Black Metal

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    Archaeopteris - Visions chaotiques d´un songe halluciné (2021)

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    Unleashing a very unique and disturbing combination of Black Metal, Death Metal, and some atmospheric elements, today we have France’s Archaeopteris and their debut EP “Visions chaotiques d´un songe halluciné”. With a short but chaotic duration, this release delivers both aggression and extreme weirdness. Definitely recommended for fans of the bizarre and unconventional.

    Opening with “Visions Chaotiques”, after a short atmospheric intro, the band instantly dives into the depths of hell with a fierce combination of punishing riffs and crafty drums. Far from traditional, this track changes tempos very oddly, creating a very cavernous and yet disturbing atmosphere. The second song, “Songe Halluciné” leads with lush acoustic guitars as it quickly transitions into piercing aggressive guitars and deep harsh screams.

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    White Ward - Debemur Morti (2021)

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    Marking the release number 200 from the forward thinking label Debemur Morti, Ukraine’s White Ward unleash two very unique pieces of music with their signature style. Featuring anything but traditional elements, this release delivers nearly 18 minutes of enigmatic and highly experimental Black Metal. For the uninitiated, White Ward is one of the most exciting bands of the last few years, with their expertly crafted experimental music featuring heavy atmospheres and an avant-garde mixture of elements and styles that puts them years ahead from their competition.

    Opening with the EP title track, the band first sets a very jazzy and sultry atmosphere that quickly escalates into full on blistering drums alongside a sexy saxophone. Things pick up as the aggressive BM onslaughts proceed alongside crafty tempo changes. If this wasn’t enough, guest vocalist Lars Nedland (Solefald, Borknagar) soaring clean vocals provides a brilliant complement to an already highly intricate backdrop.

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    CMPT - Mrtvaja (2021)

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    Hailing from Serbia, CMPT is an anonymous punishing Black Metal outfit with hints of atmospheric elements. In this two song EP, the band instantly makes a name for themselves with a very unique and highly engaging 20 minutes of music. For fans of piercing BM that is both melodic and highly aggressive, this release will leave you wanting more.

    Opening with an ominous atmospheric intro that suddenly transforms into all-out-war, this first track creates a lasting impression on the listener. The contrast of imposing atmospherics with the ravaging guitars and intense drumming perfectly set the backdrop from the harsh screams and crafty tempo changes. With a more hellish vibe, the second track in this release is filled with pummeling riffs and creepy transitions from raw aggression to eerie atmospherics.

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    Order of Nosferat - Arrival of the Plague Bearer (2021)

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    Being huge fans of Black Metal with additional elements other than raw power, we are quite enthralled by Order of Nosferat and their latest release “Arrival of the Plague Bearer”. Unleashing over 50 minutes of vampiric BM, we get a wide variety of haunting piano interludes, dreamy atmospherics, and savagely raw BM, with all elements blending in perfect harmony. If you are looking for creepy and cinematic BM releases, this one will satisfy your thirst.

    Starting with an atmospheric mood setting intro, the album title track transforms into a behemoth with blistering drums, inhuman screams and a turmoil of high powered distorted riffs. Alongside the violent core sound, the keyboards provide a nice melodic contrast in this piece. The album’s atmosphere is greatly enhanced by instrumental tracks like “Sleepless in Sorrow and Bloodthirst”, “The Castle of Haunting Silence”, “Lost in the Crypts of my Need for Affection”, “As She Fades in Lamenting Winds”, and “Dance of the Wallachian Winter Spirits” which create a very spooky and solemn backdrop to the aggressive pieces.

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    Vrexiza - Vrexiza (2021)

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    Unleashing a 21 minute blistering self-titled album, today we have Canada’s Vrexiza and their no-bullisht Black Metal. Picked up to be released in tape format by Signal Rex, this 4 track release delivers waves of crushing riffs, pummeling vocals, and crafty tempos. Nothing fancy or overproduced here, just straight up raw and demoralizing BM.

    The release opens with the crushing “Iron Spectres” and its intricate guitar work. Delivering a swift and brutal blow to the back of the head, this track is expertly crafted to be pummeling and highly demoralizing. After the intense opening, “Hürtgenwald” changes the pace to a more hypnotic, atmospheric, and incisive piece with piercing riffs, mid-tempo hellish vocals and blistering headbanging passages.

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    Mesarthim - Vacuum Solution (2021)

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    Hailing from Australia, Mesarthim creates one of the most mystifying and unique blends of Metal with electronic/atmospheric elements. Similar to bands like Germ, Violet Cold, and Progenie Terrestre Pura, the band’s sound is both bombastic and pretty aggressive, keeping things superbly catchy and still heavy enough for Metal fans to enjoy. With 5 tracks and nearly 30 minutes of music, “Vacuum Solution” is one hell of a unique and engaging release.

    The album title sets a very dramatic futuristic vibe with super catchy synths and beats, paired with powerful guitars and fiendish shrieks. This is the exact explosivity we loved from bands like Germ, but Mesarthim takes it to a whole new level with more electronic/dark electro elements. Track like “Matter and Energy” also have a certain Industrial-like vibe, reminding us of Italy’s Aborym but with a catchier edge.

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    Ancient Wisdom - A Celebration In Honor of Death (2021)

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    Completely unexpected after 17 years since their last release, Ancient Wisdom returns with ‘their’ mystical and enigmatic Atmospheric Black Metal. Being huge fans of the band’s earlier work, Marcus E. Norman keeps things simple and traditional while delivering 50 minutes of captivating music with an old-school vibe and tons of crafty ideas. If you like old-school Melodic/Symphonic Black Metal but with a more Atmospheric edge, you can’t miss out on “A Celebration In Honor of Death”.

    Opening with the dramatic “Haec est Mors Secunda” we get lush operatic choir arrangements, sinister riffs, and an almost Doomy pace to start this release. Of course the band’s Black Metal roots instantly shine with the riffs of “Breaking the Circle of Life”, a track that nicely blends some Middle Eastern undertones to its powerful melodic passages and harsh snarls. Always focusing on creating weird and quirky tracks, songs like “Architect of Death - Laudamus Te” and “The Coronation” craft very unique atmospheres alongside funky guitars and interesting tempo changes, making the band’s diverse sound quite engaging and exciting.

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    Odraza - Acedia (2021)

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    Straight out of a horror film, today we have Poland’s Odraza and their bone-chilling EP “Acedia”. Perfectly blending Black Metal elements with tons of dramatic atmospherics in a very experimental manner, this release unleashes nearly 27 minutes of creepy music that is intended to disturb listeners while drawing them into its fierce claws.

    Immediately setting the bar high with the creepy first few minutes of “I”, the band slowly creates a very foul and disturbing atmosphere. There are certain jazzy and exploratory elements thrown into the mix, allowing the band’s sound to be quite expansive and unique. Heavy doomy riffs and crafty percussion help shift the mood in this aural journey, to a more industrial and ethnic place, while the sparse Black Metal onslaughts are fierce and demoralizing due to their intensity.

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    Disparaître - Urchig (2021)

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    Never in short supply, Atmospheric Black Metal bands have started to pop out of the shadows in the last few years. With a saturation of the genre, it becomes quite hard to find bands that bring something unique and different to the table. Luckily for us, today we have France’s mysterious entity Disparaître and their latest EP “Urchig”. Clocking in at 30+ minutes, this release creates a very cavernous atmospheric vibe but throws in some melodic elements that nicely shift the linearity of the style and create interesting and engaging passages.

    The release opens with your traditional synth opening in “La voûte étoilée”, however, they quickly merge with an all-out-war approach with piercing shrieks, crushing guitars and crafty drums. We particularly appreciate how the atmospheric synths are mixed quite high, at some points overpowering the ravaging BM onslaughts. The intensity picks up with the brutal onslaughts of “Nachtspinnärinnä”, an 11-minute tour-de-force that perfectly blends piercing riffs with harsh screams and dreamy atmospheric undertones.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Sojourner - Perennial (2021)

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    Slowly growing into an International powerhouse of Epic/Atmospheric Black Metal, today we have Sojourner and their majestic EP “Perennial”. Having released one of our favorite Atmospheric BM albums of 2020, the band returns with two new songs featuring their new female vocalist, Lucia Amelia Emmanueli, and guitarist, Tom O'Dell. In these two new songs, the band continues to merge epicly melancholic passages with lively and aggressive traditional Atmospheric BM elements, creating a very regal and unique style that any fan of Gothic/Symphonic-infused Metal might greatly enjoy.

    The EP opens with the title track, a very lush and engaging magical piece that creates a very solemn and yet highly emotional atmosphere that is tastefully adorned by Lucia Amelia’s very sweet and nicely fitting vocal style. We get a mixture of old Trail of Tears, Sirenia, and even Dismal Euphony vibes from this tour-de-force song filled with dramatic piano passages and emotive tempo changes.

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