

Rating: 3.0/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Season of Mist
Websites: hoodedmenace.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/hoodedmenaceofficial | instagram.com/hoodedmenaceofficial
Releases Worldwide: October 3rd, 2025

#2025 #30 #Cathedral #Cemetery #DeathMetal #DoomMetal #DuranDuran #FinnishMetal #HoodedMenace #LachrymoseMonumentsOfObscuration #Oct25 #Reviews #SeasonOfMist #Sentenced

Welcome Back!!!

GREEN CARNATION - 'A Dark Poem Pt. l - The Shores Of Nothingness' by @green2carnation & @seasonofmistofficial

#linsedunemanninen
#intensemusic
#greencarnation
#seasonofmist
#metal
#heavymetal
#darkmetal
#gothicmetal
#deathmetal
#doommetal
#blackmetal
#progressivemetal
#metalpunksteel
#speedmetalpunks
#vinyllover
#vinyllovers
#försterplayer
#försterspieler
#greenbeast
#project
#projectdebutcarbonevo
https://www.instagram.com/p/DO089g1jMq7/?igsh=aGZ5NTlubDdhZ2J3

STONED JESUS - Songs To Sun [FULL ALBUM] 2025 **including lyrics**

https://peertube.gravitywell.xyz/w/px2Dh8V1kEVNChVgz6VN7A

Sowulo – Niht Review

By Twelve

It’s been a minute since I’ve got a chance to review some folk music around here. It’s not super common that we get these promos, but when a sample of dark folk, spiritually, resembles our heavy metal world, we occasionally find some sent our way. Today’s sample is Niht, the sixth full-length release from Dutch Sowulo (“sun” in proto-Germanic), which takes a philosophical approach to the histories of northern Europe. It’s got everything you could ask for in dark folk on paper: lyrics written in a language no one (to the best of my knowledge) speaks anymore, a small army of instruments that I can’t picture by name alone, and an inscrutable cover with a vague runic shape on it. Sowulo are, on paper, set up for success with Niht already; how does the music itself fare?

Like most works of dark folk in a similar vein—Urferd, Forndom, Wardruna, as examples—Niht draws strength from its reaches at authenticity. Sole band member Faber Horbach (Myrkvur) sings, plays nyckelharpa, carnyx, bouzouki, and acoustic percussion, with guest musicians contribution violins, harps, horns, and more to the work. The stringed instruments create an orchestral-Nordic-folk atmosphere for Sowulo to thrive in, and Niht has a lot of great moments in this vein, from the dramatic “Full Mōna,” featuring hypnotic throat singing at rising intensity, to the eerie, expansive “Swefnian.” Horbach’s gruff, throaty singing, complemented by guest singing from Micky Huijsmans (End of the Dream), brings the Anglo-Saxon lyrics to life; their duet in the stirring chorus of “Nihtēagan” is one of the best moments on Niht, owing largely to their emotional delivery (though the strings work does a lot of heavy lifting too).

Of course, there’s no metal here, and very little in the way of electric influence. Distortion is a distant dream; instead, the music and production are clean and airy, for the most part. “Mōnaþblōd” is a notable exception, with elements of electronica meshing against Sowulo’s natural folk leanings. But generally, you can hear every instrument and enjoy a comparatively quiet listen with atmospheric influence. “Miċele Steorran” is a fantastic example, a peaceful track that uses gently strings to create dream-like soundscapes that complement Horbach and Huijsmans’s singing. It’s not “purely” dark folk or neofolk, but the influences are strong enough that its power comes largely from orchestral highs and emotional vocal melodies, rather than any kind of heaviness.

Despite these terrific qualities, Niht still feels held back, as if it’s a restrained version of Horbach’s original intention—at least to my ears. Niht has on it a lot of tracks that contain a lot of repetition, which makes it feel artificially long. “Carnyx,” for example, is a nearly four-minute exploration of the eponymous wind instrument that doesn’t do much of anything except add ambience, all but halting Niht halfway through. Both the intro and closer share this approach. On the other side of the coin, “Seolfren Sicol” is dominated by its chorus, to the point that it’s the only thing I ever remember about the song. This is, perhaps, the drawback of writing your songs in a dead language—the two verses in the song resemble each other so closely that the song feels like it’s been copied and pasted in several places. With thirteen tracks, it feels as if Sowulo brought too many ideas to Niht—as if there is simultaneously too much album and too little.

Niht does a good job of building an authentic-feeling, atmospheric Nordic folk experience. It is, at varying times, complex, mesmerizing, and passionate. It does have its moments that don’t quite land as they should, but the whole is enjoyable and moving. I hadn’t heard of Sowulo before Niht, but it’s the kind of album that makes me want to hear more. If you need a break from our usual fare, you could do a lot worse than Niht.

Rating: 3.0/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Season of Mist
Websites: sowulo.bandcamp.com | sowulo.nl | facebook.com/Sowulo
Releases Worldwide: August 29th, 2025

#2025 #30 #Aug25 #DarkFolk #DutchMetal #EndOfTheDream #Forndom #Myrkvur #Neofolk #Niht #Review #Reviews #SeasonOfMist #Sowulo #Urferd #Wardruna

Album Review: Der Weg einer Freiheit — ‘Innern’

#DerWegeinerFreiheit #Innern #AlbumReview #SeptemberReleases #SeasonOfMist

Link: https://metalinsider.net/reviews/album-review-der-weg-einer-freiheit-innern

Green Carnation – A Dark Poem Part I: The Shores of Melancholia Review

By Dr. A.N. Grier

Not gonna lie, I did a double-take when I saw that Green Carnation’s fantastic Leaves of Yesteryear came out five fucking years ago. And what a different time that was. We were balls-deep in Covid hell, I was living in a 600 square foot apartment in one of the hottest shit holes on earth, and I had a completely different job than I do now. But I didn’t mind any of it because I had my beloved Leaves of Yesteryear, which I still talk to staff about regularly. They love it. Many fans considered Green Carnation’s 2020 release a return to form for the band, and A Dark Poem Part I: The Shores of Melancholia continues where its predecessor left off. But it also incorporates everything we’ve ever known of the band’s catalog. Returning to the days of Light of Day, Day of Darkness, the band sets out to tell us a new story. Instead of accomplishing it in a single, one-hour song, The Shores of Melancholia marks Part I of a three-part series. This is one hell of an undertaking, but I’m here for it.

The sole purpose of The Shores of Melancholia is to set the tone of the trilogy, using its lyrical content and progressive nature to lure you in without answering any questions. The answers will come later. Throughout this first part of the trilogy, you’ll explore grief and inner turmoil, all the while trying to decide if you should headbang or hang your head in utter despair. More than the previous record, there are tracks here that are a total mind-fuck, transitioning endlessly between grooving riffs, melodic passages, and sadboi atmospheres. This does give a sense of return to Light of Day, Day of Darkness, with its numerous riff changes and progressive elements. But that’s where it ends. This is a different Green Carnation these days. A band that honors its legacy but refuses to become stale.

For example, the album opens with two groovy numbers that take those elements from their rocking 2003 release, A Blessing in Disguise, and shove loads of details into them. “As Silence Took You” begins the album with a dark, slow-moving introduction that evolves into an effect-laden blanket of bassy licks and soft vocals. When the chorus arrives, the true strength of Kjetil Nordhus’ voice rings in the clouds. After following this pattern for a while, it evolves into an attractive chug that amplifies the energy and takes this sad song into even darker territories. Lyrically, this song has hit me hard lately, being that I lost my father suddenly a couple of weeks ago. Like the lyrics state, I never got to say goodbye as silence took you. But as far as groovers go, the follow-up track takes the urinal cake. With various slapping riffs that get your noggin’ rockin’, the chorus stands out for its very folky attitude. It’s a perfect blend and a song I find myself repeating constantly.

While the two opening pieces get the juices going, the two that close the album take you down into a dark place. The atmospheres that introduce the title track are massive, sucking you into melancholic bliss. It also has the biggest, most beautiful chorus of the record. The best part of the song is the hauntingly gorgeous, yet rather simple guitar lead that resonates throughout. While “The Shores of Melancholia” might be the strongest of the album, the closer, “Too Close to the Flame,” is the most progressive. This epic number is a rollercoaster ride of emotions—at one point sinister, at other times uplifting and foot-tappable. It also has plenty of those patented chugs Green Carnation is so good at utilizing when introducing new builds. But I can’t end this review without talking about the album’s literal black sheep. We haven’t heard black metal rasps in Green Carnation since Nattefrost’s contribution on Light of Day, Day of Darkness, but you are not prepared for “The Slave That You Are.” This song uses Enslaved’s Grutle Kjellson on vocals, while, sometimes awkwardly, the band fuses old-school black metal with progressive sound. While not uncommon for Enslaved, the progressive elements of Green Carnation make it a wild ride.

The only track that doesn’t grab me as strongly as the others is “Me, My Enemy.” Lyrically, it does a great job fitting the theme. But it’s ballady pace with spacey Pink Floydish effects takes me out of the mood a bit. Though it’s a shocker to go from this track to the aforementioned “The Slave That You Are.” It’s difficult to measure the greatness of an album that is only one part of a trilogy without knowing the final result. But, as this album stands, Leaves of Yesteryear is a stronger record as a whole. But, again, the day all the pieces come into place, this trilogy has the potential of being the most adventurous endeavor the band has ever taken. There are a lot of surprises on this new album, which I appreciate because if you look at the band’s catalog, no two records are the same. Based on this record alone, I’m quite excited to see how this plays out.

Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 9 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Season of Mist
Websites: greencarnationsom.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/greencarnationnorway
Releases Worldwide: September 5th, 2025

#2025 #35 #ADarkPoemPartITheShoresOfMelancholia #Enslaved #GreenCarnation #NorwegianMetal #PinkFloyd #ProgressiveMetal #Review #Reviews #SeasonOfMist #Sep25

🎥👇Videoclips released in July you should definitely check out:

#DerWegEinerFreiheit
#LordoftheLost x #WithinTemptation
#MAVIS
Hei'An
#ABBIEFALLS
ten56.
#OrbitCulture
#SignsoftheSwarm
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#SeasonofMist #NapalmRecords #OutOfLineMusic #deathcore #metalcore #oktoberpromotion #metalmusic #metal #heian #tenfiftysix #videoclip

Rotting Christ – Pro Xristou #cd #UrubuzRecords #idUBZ227 #Stereo #BlackMetal #SeasonOfMist #cdpost #cdcollector #cdcollection #discoécultura #compactdisc #digitalaudio #gradienteS96 #PanasonicDVDS29 #kombi #noise #Há1ano

Throwback to: #CarachAngren 📍live at #tivolivredenburg

🗓️ 15/7/2025
💿 #seasonofmist #seasonofmistrecords
🤘 #decibeltouring

📷 Sethpicturesmusic - Seth Abrikoos

🙏 The full review and the photos went up on #WhiteroomReviews
ACCR: #LoudnoiseProductions

Went to Saint-Pierre-des-Corps • Tours 🇫🇷 to see my friend Quentin… but his cats stole the show. 10/10 would visit again for the felines 🐾😹
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🎥 by me
Music added to this video: Appel de L'Âme by Vestige (Quentin's band)
Fun fact: his band is signed to #SeasonOfMist 💿 and will open for #DreamTheater at ARTmania Festival

#cutecat #cutecats #artmaniafestival #modernmetal #dreamtheater #cutecatsoftiktok #baseprod #vestige #vestigeband #seasonofmist #sethpicturesmusic #sethabrikoos

#TheMetalDogArticleList
#Blabbermouth
ÜL

https://blabbermouth.net/reviews/ul

#Mawiza #ÜL #MapucheNation #SeasonOfMist #JoeDuplantier #Gojira #ChileanMetal #SpiritualResistance #MapucheMetal #ChileanMusic

#TheMetalDogArticleList
#MetalSucks
Der Weg Einer Freiheit Tell a Fallen Warrior’s Tale in “Eos”
Innern will be released on September 12 via Season of Mist. Der Weg Einer Freiheit Tell a Fallen Warrior’s Tale in “Eos” .

https://www.metalsucks.net/2025/07/16/der-weg-einer-freiheit-tell-a-fallen-warriors-tale-in-eos/

#DerWegEinerFreiheit #Eos #Innern #SeasonOfMist #BlackMetal #GermanBlackMetal #MetalSucks #FallenSoldier #NewSingle #September2025