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    Anomalie – Refugium (2015)

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    Hailing from Austria, today we have Anomalie and their sophomore release “Refugium”. Started as a one-man battalion by Marrok of Selbstentleibung and Harakiri for the Sky (live) fame, this outfit crafts a very melancholic blend of Black Metal that is very rare and extremely addictive. Traversing over 52 minutes of music, this album takes its time to fully develop and to explore its deepest and darkness corners it requires patience and understanding.

    Opening with Katatonia meets Post-Black Metal “In Fear of Tomorrow”, we are instantly hooked on the band’s very melancholic and yet intense sound. The hypnotic clean vocals will haunt you after this track is over. As “Spiritual Dimension” and “Untouched Walls” roll around, we start to notice some resemblance with bands like Agrypnie in terms of the vocals/riffing, but quickly stray away from this when the atmospheric passages go by.

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    Kaeck – Stormkult (2015)

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    Arriving from Folter records, today we have Dutch war Black Metal outfit Kaeck and their decadent debut release “Stormkult”. For fans of old-school Raw Black Metal with a traditional Dutch flair, this release delivers over 30 minutes of devastating music that will leave you uneasy for a few months.

    Opening with the highly atmospheric “De kult”, we instantly get an oldschool Satyricon/Emperor vibe thanks to the simple yet effective atmospheric elements surrounded by crushing riffs and harsh vocals. The band continues to steamroll the listener with the brutality of “De heerser wederkeet” and the sickening atmosphere of the creepy “Holenmuur”. Both tracks are very dense and deliver the right amount of aggression and eeriness in a very balanced and destructive way.

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    Narbeleth - Through Blackness and Remote Places (2015)

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    We get all kinds of bands from all the corners of the world, but it is quite rare to have one from Cuba. Today we have Cuba’s most savage and destructive Black Metal band: Narbeleth. As a one-man battalion, this band perfectly captures the punishing rawness of Scandinavian Black Metal from the late 90’s, and delivers eight brilliant tracks filled with hate and crushing riffs.

    Opening with “Sons of the Grand Cosmic Emanation”, Dakkar unleashes a bestial barrage of unholy melodic BM riffs unlike anything we have every heard before from the small Cuban island. The quality of the music is uncanny as it demolishes everything in its way with a mixture of Immortal acrobatics with the rawness of Gorgoroth. The band’s sound is quite compact and brutal, and the influences of Norwegian Taake are very present in songs like “Mesmerized by the Pale Ghost Moonlight”.

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    Beyond Light – Paintings in the Hall (2014)

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    Delivering 11 tracks of emotional Depressive Black Metal, today we have one-man band Beyond Light and their sophomore release “Paintings in the Hall”. Clocking in at around 63 minutes, this album offers us glimpses into the band’s dark world with unique songs that loosely interconnect with each other. Mostly recommended for people not afraid to experiment and look outside the box, this release will command your attention since the first minute.

    Opening with the somber “Blind But Drawing” intro, the band gets down to business with the very eerie and mysterious “Painted Memories”. The atmosphere is very well crafted, before we get to hear any vocals or fast parts, making it very effective in immersing the listeners. Depressive BM should be moody and firm, things that are perfectly embodied in “Beneath The Horizon” and “Her Broken Face”, two of the albums best tracks.

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    Enshine – Singularity (2015)

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    After taking everybody by surprise with their excellent debut “Origin”, Enshine returns with a more mature and refined release titled “Singularity”. Comprised of only two members, Jari Lindholm and Sebastien Pierre, this international band manages to craft a very melodic and engaging release that clocks in at 53 minutes of music. If you are a fan of October Tide, Insomnium and Swallow the Sun, this is an album that you don’t want to miss.

    The band opens with the Sci-Fi-ish “Dual Existence” as the barrage of melodic riffs is made present by Jari. The pace is quite mellow, but the harshness and brutality of the music is felt, particularly when Sebastien’s growls come into the picture. With majestically crafted songs like “Adrift” and “Resurgence”, the band sets a very melodic mood with subtle atmospheric keyboards. The band’s resemblance to Swallow the Sun in terms of pace and mood is uncanny, but they make the sound their own by adding more Melodic Death metal elements here and there.

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    Vhöl - Deeper than Sky (2015)

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    As one of the wackiest releases of 2015, today we have Vhöl and their sophomore release “Deeper than Sky”. Featuring members of Agalloch, Hammers of Misfortune and YOB, this is one super group with enough musical chops to make even the weirdest sound great. IF we had to categorize their music, we would say that they play Avant-garde Heavy/Thrash Metal, due to the mixture of genres surfacing thought this release.

    Opening with the Deathklok-esque “The Desolate Damned”, the band delivers an intense music with some brilliant guitar wizardry, which interestingly enough have Mike Scheidt handling vocal duties while John Cobbett handles the guitars. After an unconventional opening, “3AM” feels a bit more like a traditional Heavy Metal song with some funky drumming, courtesy of Aesop Dekker. Mike’s vocals are very versatile, as anybody that listens to YOB can attest, and they perfectly fit each track’s unique level of madness.

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    Dead to a Dying World – Litany (2015)

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    With plenty of high profile releases in 2015, Dead to a Dying World’s sophomore release “Litany” almost past by us unnoticed. Luckily, we gave it a few spins and were instantly blown away by the level of melancholy and musicianship found in this little gem. Featuring six tracks and over 70 minutes of Atmospheric Death-Doom/Black Metal /Post-Rock, this is one heck of a release from beginning to end.

    Hailing from Texas and featuring guest appearances by members of Pallbearer and Sabbath Assembly, this release kicks off with the 16-minute “The Hunt Eternal”. Opening with some somber strings and rapidly progressing into Black Metal territory, this track suddenly changes into all-out melancholic Doom riffing and lush clean vocals. The band perfectly captures the catharsis of such an intense opening with brilliantly painful mellow soundscapes and female vocals. This sounds like Ash Borer-meets-Elend-meets-My Dying Bride and we love it.

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    Perihelion – Zeng (2015)

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    Hailing from Hungary, today we have a very energetic outfit named Perihelion. Seamlessly blending Post-Rock and Progressive Metal elements with soaring vocals, this band delivers a very melancholic release with “Zeng”. All sung in Hungarian, this release is quite unique as it constantly changes between styles at the exact moment you think you have figured them out.

    Opening with the dreamy “Tündöklés”, the band nicely moves around from a very atmospheric and Post-Rock-ish pace to a faster and more aggressive stance at the end of the song, which seamlessly blends into the second track “Vég se hozza el”. You can clearly hear some Alcest/Post-Black Metal worship here in the guitars, but they are interestingly contrasted by the soaring clean vocals of Gyula Vasvári. Things even get a bit folky in “Felemészt a tér”, a track that reminds us of another Hungarian band Dalriada, but with a male vocalist.

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    Erdh – Sidermesis (2015)

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    Arriving from Apathia Records, today we have a very weird Ambient / Trip-hop / Electronic release titled “Sidermesis”. Hailing from Paris, France, Erdh is a pretty unique outfit with a good ear for crafting intoxicating atmospheres and very diverse soundscapes. If you like their weird side of The 3rd and the Mortal, Ulver, and even Depeche Mode, this is right up your alley.

    Opening with the slowly building atmospheric title track, we get a moody piece that nicely introduces the listener to the band’s world. The vocals provided by Emmanuel Lévy fit the music nicely giving it a certain ethereal and gothic vibe. Nicolas Pingnelain’s music is pretty intense and creates a certain sense of urgency as we can hear from the very solid “Backup 1011”.

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    Ulysses Siren – Justifiable Homicide (2015)

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    As one of the most underrated Bay Area Thrash Metal band in the scene, today we have Ulysses Siren and their EP “Justifiable Homicide”. Featuring some songs of their 2011 demo and three live songs, this release was slated for a couple of years back but the loss of Jon Torres derailed all the band’s plans. A few line-up changes and a couple of years later, we are finally able to get our hands on a few songs from the demo and some live goodies.

    Opening with the title track, the band delivers an intense punch of old-school Thrash brilliance. The guitars are quite vicious and the drumming delivers the perfect tempo for this great piece of period music. The band’s experience allows them to deliver their timeless sound with an unspoken authenticity that only the real Bay Area Thrash bands have. “Bludgeoned Mass” keeps things nice and heavy with some killer guitar acrobatics and very tight drums. Paired with a very upbeat tempo, this track is quite enjoyable.

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