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    Hån - Breathing the Void (2021)

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    Crafty and melodic Black Metal releases are on the rise with bands like Uada and Mgła, Switzerland is throwing their hat in the ring with Hån and their latest release “Breathing the Void”. Featuring over 46 minutes of blistering music, this release perfectly balances raw aggression with melody and a top-notch production. Highly recommended for fans of this modern approach to a timeless genre.

    After an ominous intro, the album title track delivers waves of crushing guitars and intense drumming. The band does a solid job in crafting intelligent tracks that are marked by catchiness and aggression. Similar to bands like Misþyrming, the melody infused by the twin-guitar attack into songs like “Olethrus”, “Enter An Eternal World”, and “Goatman”, serves as the perfect contrast to the harsh vocals and the tempo changes.

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    Omination - NGR (2021)

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    Hailing from Tunisia, today we have a very unique and aurally abusive outfit: Omination. Dropping their third full-length release, “NRG”, this band delivers one hell of an expansive sound that incorporates elements of traditional Funeral Death/Doom Metal with some more cinematic and experimental endeavors.

    Unleashing an eerie and ritualistic aural assault with “Crossing the Burned Wasteland”, the band sets a very punishing and intriguing atmosphere. This oppressive atmosphere is further explored with the monolithic onslaughts of “Apocalyptic Ignis Fatuus”, a very powerful track featuring hellish atmospheric elements and potent distorted guitars. The band’s drums, which seem to be programmed, at times give the music a certain industrial edge that classes at times with their atmospheric context, but at the same time creates a very unique and aurally confusing experience, like on “Last Trisagion”.

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    Everdawn - Cleopatra (2021)

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    Hailing from the USA, today we have Everdawn and their lush Symphonic Metal sound. In “Cleopatra”, the band delivers eleven tracks and over 48 minutes of majestic music that could be comparable to any of the European heavy hitters for the genre. Featuring Mike LePond (Symphony X) on its ranks, this band is a new blank slate spawning from Midnight Eternal. Filled with crafty ideas and dramatic arrangements, this release is of high quality and great entertainment value.

    Opening with the heavy hitting “Ghost Shadow Requiem”, the band sets a very regal and engaging atmosphere thanks to the lush keyboards and intricate guitar work. Vocalist Alina Gavrilenko does a great job delivering remarkable vocal melodies from the opener, and as the band unleashes unparalleled catchiness and craftiness in pieces like “Stranded in Bangalore”, “Cleopatra”, and the mysterious “Your Majesty Sadness”.

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    Wolvencrown - A Shadow of What Once Was (2021)

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    Seems to us that there are almost more Black Metal bands than actual musicians these days, as we get more and more promos of this genre each day. Luckily for us, bands like Wolvencrown keep the flame of the genre alive by unleashing crafty releases that while not revolutionary, they deliver solid aggression with good doses of melody and atmosphere to keep things interesting.

    As a three song EP, “A Shadow of What Once Was” opens with a very cavernous atmosphere crafted by punishing guitars and ritualistic drumming. The album title track is split into two songs, perfectly capturing the band’s old-school vibe and unleashes creepy atmospherics alongside sinister and aggressive onslaughts. In particular the dynamic and immersing second part of the title track and its dramatic arrangements.

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    Aethyrick - Apotheosis (2021)

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    After unleashing one hell of a release last year with “Gnosis”, Finland’s mysterious duo Aethyrick swiftly returns with the lush and crushing “Apotheosis”. Delivering over 41 minutes of highly Atmospheric Black Metal, this release builds up on its predecessor while further refining the band’s immersive sound. Featuring the perfect blend of melancholy and harshness, this release quickly establishes itself as one of 2021 finest.

    Opening with a chaotic and ravaging intro in “The Starlit Altar”, the band sets the mood via their layered guitar work and hectic drumming. With a commanding pace and hellish scorn behind it, “Rosary of Midnights” is one of those tracks that incites melodic headbanging while it weaves back and forth furious onslaughts and devilish screams. The atmospheric elements are quite subtle, yet strong enough to pierce through the distorted guitars and deliver an ethereal feeling.

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    Wampyric Rites - The Eternal Melancholy of the Wampyre (2021)

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    Perfect for a cold and snowy day, today we have Ecuador’s Wampyric Rites and their debut full-length release “The Eternal Melancholy of the Wampyre”. While we feel silly writing Wampyr, the band’s music is no joke as their low-fi blistering Black Metal is savage and direct. Perfectly adorned by gaudy keyboards and atmospherics, this release has a very nice retro vibe to go along its sheer brutality.

    After the warm-up atmospheric opening of “As Light is Absorbed by Darkness”, the band will rattle your speakers as it transitions to blistering drumming and furious riffing to deliver a swift and punishing Black Metal blow. We particularly like the mid-tempo catchiness of songs like “As Light is Absorbed by Darkness” and “Tyrant’s Blood”, where the band can be savage with their vocals and incisive riffs, and yet keep things hypnotic and melodic.

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    Harakiri For The Sky - Mӕre (2021)

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    As one of the most awaited releases of 2021, Harakiri For The Sky returns with their melancholic Post-Black Metal with “Mӕre”. Unleashing a massive 84 minutes of music, this release further develops the band’s melodic sound into more complex and yet atmospherically sweeping territories. From start to finish, this release will please fans due to the band’s signature style, while taking in new listeners with a more refined take on the genre.

    Opening with “I, Pallbearer”, we get that signature bleakness of Harakiri For The Sky through their layered guitars and J.J’s emotional vocals. Expanding the band’s sound, “Sing for the Damage We’ve Done” has a dreamier edge while featuring Neige on guest vocals, and “Us Against December Skies” delivers a doomier edge with dramatic keyboards and a very crafty drumming.

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    Meister Leonhardt - Meister Leonhardt (2021)

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    Mysterious Russian entity Meister Leonhardt are about to start a very intense 2021 with their crushing self-titled debut release. Featuring over 26 minutes of frosty old-school Black Metal, this release is the perfect balance between aggression, melody and atmosphere. With members of bands like Thy Grave, Dekonstruktor, Goatpsalm, and Frozen Ocean, this band’s sound is pure quality and quite crafty, making this release one hell of a presentation card.

    The atmospheric opener “The Coldest Fire”, serves as a nice lead to the frosty hellishness of “The Crown Of Consenescence”. This first onslaught unleashes pummeling drums, a catchy tempo and devilish shrieks. With a very retro sound, the band’s core elements are ravaging, reminding us of early Satyricon and Darkthrone days. The incisive guitar work on tracks like “Of Things Never Finished”, offers a great balance between melodic and catchy, while capturing that 80/90 BM vibe.

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    Mons Veneris - Mons Veneris (2021)

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    So far this 2021 has started with a good amount of aurally abusive releases and this self-titled EP from Mons Veneris fits that category perfectly. Unleashing over 20 minutes of music in this two song release, this experienced Portuguese band creates a very punishing and chaotic sound that is superbly effective in completely disturbing the listener.

    Warming up with the hectic “Ritual of a Neverending Doom” we instantly get a completely crushing and dissonant atmosphere created by the buzzsaw-like guitars and lo-fi production. With plenty of different and yet creepy vocal styles, this track sets a very dark and chilling mood. “A Scythe Infested with Plagues…” blasts away with a more traditional BM structure with hellish drumming and incisive guitars. The track feels a bit more ‘normal’, but the intense vocals still give out that eerie goosebump-inducing sinister vibe.

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    Wømb - Here, The World Falls… (2020)

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    As one of the few stragglers from 2020, today we have Portugal’s Wømb and their massively dissonant demo “Here, The World Falls…”. Featuring a completely crushing and cavernous sound, this demo release showcases four tracks filled with intensity and brutality. While the band has never released a full-length album, they probably should due to the sheer level of chaos unleashed by this release

    Opening with the vicious “Abraxas in Ecstasy”, we get a blistering onslaught of crafty drums and buzz-saw like guitars. The vocals are as visceral as you can imagine, drawing comparisons to Vanum and Fell Voices. However, the best feature of this release has to be the superb lo-fi sound, making songs like “ Great Mother of Destruction, Time and Death” be just ravaging and vicious.

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