BLACK METAL DAILY’S LISTCRUSH 2023: The ALASKAN BERGWANDERER Edition, Part 2

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Yes, it is that time of the year again, where “experts” drop their picks for the best albums of the year. Everyone has their ways of going about such a monumental task, some are very meticulous; tracking plays on Spotify, Bandcamp, and at home with physical media. Then there’s others such as myself, who face existential crisis this time of year, wing a list based on listening habits of the last two or so months, and just hope the picks they present are the *right* picks. Is it the most scientific method to put a list like this together? Absolutely not.

I had thought that 2022 was a difficult year for me to compile a list such as this, in my preferred realm of black(ened) metal, but 2023 proved to be an even more stellar year, with truly great releases being dropped seemingly every single day. This truly is the most difficult time I’ve had putting one of these things together, I cannot stress that enough. And with the onset of certain announcements for January, 2024 looks like it will strive to be better still. What a time to be a music fan!

Anyway, when I put these lists together, these should never be read as any kind of real “order” of best to least best. Well, yes and no. What I mean is, for instance, album #40 isn’t necessarily worse than album #30, and vice versa for which one would be deemed better. Outside of my TOP THREE, the rest of this is a true free for all. Any and all could have occupied another slot on a different day. There were so many killer albums dropped this year that I literally feel bad to not include them all here. Also keep in mind, if I have gone out of my way to buy an album, then chances are I legit liked it. Think of this as a selection of artists I feel are worthy to check out on your own, and worthy of support.

I present to you, the reader, my top 40 picks of 2023:

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THE BEST OF THE REST

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40) OLDE THRONE – In The Land of Ghosts
39) ALBIONIC HERMETICISM – Nova Nativitas Mundi
38) ORDALIE – Mass of Perdition
37) VALRAVN – The Awakening
36) INHERITS THE VOID – The Impending Fall Of The Stars
35) NEBELGRUND – An den Toren von Krieg und Tod…
34) FATHOMAGE – Autumn’s Dawn, Winter’s Darkness
33) SHADOWS OF ALGOL – Transformations Of The Desert Witch
32) WEALD & WOE – For The Good of The Realm
31) VAHRZAW – In The Shallows of A Starlit Lake
30) EMINENTIA TENEBRIS – Rise Of A New Kingdom
29) SCÁTH NA DÉITHE – Virulent Providence
28) TAAKE – Et Hav av Avstand
27) HELLERUIN – Devils, Death, And Dark Arts
26) FOREST THRALL – Amidst Pines
25) TAUBRĄ – Therizo
24) ARIDUS – Serpent Moon
23) KIIRA – Iättömän Sanat
22) SOMBRE HÉRITAGE – Inter Duo Mundi
21) MINENWERFER – Feuerwalze

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AMONG THE BEST

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20) HÄXANU – Totenpass

This is only one of a LOT of insanely high quality black metal releases that emerged from the US scene this year. Alex Poole, multi-instrumentalist extraordinaire, was a very busy dude this year. He dropped albums with Nattfärd, Ringarë, and Krieg this year to go along with what was probably the best of his efforts; this very Häxanu album you’re now reading about. This is melodic black metal of very high order, with soaring melodies to go with equally cut throat passages. Subtle synths help guide the music along the 45 minute journey these eight tracks provide. Great drum parts and a great vocal performance by ‘L.C.‘ are exquisite toppings on an already delicious black metal cake.

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19) IMMORTAL – War Against All

Oh, surprised to see this here? To be quite honest, I would have been as well if not for the fact that Demonaz has successfully steered the Immortal brand back to its more vicious heyday, circa Pure Holocaust and Battles In The North. Now, is it actually as *good* as those two classics? Of course not. But you have to admit it is FANTASTIC seeing Demonaz being able to crank out the nasty riffage on an album himself after so many years of tendon injuries brought on by rehearsing the Blizzard Beasts material for multiple hours a day. And to be perfectly honest, I like his vocal approach. Sure, it’s not Abbath‘s trademark croaking that so many seem to get hung up on missing from these most recent efforts, but it absolutely fits the music regardless. The main riff in ‘No Sun’ ranks among the best of Immortal‘s discography. And no Horgh? No problem. Kevin Kvåle, of Gaahl’s Wyrd fame, more than handles the job behind the skins.

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18) LE PROCHAIN HIVER – Talvi

What a unique entry from the always quality Antiq label. At the very core, this is very much French black metal; Swirling, melodic and very emotive guitars in *that* French style to go along with varied tempo changes and harsh vocals that just sound cool in the native tongue. So what makes this album unique? First off, the use of operatic female vocals. That in itself is nothing new, symphonic black metal bands have been at least attempting that for decades now. What Le Prochain Hiver does differently with them is actually use said voice as part of the songwriting process. It doesn’t sound like an afterthought or a gimmick. Ms Dame Pandora even goes into some more primal stuff at the beginning of ‘Facing The First Snows’ that gives off serious Heilung vibes. It’s glorious. The next thing that stands out at times listening to this album, is the synths. They’re used sparingly, but tracks like ‘Ashes’, for instance, have synth parts that sound more fitting for a Dungeon Synth album more so than a black metal album. Again, not unusual in itself, but more the fact that while there are bands that do the Dungeon Synth/Black Metal thing, most of those bands tend to make the synths be the focus above the black metal. This is inverted, where very much Dungeon Synth moments are used in support of the music around it. It does make sense when you realize that main songwriter and vocalist Hylgaryss does in fact have a couple of Dungeon Synth projects in his stable. The atmosphere of this album is very befitting of the band name (which translates to “Next Winter”), the album title (Finnish word for “winter”) and the album art itself: Cold.

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17) DAEMONIAN – The Frost Specter’s Wrath

A damn fine discovery at the very beginning of the year, Japan’s Daemonian, specifically lone member Lord Metal, takes the template laid out by the Swedish black metal scene of the mid ’90s to the early 2000’s, but adds the machine-like technical proficiency that the Japanese metal scene is known for. This is melodic black metal played with absolutely insane focus. The riffs are literal buzz saws, ripping your head off and flaying your skin, but sounding oh-so-beautiful while doing it. This is a prime example of an absolute GEM that sadly flew under far too many radars this year. Of course, the odd decision to remove the full album streams from both YouTube as well as Daemonian‘s own Bandcamp page most certainly did not help. You can find one track online, ‘King Of The Daemons’ and it paints a fine picture of what to expect on this beast. An ultimate teaser, if you will, as it’s not even the best song on the album.

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16) ATHEOSOPHIA – Shadowgate of Winter’s Spirit

More USBM here. It’s hard not to talk about this album and not mention two of three other albums that were released by one musical mastermind Taurus and (I assume) his label Blood And Crescent. This album, Fellwinter‘s The Dawn of Winter, and Gauntlet Ring‘s Beyond The Veil Of The Night are all prime examples of raw, second wave inspired black metal done right. Riffs are ripping and have a sense of melody to go with the obvious intensity. The vocals are primo throat shredding affairs. The bass offers a nice support for the surrounding riffs. So what sets this Atheosophia album apart from the others? Well, Fellwinter‘s album is probably the most raw of the three, with real precise and straightforward drumming by one Mercenary. Gauntlet Ring‘s album is a little more polished in sound (heavy quotation marks on “polished”), and more freewheeling as Mercenary is let off the reins and just goes absolutely bananas on the kit, giving off a sense of chaos. Atheosophia‘s entry is a nice mix of the other two albums, plus has the best overall sound. It’s still raw, but there is a sense of power that can be felt in the music on this one. The only knock is that its programmed drums, as it is 100% a solo effort by Taurus. However, they sound natural enough and have enough of a human feel that it’s not really that much of a deal breaker… obviously. Yet another top tier effort bubbling up from the deeper underground USBM scene, alongside the likes of Forest Thrall, Obsidian Grave, among many others. Quite honestly, this should be a three-for-one type of entry. You can’t go wrong with any of them.

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15) OBSIDIAN GRAVE – Blood Of The Night

Speaking of Obsidian Grave… this album absolutely floored me upon first listen. While a little more on the raw side than I really typically listen to, the almighty RIFF drew me right on in. Much like the Tyrant album that shares the same cover art from last year, there is a heavier emphasis on influence from both the French and Finnish black metal scenes. The guitars carry both the medieval melodic flair of the former to go with the bulldozing wintry tones of the latter. No weak tracks to be found here, every song kicks you in the guts and dumps you headfirst into deep snow drifts. The vocals, in their mainly deeper mid-range levels give the impression of a predatory beast bellowing into the night and letting the winds carry it away. The fact this is on Dark Adversary Productions probably tells you all you need to know about its sound and quality. The USBM scene strikes yet again.

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14) SAMMALE – Finno-Ugric

Hot on the heels of last year’s self titled effort, Zannibal (of Marrasmieli and Paisaunt fame) is back with another offering of his “Finno-Urgric Forest Metal”, which translates to epic and well written melodic black metal that focuses on the old Finno-Ugric languages, culture and history. The first album, while quite good, I felt was a result of leftover Marrasmieli riffs not used for last year’s ‘Martaiden mailta’, but they were quality enough to warrant use *somewhere*. ‘Finno-Ugric’ on the other hand, feels more like proper focus was given to the sound and lore that Zannibal was striving to create. This very much gives off a feeling of finding an isolated group of people living unaware of the world around them deep in a Finnish forest somewhere. I could go as far as to say its deeply “Pagan” in nature, which it surely is, but it’s not Pagan for the sake of having a Pagan title. Use of jaw harps, acoustic guitars and more folk-like arrangements help add to this ambience. Now, there’s no doubt one will find similarities to Marrasmieli, as that project also creates a feeling of being lost in nature, but not as intensely as this Sammale album. Fans of melodic and deeply atmospheric black metal would do no wrong in checking this one out.

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13) ANCESTRAL BLOOD – Forgotten Myths and Legends-Chapter 1

More USBM on the docket. This is one of a number of releases that take melodic black metal and give it a good dash of classic heavy metal sophistication. Or, you have the opening of ‘The Cronos Stone’ which is straight up heavy metal. Unlike bands such as Moonlight Sorcery or Stormkeep, the guitars are the primary source of the melodies and ‘symphonic’ elements, using keys simply for underlying support. The compositions contained in Forgotten Myths… are of a virtuosic nature. Main songwriter Verigo shows off his fretboard technicality all over the aptly named ‘Sky Fortress of Wizardry’, as one prime example of many on this album. Another unique aspect to these proceedings is the fact that there is a female lead vocalist. While it is getting to be more common these days, it’s still not the norm. In fact, had I not double checked the band line-up in listening to this, I would have missed that fact. I did only find one glaring downside to Circe‘s performance, and that was the use of a really shallow, modern Dani Filth-like shrieking on ‘Through the Enchanted Forests of Illusions’. Thankfully, it’s an isolated incident, and ultimately does not take away from enjoying the album as a whole. If I’m being completely honest, *this* is one example of what I had hoped the newest Moonlight Sorcery would have sounded like.

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12) VALDRIN – Throne of The Lunar Soul

Ok, this *has* to be the highest contingent of US bands I’ve ever had on any one of my best of lists. It seems the talent is exploding, and more and more are succeeding in getting their names out there. Valdrin, much like Ancestral Blood before hand, play a very heavy metal infused style of melodic black metal, but leaning heavier on the symphonic side of things. The compositions here are a bit more complex than Ancestral Blood as well, more virtuosic musicians on full display. A lot of wonderful interplay between the guitars and synths that would make any Finnish band proud, though not *quite* as pure-shred heavy in the lead guitars. Interludes ebb in and out of the songs with perfect flow, the energy never subsiding. Now imagine my shock upon discovering that a) this was album number FOUR, as I was completely unaware of this project before this one, and b) that this is another chapter of a continuous fantasy story they’ve been weaving together since the beginning, with ‘Valdrin’ being the name of the titular character in the tale. Ancestral Blood weaved together their own fantasy stories on their album, but it was more like a collection of short stories while Valdrin is putting together a musical equivalent to a Robert Jordan series. Absolutely mindblowing the dedication needed to pull off something like this. This is another example of what I wanted the new Moonlight Sorcery to sound like. You know, black metal with power/heavy metal elements, not the other way around.

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11) ALDAARON – Majestic Heights, Melancholic Depths

For those uninitiated, Aldaaron plays that distinctly French style of almost hyper melodic, high speed black metal. Not as “medieval” as say Sühnopfer, Véhéhmence, or perhaps Aorlhac, but you get the idea in regards to the riffs and intensity of the compositions. The melodies are absolutely infectious, the songwriting strong enough to make songs that range from 7 to 8 minutes on average not feel like a beatdown on your eardrums. A lot of emotion that pours out of every note plucked, every word screamed, and even every programmed drum beat, as cheesy as that may be. What is most shocking about this album, is how much of a step up it is from Arcane Mountain Cult, just released last year. And a very fine album in itself, a list-worthy effort. But the compositions here are tighter, the playing is tighter, and the production is absolutely divine. Some people may be put off by the programmed drums on this, as there are some pretty ludicrous tom fills throughout… but then you realize a former member in drummer Mörkk plays those exact same kinds of fills on Ordalie‘s Mass of Perdition (also released this year), not to mention the first two Aldaaron albums, and it puts into perspective that a human being absolutely could play these parts. Another sticking point may be how they approach their cover of Dawn‘s The Knell & The World. Instead of playing a note for note cover, they instead reimagined it to be a composition that would fit better overall for the album as a whole. Brilliant move, quite honestly. Can’t recommend this one enough.

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THE BEST OF THE BEST, THE BLACK METAL KNIGHTS

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10) AŪKELS – Meddjan sklāit ten

There had to be at least one extremely late season offering… and this had to be that one. Having dropped on Winter Solstice, I’ve listened to this one multiple times pretty much every day, and I knew it deserved a spot in the top 10. Aūkels is one of a few noteworthy black metal projects by the one simply called ‘W.’. You probably know his other bands, which include Wędrujący Wiatr and Stworz. Aūkels is the project that focuses the most on the importance of nature and returning to the wild. Or as he puts it on the Aūkels Bandcamp page: “Anti-civ anti tech black metal”. The previous two albums featured a decidedly monotonous and repetitive approach to atmospheric black metal, in the best way possible. Not unlike a lot of Slavic bands, specifically ones from the Russian or Ukraine scene, its an approach that helps set an almost meditative mood. Or, an approach that allows the depth and layers of any given song to emerge as you simply sit and soak the music in, using subtle changes and builds throughout the track. In the case of Aūkels, the best place to experience this would be deep in the woods or on top of a mountain somewhere, observing the natural world around you. Well, Meddjan sklāit ten *is* a bit similar in approach, but with more variety to each song, a lot more ebb and flow between fast paced black metal to more introspective moments. Quite honestly, this album reminds me a LOT of the more recent Stworz efforts, except in a “nature rules all” kind of way instead of the “Pagan pride” kind of way. Every moment on this album (which clocks in over an hour in play time) is cohesive, everything fitting into place. Each track flows right into the next, no breaks. Field recordings of birds and nature sounds helped to set the “anti-civ anti-tech” aesthetic. Even 16min ambient tracks like the closing title track absolutely fly by, thanks to the impeccable songwriting and slightly different songwriting approach that keeps a listener engaged throughout. To break down the music itself, this is very guitar-driven material, with very emotive riffs and musical moments. They say “third time’s a charm”, and that is certainly the case here, as this is far and away the best of the Aūkels brand to date, and I would put this up against the newest Wędrujący Wiatr to battle for some of the best atmospheric metal music that W has come up with. No joke.

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09) MOURNING FOREST – L’Immonde Fanaison

Modern melodic black metal in the signature French way, plain and simple. Plenty of 2nd Wave inspiration, plenty of *those* French melodies on the guitars, plenty of awesome bass playing, and plenty of fantastic drum work, to go with a vocal performance that is a bit reminiscent of one Attila because of how Balkor uses his voice. And not to mention a rather high quality level of production to ensure everything is heard as intended. This was an album I got into at the beginning of the year, and the holding power it has is for real. Their use of build ups to explode into intense parts is almost unrivaled by many on this list. Almost. More on that one later. This being another rather lengthy album (75 min to be specific), there *are* times that things start hitting a bit of a lull, your attention can start to waver… but then a most glorious and epic riff erupts out of nowhere and brings you right back in. After a few of those moments, I came to the conclusion that this had to be a conscious decision by the band. They knew exactly what they were doing with the songwriting. They knew they would have listeners wrapped around their fingers. The bastards… anyway, this flew under a lot of radars and definitely deserves a lot more attention.

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8) SÜHNOPFER – Nous sommes d’Hier

What can I say about this that I have not already said in my review on this very hallowed site? This is the cream of the crop as far as that baroque style of hyper-melodic and medieval black metal, no doubt. To reiterate a couple points from said review; This is a fine return to form, a true sequel to 2014’s Offertoire. Listening to this truly makes 2019’s Hic regnant Borbonii manes feel like a departure, a side quest if you will, in its exploration of melodies and such that is key to the medieval French province of Bourbon. A fine album in itself, no doubt but Nous… is *the* sound we typically associate with Sühnopfer, and as I said in the original review, this is possibly the best Sühnopfer album to date. Read all my other meandering thoughts (*HERE*).

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7) KRAHNHOLM – Конец Трагедий

Man oh man… this is a band I have greatly appreciated for a few years now, having their full discography to date, and enjoying the progress they have made in their sound over time. Previous efforts, especially 2021’s A Wind In The Cold Night, could be compared to the likes of perhaps Drudkh or Vspolokh and the like, Конец Трагедий (Konets Tragedy) would be something that would appeal to fans of the Blazebirth Hall, at least musically speaking. ‘A Wind…’ had hints of this influence for sure, but had a variety of melodic bridges to change the mood and break things up. Конец Трагедий is lean and mean, very stripped down, not unlike the BBH old guard. Another point of comparison could be Windswept‘s The Great Cold Steppe. In either case, the mood-changing melodic bridges I mentioned earlier are dumped off on the side of the road somewhere and we are left with droning, occasionally melodic riffs that are all instant earworms and just create that vast atmosphere of being lost, standing on a cliff looking over a massive mountain valley. Oh, and a snowstorm is blowing in. Can’t forget that. My favorite moments on this album are ones like the latter part of Тирании Предел (Tyranny’s Limit). We go from a very methodical and plodding pace and suddenly explode into blast beats, while keeping that droning, meditative riff approach. So good. This album is SO GOOD. There are still a very limited number of CD’s available for sale outside of Russia, and I would highly suggest picking one up. And pick up their other albums while you’re at it. This is an unheralded band in a historically great scene!

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6) BLODTÅR – Det Förtegna Förflutna

Ok, explain to me how a label, a reputable label, like Nordvis can release an album like *this* and get little fanfare for it. Right from the get go, opening track ‘En krona av is’ establishes that this is going to be heavy on the Scandinavian folk melodies, not unlike Storm or Isengard. But then tracks like ‘Ur mörker’ and ‘Den fördärvande sorgbundheten’ kick you in the teeth with pure black metal moments delivered with the intensity of a Dark Funeral or classic Thy Primordial. I’ve even referenced this album as Windir played at the intensity of Dark Funeral, in fact. You know what else this reminds me of? Way back in the day, twenty years ago, there was a band from Norway called Ásmegin that released an album called Hin vordende Sod & Sø, and contained therein was a volatile mix of metalized Norwegian folk music with more intense black and death metal moments, with some over the top blast beats and double bass. While it could be a bit jarring when they jumped from one extreme to the other (which really wasn’t as often as you’d think), I feel like it was a template that was established, and now Blodtår emerges with what that mix could be. The transitions between the folk and the fury is smooth as silk, with the guitars leading the way. Carl proves to be yet another top-tier Swedish guitar talent, to go along with his savage vocals and melodic bass playing. But, I think the true star of the show is drummer H. Alarcón C. Until I actually looked on Metal Archives and in the booklet, I had assumed it was programmed drums. We’re talking moments that approach peak Dominator at times, between the blast beats and the fills. All in all, this is a wonderfully varied album that keeps one foot in old Folk Metal traditions while keeping the other in extremely melodic black metal. Superb.

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5) ГРОМОВЕРЖ (GROMOVERZH) – Издревле (Izdrevle)

Do you miss the glory days of Temnozor? Specifically albums like Вольницей в просинь ночей (Folkstorm of the Azure Nights)? Well my friends, have I got news for you! The one and only Stringsskald, perhaps most notable for the one lone Walknut album, wrote a bunch of music between 2001 and 2010 during his time with Temnozor. He started working on doing something with this music in 2015, and some 8 years later we have the GLORY that is Gromoverzh. This truly is a long lost Temnozor record, with everything from the raging Russian black metal riffage on up to the multiple flautists (yes, multiple) laying down enough flute tracks to make Ian Anderson proud. While it is a point of contention for some folks, I for one am all about the use of it. It is such an unusual thing to slap on top of a black metal album, but I love the fact that it’s not a typical instrument for such a record in this genre of music. The songwriting, unsurprisingly, is top notch. Good enough to where they can slap a just about 30 minute track smack in the middle of this album and you really don’t notice the difference. The multiple movements of ‘Меч Вольгаста (в 6-ти частях)’ ( Volgast’s Sword (in 6 parts) ) flow right on into another, and it just… flies by. Somehow the song does not get crushed by its own atmospheric weight, and in fact feels like there really is not much fat to trim off of it. Aside from that one lone (and very long) song, every track here has Stringsskald‘s trademark riff mastery that sounds equally like past black metal relics as well as the modern day sound. One helluva way to get your name back on the scene! No clue if this is something that will be a one and done type of thing, or if the project will continue to push forward with this style of folky, Pagan-themed melodic black metal. We shall see…

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4) TREST – Sorginak

The anonymous Germans returned this year with more tales of wrongfully convicted and executed so-called witches, this time on Sorginak highlighting six victims (by name) of the Basque Witch Trials, at the tail end of the Spanish Inquisition. To musically represent this, I felt that Trest takes a very Slavic approach to their black metal; pummeling drums, droning riffs, atonal melodies, and deeper register vocals that just reek of horror and impending doom. Each time I listened to this, I pulled more finite details out of the murky production. You can read my expanded thoughts in my original review (*HERE*).

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3) WINTARNAHT – Anþjaz

I tried like hell to get people turned onto this one upon its release way back in March, to little avail. Even so-called Dauþuz fans couldn’t seem to be bothered with this, and I could not tell you why. The riffs are quite reminiscent of what you’d hear on a Dauþuz release, the mass variety of vocal delivery is like what you’d hear on a Dauþuz release, and that is no surprise given the main man Grimwald is also one of the main guys *in* Dauþuz. Alas, we are not talking about a Dauþuz album, but instead one of the very best Pagan themed black metal albums of the year. As I originally stated in my review, this is no gimmick. Grimwald dives deep into Germanic history, using the ancient Old High German language and going deeper into Shamanistic atmosphere. No surface level fake shit to be found. Read all about it (*HERE*).  

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THE PRINCE OF THE KINGDOM

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2) STRAHOR – Gde Vukovi Zavijaju

Despite being numero dos on my list for the year, this was quite likely my most listened to album this year. The young buck behind this Serbian based project, Volkh, graced us with a volatile mix of freezing Slavic riffs, second-wave sensibilities, and ran it through a COARSE heavy metal filter, all while not being afraid to inject a little thrash and a little folk and doom elements here and there. Every song was an absolute earworm, with ‘For Those Who Follow The Heart’ easily being my anthem of 2023. Volkh was limited by having to self release this and promote himself best he could via the usual social media means, but this is yet another album GROSSLY underappreciated by the general black metal masses. May Volkh‘s wolves forever howl for years to come. As with all of my top 5 picks, I did write a full review, which can be viewed (*HERE*).

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THE KING OF THE REALM

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1) AULD RIDGE – Folklore From Further Out

I called it. I proclaimed it in the collab review I did with fellow BMD scribe GOS. I said that, and I quote, “O.W.G.A. is standing on a castle turret, awaiting all challengers to come and lay claim to the throne he is currently occupying. The gauntlet has been thrown down”. I said this back in early May, and the prophecy has been fulfilled. Nobody took the throne from O.W.G.A., although Strahor made a good run at it. I mentioned that the Strahor was my most listened to album of the year, so what gives? How did this still be number one? Well, whenever I had any thought of Strahor taking my number one spot, I would throw this guy back on, and it was as clear as day why this wouldn’t budge. Think of the difference between a brash young warrior and a seasoned knight/chieftain/what have you. The brash young warrior has the strength, charisma and power to win duels and battles on his own, sure, but the seasoned one has refined his skills, distilled his art to deadly precision. Strahor has exuberant riffs and a lot of exciting ideas all over the place. Auld Ridge is more calculated, every note of every part in the place it needs to be in to make the entire album as a whole impenetrable and be able to dispatch all comers with far less effort. It’s a level of class that is really difficult to describe except that you can just simply HEAR it in every song. Even the folk tunes are presented with the same level of care as any of the metal tracks, they were not thrown on as gimmicky interludes. This is god-tier stuff.

And, perhaps I’m just simply more vested in this project than any other from this year. Hell, I’m more vested in this *circle* of projects than any other this year, as The Hermetic Order of Ytene puts out truly elite material. I got to do the collab review for this (see it *HERE*), as well as Albionic Hermeticism‘s Nova Navitivas Mundi (which is *HERE*), and also had the opportunity to help GOS with the ONE AND ONLY EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW that O.W.G.A. granted this year, which you have to check out. Go *HERE* and be blown away by the thorough and thoughtful responses. It was destiny that this would be my number one, and STAY my number one.

All hail the king, Auld Ridge has claimed the throne of my 2023 Black Metal Albums Of The Year! 

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LISTCRUSH CONTINUES SOON.

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Return to Yesterday – A Review of ‘Nous sommes d’Hier’ by SÜHNOPFER

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By AK BERGWANDERER

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It’s been a long four years, but Ardraos has finally blessed the masses with a brand new SÜHNOPFER album. Which, looking back upon the discography, seems par for the course; an average of four years in between albums… so this should not be much of a surprise when I really think about it. Anyway…

Let’s dive in and see what the offering has in store for us, shall we?

Right off the bat, the overall tone seems brighter, more uplifting when compared to 2019’s Hic Regnant Borbonii Manes. ‘D.S.F.R.’ lulls you into false security with its brief and sweet acoustic intro before launching from the starting blocks at full speed. I’m immediately reminded of the energy and vigor of the first album, Nos sombres chapelles. The hyperactive melodies and non-stop riff barrage on display should immediately make long time fans of this project smile with glee. It also seems to be leaning quite heavily into the medieval feel, much like Offertoire. Upon hearing this very first track, I’d go as far as to say that Nous… already feels very much like the Offertoire follow up most were expecting with Hic…. And it’s not to say that Hic... was a bad album, I just think most folks were not expecting to hear the darker, more somber melodies that were based on old traditional songs of the Bourbonaise region of France, even influencing the main riffs. But now with the release of Nous…, the prior album does feel very much like a slight departure from the “usual” path Ardraos had started on with the early discography.

The title track is the second metallic slab, and it very much solidifies my initial thoughts. This is CLASSIC Sühnopfer, back again! With each passing track that follows, the formula does not deviate one single bit. Just an absolute assault to the eardrums, of beautifully written and executed melodic and medieval themed black metal of the highest order. Now, this is not to say that this album is strictly a one trick pony. There are a couple slight wrinkles to the formula that helps this to stand out among the other albums in the discography. Allow me to lay them out:

– First and foremost, I noticed there is more use of clean vocal choirs for backing vocals, including some great female operatic singing on ‘D.S.F.R.’.

– The second thing I noticed, and maybe this is just my memory being a bit fuzzy of the prior efforts (despite having listened to the other albums back-to-back-to-back recently… probably a bit much to take on at once…), but there seems to be more true ‘lead’-like guitar riffs that erupt from the melodic tremolo picked firestorm. They stick out and really add quite a bit of energy to an already infectious formula.

Now, this may be a bit of a bold statement, but I’m going to go as far as to say this is quite possibly Ardraos‘s finest hour as a musician. There is a serious level of excitement and joy that launches out of the speakers that you can’t help but to be enveloped in. Whether it’s the main riffing on display, the vocals, acoustic moments like the baroque type folk intro of ‘Pays d’Allen’, and of course the drumming, everything is firing on all cylinders. Honestly, this may very well be the most impressive drumming that Ardraos has laid down yet. Plenty of impressive skinsmen to be found in this particular niche area of French black metal, but Ardraos is putting everyone in place with this performance.

Production wise, this is quite warm-sounding. The melodies and such are of the frigid and cold rain soaked medieval variety, but it’s not *harsh*. It seems that the guitars got “rounded off”, so to speak. But what that means is these infectious melodies will worm their way into your ear-holes without feeling like they’re being stabbed with ice picks. I’m currently blasting this at full volume in my headphones, and am quite pleasantly enjoying the experience. The production also makes you realize as you get deeper into the album, there are a LOT of layers your ears start picking up on within the guitar parts. Some would call this a riff salad of an album, and rightly so, but yet it somehow avoids being bogged down with it, and every part of that so-called salad comes through loud and very clear. As per protocol for most black metal, there’s no bass guitar to be found at all, but you really don’t miss it with the density of the guitars themselves.

In short, this is the best Sühnopfer offering since Offertoire, if not the best Sühnopfer album to date. That last statement will require many more listens to confirm this, but the initial impression is quite favorable. I have a very sneaking suspicion that this will be finding a place in many a year end list. And, again, rightfully so.

Nous sommes d’Hier is available now via Debemur Morti Productions.

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Purchase Nous sommes d’Hier on CD, LP and digital from Bandcamp HERE or the Debemur Morti webstore HERE.

Support SÜHNOPFER:

• Official Facebook
• Official Bandcamp

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LISTCRUSH 2019: Dex’s Top Full-Length Albums

Okay, so here it is – my list of favoured albums that resonated with me the most over the last twelve months. These are the gems I garnered severe replay value from and that I’ll likely return to many more times in future; the ones that burrowed in deep and sat there, festering away and becoming an irreversible part of me. It may seem like a shitload but I somehow listened to somewhere around 1,200 black metal albums/demos (WORTH MORE THAN YOUR LIFE) over the last twelve months and my original shortlist was around 200 releases long, so cut me some slack here – whittling it down to 66 was hard enough.

It’s a black metal only list and only full-lengths qualify (top EPs/demos list is HERE and splits/collabs list is HERE, if you want more recommendations). Due to the sheer volume of albums I wanted to fit in I’m also being outlandishly pedantic with original release dates and other things this year, so although it’s a fucking outstanding record you won’t see stuff like Musmahhu (digital dropped December 2018 or it would have made it in for sure) or the BEKËTH NEXËHMU – De Fördolda Klangorna re-recording appear (technically first released on tape years ago even though not many heard it). There are also others like the new Mizmor that I really should’ve spent more time with, but I didn’t because I’m an idiot, so they don’t make the list. Anyway, here’s the year that was for me. Hope it was just as good for you, thanks to everyone who read my shit and to every artist either on this list or not for doing what you do with such passion, and keeping this beast known as black metal imbued with eternal life. Hails.

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66. PRIMEVAL WELL – Primeval Well

Ryan described the inspiration behind this to me as (and I hope he doesn’t mind me saying this): “Some sort of alchemical urge to meld things that shouldn’t work together into one singular, organic living creation based upon what I feel is common ground between black metal, certain types of old-time music, and certain types of modern jazz”. Some of the melodies are lifted from actual folk tunes too – you really do need to listen to this to get the full, incredible picture.

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65. HAVOHEJ – Table Of Uncreation

Weird, probably hated by many, but I thought this was a great return for the project and I liked it far more than the last Profanatica. Pure evil.

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64. REVENANT MARQUIS – Polterngeyst

Horrible, abrasive, mind-warping, harrowing, haunting. All apt ways to describe the raw onslaught of Revenant Marquis, the apparent new master of blown-out raw madness that’s as psychologically disturbing as it is suffocating. Will drain your very essence and leave you a hollow shell.

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63. QAYIN REGIS – Doctrine 

Astonishing occultic debut that effortlessly delivered on all the promises made by their great first EP.

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62. MALHKEBRE – Satanic Resistance

Visceral and untainted satanic orthodoxy from these French apostles, who only get better with each release.

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61. DAUÞUZ – Monvmentvm

The miners return with another slab of perfectly executed tremolo glory and fantastic atmosphere.

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60. ASAGRAUM – Dawn Of Infinite Fire

“A massive album of Satanic glory that does everything right and will reignite any black flame to a blazing inferno”. Read the full review HERE.

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59. FÖRGJORD – Ilmestykset

“at once rough and almost riotous, yet inflicted with a deep and forlorn melancholia, and the masterful juxtaposition of these elements is a true delight to listen to. Almost every song walks dusted, long forgotten and crumbling hallways like an ancient Count Orlok from Nosferatu whilst in the same breath tears through the forest like a pack of wolves on a wild hunt”. Read the full review HERE.

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58. IFERNACH – Skin Stone Blood Bone

In a word: Primal. In another word: Excellent. Three more words: Listen to it.

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57. JUTE GYTE – Birefringence

Are you insane? No? If you’re unfamiliar with Jute Gyte you might be after listening to this album. Microtonal braindance madness, and my favourite thing I’ve heard from him in a minute. Which is saying a lot.

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56 LASTER – Het wassen oog

Another strange, beautiful and unique album from a strange, beautiful and unique band. Side note – W. Damiaen‘s other project Nevel also released a stunning album, Leven.

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55. STARLESS DOMAIN – EOS & ALMA

Yes, I’m putting these in together because they’re both equally astonishing and wonderful companion pieces to each other. Listen to them both, and read my interview with the minds behind these hypnotic forays into deep field black metal HERE.

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54. KVELGEYST – Alkahest 

The Helvetic Underground Committee does it again. These alchemical rites were positively thrilling.

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53. VOËMMR – O ovnh intot adr mordrb

“You may find yourself questioning: is this madness, the deterioration of my mental faculties? Nay – just the subterranean wraiths of Voëmmr infecting our reality with all the malignant malevolence usually hidden on the other side. For O ovnh intot adr mordrb isn’t just an album – it’s a portal to another plane of non-existence.” We were lucky enough to premiere this and speak with the Aldebaran Circle members themselves – read the full thing HERE.

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52. WARMOON LORD – Burning Banners Of The Funereal War

This Finnish one man project came out of nowhere for me and surprised me with how often I returned to it. Cold, classic melody – the old-school pretty much perfected.

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51. DARKENED NOCTURN SLAUGHTERCULT – Mardom

Speaking of old-school perfected; the ever-reliable Onielar and co. returned with another gem. They’ve never released a bad album and Mardom drew from everything they’ve done before, with a few new twists.

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50. KËKHT ARÄKH – Night & Love

Romantic lo-fi black that probably should’ve been higher up this list due to it’s (relative) uniqueness and how damn well the whole thing is put together. Spellbinding, delicate atmosphere and raw emotion. LP is up for pre-order through Livor Mortis as we speak, by the way.

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49. BLACK CILICE – Transfixion Of Spirits

Not quite as good as Banished From Time… but still fucking great.

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48. MINENWERFER – Alpenpässe

Opening your album with a 17-minute epic is the ultimate power move. US guys singing in German about Prussian involvement in WWI over gorgeous atmoblack never sounded so damned good.

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47. OBSEQUIAE – The Palms Of Sorrowed Kings

Everyone expected this to be amazing. Spoiler alert: they were correct. Medieval bliss.

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46. MYSTAGOGUE – And The Darkness Was Cast Out Into Wilderness

Wessel Damiaen of Laster and Maurice De Jong of Gnaw Their Tongues come together to create an album that “whilst not doing anything radically unheard of, still perfectly balances all of its elements into an experience that will subtly dawn on you with increasing power. Like an ecclesiastical revelation sent from on high… and echoed down below.” Plus, it got even better the more I listened to it. Read the full review HERE.

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45. MYLINGAR – Döda Själar

The final panel of their Döda triptych of albums was just as face-devouring and intense as the last two. Ravenous and fetid. Where do they go from here?

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44. VAAL – Visioen van het verborgen land

Saw the fury toned down a little from previous releases, in favour of a more atmospheric menacing/morose feel – and you know what? It worked a treat. I’ve already liked everything the Dutch hermit has put out prior to this but the thick, ancient vibes conjured through these four lo-fi black tracks and four ambient interludes took the project to an entirely new level.

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43. KALEIKR – Heart Of Lead

This progressive, complex and beautifully crushing album expertly blended psychedelia and dissonant death with the innate dazzling textures of Icelandic black metal; and all whilst being fed through a filter of intense emotional weight. Impacted early and had huge staying power. As a bonus, we also interviewed Kjartan HERE.

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42. OCCELENSBRIGG – Glacial Conjuration

Thus, the enigmatic Aldebaran Circle solo entity returned to us with its second full-length blizzard of raw black hypnosis, Glacial Conjuration. This project hasn’t put a foot wrong yet and the magic summoned by its swirling tremolo winds and clattering drums is no less potent here; this shit will bury you under six feet of snow and you’ll be so transfixed you won’t even bat an eyelid.

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41. HOPE DRONE – Void Lustre

Obliterating atmospheric post-black sludge-infused nihilism. Drown in the relentless devastating waves. I fucking love this band and how they’re evolving; 2020 will be the year I finally catch them when they come back down here (I’ve missed them more times than I care to count). This tape found its way to my deck many, many times.

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40. AKROTHEISM – Law Of Seven Deaths

These orthodox esotericists effortlessly outdid their already solid first album with a cosmic monument of modern black metal. Captivating and transcendent.

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39. THE DEATHTRIP – Demon Solar Totem

Kvohst is back, Thomas from Mork got involved… I was not expecting new The Deathtrip but I’m far from sad we got it. A worthy successor to the superb Deep Drone Master.

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38. CULT OF EXTINCTION – Ritual In The Absolute Absence Of Light

I’ll be honest – a lot of war metal/bestial black death runs the risk of all sounding the same to me. I mean shit, if I want to listen to Blasphemy or Bestial Warlust I’ll just listen to them. The stuff that really makes my pants fit nice is when bands or artists come at it from another angle, injecting their own idiosyncratic weirdness into the equation… which is where Cult Of Extinction come in. Although definitely still taking cues from the legends, the project of prolific German solo artist Void goes one further than those earthly brutalities and sophomore effort Ritual In The Absolute Absence Of Light instead sounds like the world being torn apart by occultic and alien means as all we can do is watch in abject horror. The ferocity on display is far past redlining, the harrowing audio samples only add to the mind-shredding abilities of the carnage vomiting forth from your speakers, the whole thing is almost biblical – just like the Gustave Doré cover art, this is exactly like staring into the Empyrean.

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37. HAGZISSA – They Ride Along

“In their unique robes and with manic fervour they reap madness with their newly polished spells; eight shrieking and howling odes to the primal and otherworldly. It’s music that sounds like it’s been whipped to your ears on laughing winds as you stand in ragged cloth at the crossroads at midnight… Hagzissa really do walk a wild path of ancient wickedness; unfettered from the norms of regular existence, dancing on that gossamer-thin line between this earthly realm… and the other.

Came back to this magical and sinister beast many, many times. I had the immense pleasure of premiering it and interviewing founder B. Moser too; check that out HERE.

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36. PHARMAKEIA – Pharmakeia

Everything Prava Kollektiv put out this year was fantastic… and this slab of oppressive, churning violence was the best. Harrowing.

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35. DWARROWDELF – Of Dying Lights

Hold up – I want to stress this isn’t a “conflict of interest” type thing. Although later on in the year Tom would end up adding his considerable class to our writing team here at BMD, this stunning album was on lock for a spot in my list regardless. Anyway, this is my personal pick for epic black metal album of the year. I also had the pleasure of premiering this album, check that (and a nice chat with the man himself) out HERE.

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34. HUMAN AGONY – Putrescence Of Calvary

Was my favourite bestial black/death release of the year for a while. “A symphony of cruelty. Pure hatred and destruction of the human race“… check the full review out HERE.

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33. GRAFVITNIR – Venenum Scorpionis

“The Swedish occult black metal constellation of Grafvitnir is one of those projects intrinsic to the existence of black metal in general. They sum up the very essence of it, every release surging with the mystical power of forces unseen and calling to things beyond sight and comprehension; a grand maelstrom of hate, worship, violence and hyper-melodic intensity honed to the point where it could slice a hole in the fabric of existence itself.”

A band that has never fallen short of my expectations and this record was no different. I also got to chat with them about it earlier in the year; check that out HERE.

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32. BLUE HUMMINGBIRD ON THE LEFT – Atl Tlachinolli

One of the first albums that caught my attention for the year… possibly even in 2018 because promos came a little early, if I recall correctly. Hype built up over almost a decade to this slab of Aztec / Black Twilight Circle war, and it was worth the wait.

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31. TEITANBLOOD – The Baneful Choir

Slightly more accessible than their recent work and not quiiiiite up to Seven Chalices level, this typically dissonant monstrosity of nightmare-fuel still hit the spot for me. Could listen to the title track all day, which is probably an odd one to pick out of the bunch, but hey.

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30. DRASTUS – La Croix De Sang

Surprisingly this turned out to be a fairly divisive release between those that loved it and those who didn’t understand the hype at all. One guess which camp I’m firmly in.

“A divine conflagration crawling from the primordial core of life, reaching to devour all, and bring only ash” …read the full review HERE.

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29. WAGNER ÖDEGÅRD – Om undergång och de tretton järtekn

Released a pair of great eponymous albums this year but this one he let really rip with the punk influences, so it is therefore superior and takes the chocolates in my books.

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28. IMPAVIDA – Antipode

Returning after eleven years in the abyss with the aptly named He, Who Walketh The Void on vocals, this album is genuinely unsettling as hell. As I said in the full review (HERE), it “…continues the path set out by the first two releases with impressive ease and a natural evolution into even further realms of unfolding terror and darkness. On sheer feeling alone experiencing this record is akin to sitting through some kind of mind-blowingly expansive psychological/occultic horror film. Complete immersion via repeat listens yields immense reward, but be warned; the terror may shatter your fragile synapses, turn your blood to ice… perhaps even burn you alive.”

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27. BETHLEHEM – Lebe dich leer

Onielar’s second appearance on this list hit me even harder than the first – her throat-shredding howls are fucking perfect for the DSBM originators’ inventive compositions.

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26. SÜHNOPFER – Hic Regnant Borbonii Manes

Hyper medieval melodies are king on this glorious monarchial maelstrom. Still blows me away each time I listen to it.

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25. MORK – Det Svarte Juv

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: True Norwegian Black Metal will never die as long as Mork are still around to carry the torch with great albums like this.

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24. YELLOW EYES – Rare Field Ceiling

Immersion Trench Reverie was my 2017 album of the year. This didn’t hit quite the same heights, but is still a near immaculate record.

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23. ANTICHRIST SIEGE MACHINE – Schism Perpetration

This album hits fucking HARD. Riffs ahoy, delivered with punishing force. The track ‘Prime Mover’ alone is insane… I can only applaud.

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22. FUNERAL PRESENCE – Achatius 

I saw this recently described as “taking 10g of dried Hawaiian psilocybin mushrooms in a posessed 16th century convent”, which isn’t too far from the truth. Vital stuff with a pure and irrepressible black metal spark.

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21. VARGRAV – Reign In Supreme Darkness

“What works? Everything. What doesn’t work? Nothing. With his second Vargrav offering V-KhaoZ has surpassed all comparisons to take the throne and reign in the modern era alongside all the old masters. Reign In Supreme Darkness is no mere copy or homage, no tribute album trading on nostalgia… it is Supreme Majestic Black Metal Art. Bow down.”

I was super pumped on scoring the full-stream premiere of this before it fell through at the eleventh hour – but that didn’t dampen my enthusiasm for it one bit. Read the full review HERE.

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20. VANUM – Ageless Fire

Grandiose, powerful, melodic… this irresistible album stayed with me all year. Still love that cover art, too.

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19. ALTARAGE – The Approaching Roar

This approaching roar consumed all in its path, swarming and devouring, leaving only decimation in its wake. Altarage are unstoppable.

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18. KAMPFAR – Ofidians Manifest

After some health problems, the Norwegians are back with serious intent. The breathtaking Ofidians Manifest is their strongest work in a very long time.

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17. SINMARA – Hvísl Stjarnanna

Originally, I was lukewarm on this album… now I cannot get enough of it. Þórir Garðarsson and Garðar S. Jónsson seem to unstitch reality with their riffs. Swirling, bewitching, celestial goodness.

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16. SØRGELIG – We, The Oblivious

“Challenging you to confront and accept the pointlessness of it all, this album is emotional warfare. A mandatory listen for those who will understand. Buy or die, it doesn’t matter… just accept the void.”

This ended up a chronically underappreciated album for the year. Read the full review HERE and then listen to the fucking thing, alright?

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15. BARSHASKETH – Barshasketh

For their fourth album, the UK demons distilled their potent concoction into arguably its most potent form yet. Black metal as a weapon.

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14. STELLAR DESCENT – Moss

I’m sure even the gentlemen that created this incredible moment in art might even be surprised to see it so loftily placed in this list (especially when they released another, more black metal album this year too), but just listen to it and you’ll see why. It still touches me deeply with every mesmerizing spin.

“To fully feel this album, go outside into nature, as far away from anything civilised as you can go, and just sit. Close your eyes, feel the air on your skin and… listen. You’ll sink into an appreciation of the fabric of life, seeing all the threads that make up our existence intertwine together into the intrinsic tapestry that we walk through every day, yet ignore due to the very nature of the world we have created for ourselves. One that we should pay more attention to before it’s too late. This album is a reminder. Don’t miss it.”

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13. GOLDEN ASHES – Gold Are The Ashes Of The Restorer

…and the award for most stunningly coherent holistic expression of vision in 2019 goes to: this magnificent creation. Another project from Maurice of Gnaw Their Tongues, everything here ties in with perfect synergy – the album art, album title, track titles, hell even the project name are the very manifestation of the transcendent music found within, and all create something overwhelmingly beautiful.

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12. BORKNAGAR – True North

Was not expecting this album to stick with me as much as it did; I’ve always liked everything the Norwegians have done, but not loved it like this. Soaring, progressive, wondrous stuff – with a few new members and ICS Vortex back on the mic, this was a revitalized, resounding triumph.

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11. QUALM – Tiefe

I don’t know what I expected from this album when I saw the cover art, but it certainly wasn’t the most raw, miasmic, miserable and mood-altering record of the year. The vibe here is nothing short of incredible as hypnotic waves of slow abrasion induce a trancelike, life-leaving state; the way this album feels speaks deeply to my soul. When this shit gets rolling it makes Xasthur seem like the happiest dude on earth. Drowning, portrayed in the harshest of audio forms.

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10. MISÞYRMING – Algleymi

First listen I quite liked this record, then I went off it a bit. Then one day I chucked it back on and it clicked like never before – it was all I listened to on repeat for days, and has remained in my regular playlist since then. Yeah, it certainly has its flaws, but by taking a totally different approach to their debut the Icelanders have created something stirring and electrifying… and oddly life-affirming. Probably a good one to listen to after Qualm, then.

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9. CULT OF ERINYES – Æstivation

Holy FUCK this album is a monster. Came out of nowhere at the end of the year and forced its way almost immediately to the top tier of this list. Hands down the best thing they’ve put their name to; a career defining release. “…a relentless onslaught that blows away anything they’ve put their name to thus far; it’s more intense yet with deeper textures than ever before, far more abrasive, more epic in composition… more transcendent. Every searing note is another scrape against your soul, slowly scouring it away with growing violence until it is left raw and bleeding.” Read the full review HERE.

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8. DAI-ICHI – dai-ichi

This mysterious duo came from nowhere (Japan? Who knows) with the sleeper hit of the year. It was also the first original vinyl put out by one of BMD‘s favourite cassette labels, Fólkvangr Records – so you should buy one and support. ‘Seishi’ is still one of my top tracks of 2k19 – check out our premiere of it HERE.

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7. AKASHA – Canticles Of The Sepulchral Deity

“Charging d-beat mayhem tears strips off of coruscating raw black, sinks its teeth into heavy metal and drags it flailing and bleeding through the dirt. Right from the get-go the guitar tone alone acts as a conduit for fearful mysticism and visions of arcane electrical storms crackling wildly into the night, off kilter riffage careening along as songs sound inches from flying off the rails… and it’s all deliciously drenched in a virulent strain of howling sanguinary misanthropia and the pungent stench of disinterred tombs.” If you somehow haven’t heard this album yet, fix that immediately – even Shatraug of Sargeist rated this as one of the best of the year. Read our interview with sole practitioner Leech HERE.

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6. DEATHSPELL OMEGA – The Furnaces Of Palingenesia

“We will grant you freedom from freedom”. A controversial inclusion? This is, to me, the best thing they’ve done since Paracletus (which is one of my albums of the decade). Hasjarl really is one of the most creative players out there.

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5. DEPARTURE CHANDELIER – Antichrist Rise To Power

Man, had I been looking forward to a full-length from these guys… and oh man did they deliver, adding to what is one of my favourite slowly growing discographies in black metal with a glorious, almost faultless record. Also took the honors of being one of the most memed bands of 2019. Neat.

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4. RINGARË – Under Pale Moon

In the entirety of 2019 I played no tape in my possession more than I did the Forgotten Centuries hand-dub of Under Pale Moon. It became my go-to for late night writing sessions, its haunting midnight atmospheres and otherworldly synth a catalyst for slipping into transcendent mental realms and inspiring creativity. Am I infinitely grateful Alex finally decided to release this after all these years? Yes, I am.

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3. SAMMATH – Across The Rhine Is Only Death

Don’t get me wrong, I love nuance and subtlety in my black metal as much as the next person. I can get down to some soft stuff when the mood takes. However, a massive part of my listening pleasure is also derived from hearing pure, uncompromising, skull-shattering aggression and holy fucking shit did this album utterly nail that brief for me. The gents in Sammath perfected their formula with an album that was the very sound of war; an obliterating beast of balls to the fucking wall hatred, relentless death and frenzied blood-flecked carnage. I can only salute them in awe. It’s probably also the review I enjoyed writing the most last year, read the full thing HERE.

“Sammath are the boot on your neck, the gun barrel pointed at your face as you cry and piss yourself in the mud. Across The Rhine Is Only Death is the bullet going through your brain as you choke your last breath.

The ultimate war album. Fucking die.“

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2. BLUT AUS NORD – Hallucinogen

This was my number one for the longest time, switching back and forth with Sammath depending on the day. The Frenchmen mutated their sound even further, adding classic and progressive rock elements… resulting in their best work in years. I love albums that do odd things to your head, and this psychedelic trip into worlds unknown definitely does. Ivan did a great review of this which echoes my own sentiments well, so instead of blathering on further I’ll just say: check that out HERE.

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1. NEDXXX – NEDXXX 

I’m sure at least half of you are reading this saying “what the actual fuck? This album dropped extremely late in the year, I didn’t even like it, how the shit could this poser have it at number one?” Well hold onto your Mayhem undies kids, I shall explain.

As I said way back in the intro, I listen to a relatively large amount of music each year (nowhere near as much as some), and often find myself thinking about that age-old edgelord chestnut – is black metal really dying? I mean, look at most of the stuff that gets praised each year. Look at your own favourite albums. Chances are, at the most basic level many if not all are a slightly rearranged or altered copy of something else that you already liked the previous year. And the year before that. And so on. Not only sonically, but in image, album title, the works. Even in extreme metal, all too often everything is expected, everything is safe – in the age of clicking scores of Bandcamp/YouTube links per day, if it’s not immediately familiar with a sound that people already identify with it’s often discarded in favour of the next thing released thirty seconds later. Not always, but often; that’s just how shit is nowadays. Paradoxically, that’s what largely happened with NEDXXX… and that’s what it seems actively designed to challenge.

If NEDXXX is similar to anything, you could say there are shades of the mighty Abigor within, especially the latter day albums. It’s not too much of a stretch to assume TT is somehow involved – I couldn’t think of too many others who would create this. Whoever it is, they’ve seemingly written the album with the intent to tap into something discussed by a voice in the centre of the album – the DIABOLICAL. As the voice states: “What is the diabolic? The diabolic disrupts. It comes from the Greek words Dia and Boli. Diaboli means to tear apart, rip asunder. Anything therefore that breaks pattern. That destroys unity. That corrupts gestalt. Produces discord. That is the diabolic”.

This album is the diabolic manifested, obtaining “evil” through tearing apart all of the safe, expected and endlessly repeated tropes of what you expect from a black metal album and leaving a truly expressive and creative conduit for unspeakable forces. It doesn’t even have a fucking name. I’ve seen many people saying they tried it once or for a track or two but they couldn’t handle the “mathcore” influence/complexity, or it was just noise, or boring. Where were the same old blasts and tremolo lines, or if it was supposed to be some sort of dissoblack, why wasn’t it a DSO copy? It immediately challenged people’s perception of what they expected to hear, it rebelled and attempted to corrupt expectations. For this is not an easy-lisening album – It’s impossibly complex, for starters. Almost Naked City level batshit. It shreds, blasts, switches on a dime at least twenty times in each track, has bongos, dialogue samples, clean proselytizing and distorted roars, takes an immensely intricate approach to composition. It demands attention, investment… and this investment pays off. Peel back the layers, allow its complex patterns to assimilate with your synaptic pathways and a doorway will open – a doorway only true black art can breach, and which all too few artists are attempting to even reach these days, content to release the same old stuff. A doorway to the true diabolic, one of the core tenets of black metal itself.

So yeah, simply put, for me this is the most creative and (yes, I ACCEPT YOUR WRATH) “black metal” album released this year. I’ve listened to it countless times since release, bought the LP and all. Of course, many people hated it. I wholeheartedly recommend you just try it again for yourself, forget about everything else and listen. Absorb.

Open the doorway. Hails.

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Near Misses:

You should also check out the recent albums by Degredo, Ancestral Shadows, Regnans, Arnaut Pavle, Beorn’s Hall, Penance Stare, Wormwitch, Nocturnal Departure, An Isolated Mind, Mizmor, Sutekh Hexen, Frostveil, Nordjevel, Runespell, Djevel, Earth And Pillars, Sun Worship, Arkona, Haunter, Gardsghastr, Örmagna, Keres, Sores, Marras, Ashen Chalice, Waste Of Space Orchestra, Defacement, Revenant Marquis, Witchbones, Gorgon, Vukari, Aegrus, Consummation, Vessel Of Iniquity, Sadisme, Cthonica, all the Prava Kollektiv stuff, Sarke, Schammasch, Mephorahsh, Vástígr, Bednja, Worsen, Wolok and Mo’ynoq. All of these are also fucking great records, and either just missed out or might have made the list if I’d been able to spend more time with them. Oh, and the new Mayhem was solid enough… but we’ve all heard that.

Best Tribute Album: Lords Of The North – A Tribute To Bathory (Fólkvangr Records)

A labour of love from the Fólkvangr stable with a stunning result. Read my full review HERE. Closely followed by the great Devastators Of The Suns (A Tribute To Katharsis) by Bile Noire.

Biggest Letdown: MGŁA – Age Of Excuse

Felt like a largely boring rehash without the spark of previous works, took an entire album to get to the one great song (the last one).

…and that’s it. Listcrush done for another year. Cheers again, maniacs. Hails.

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LISTCRUSH 2019: The Ivan Gossage Edition

Hails to Order Ov The Black Arts, Black Metal Daily, and any readers gracious enough to spend time reading what will follow. 2019 has been a hell of a year for extreme metal, and these are my top 57 picks of the year. There’s a hierarchy here, but only by tier… those that fall within a given tier are generally interchangeable and honestly even the margins of each tier are a little arbitrary to some extent, but this seems like the most feasible way to provide some sort of structure.

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FIRST TIER: ALBUM OF THE YEAR

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Disillusion – The Liberation

I could write a short novel about my experience with Disillusion, but that would be boring for you, too personally revealing for me, and marginally inappropriate for this forum since Disillusion isn’t black metal. Sitting midway between progressive epic death metal (think An Abstract Illusion, Ne Obliviscaris, or Eternal Storm [see below]) and progressive modern rock (i.e. Tool), Disillusion can be squarely described as epic progressive metal. Their 2004 album Back To Times of Splendor is THE album I would choose if I could only choose one album to listen to forevermore (except if I were living in the snow, then it would be The Mantle by Agalloch), and The Liberation is a sequel to Back to Times of Splendor. The music?… you will just have to listen for yourself, don’t expect anything too aggressive, and I’m never surprised when other listeners aren’t nearly as hyped about it because so much of my listening experience is wrapped up in subjective contexts. Just listen to ‘In Waking Hours’ and ‘Wintertide’ (songs 1 & 2) with headphones and no distractions… if it doesn’t resonate with you I get it, but I can’t really adequately express how this album resonates with me, and I’m not going to try. Bottom line, it’s probably my favorite thing that has been released since 2015 except for Schammasch’s Maldoror Chants EP. Favorite tracks: ‘Wintertide’, ‘A Shimmer In The Darkest Sea’ [Tool fans should check that one out], and ‘The Liberation’.

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SECOND TIER (six selections)

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Saor – Forgotten Paths

This was probably my most anticipated release coming into 2019 except for Schammasch and Fleshgod Apocalypse. Since it was released early in the year, because it is so short, and because my love of the album was reinforced by seeing Saor live at Fire In The Mountains festival, it almost certainly gets the award for most spin time. Three epic Caledonian tracks and a nice filler outro that I nevertheless bother listening to. Did I mention that it is short? Yeah, that’s my only complaint… the album length, as well as more nuanced details like the physical presence of the vinyl (regular sleeve instead of elaborate gatefold with poster like the previous 3 albums) makes me really want to accuse this release of being an EP. That aside, the music is PHENOMENAL. Three tracks make picking top songs pretty pointless, so I’d like to recommend full volume on the track ‘Forgotten Paths’ at 4:20 (do you hear that crazy rubbing sound that the bass starts doing at 4:28-30?! What the IS that?!) and the chorus’ of ‘Brón’. Saor has since signed to Season of Mist, and Andy is already working on the next album. Yes, please.

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Misþyrming – Algleymi

Unlike Saor and Schammasch, I was completely blindsided by this one. When it went up for preorder I blew it off because there was no preview track. Big mistake, which was almost instantly rectified upon hearing the first minute of the first song. Aggressive, catchy, subtly epic, and with good amount of attention paid to seriously rocking the fuck out… to put it simply, Algleymi has everything that I look for in black metal… not just in timbre, but in attitude as well: “It is our utmost conviction that the artist ought to stand beyond good or evil and that the pursuit of his or her artistic goals should therefore remain untouched by considerations pertaining to critical reception, the sensitivity of a potential audience, or anything that would detract from the full accomplishment of those artistic goals. Taking into creative consideration the very fragile current zeitgeist would render any piece of art absolutely harmless and devoid of worth … let us leave the world of binary thinking for a minute, concentrate solely on the individual of exceptional fabric, and dream aloud.” [D.G., Bardo Methodology interview, 2019]. Full Support. Favorite tracks: I don’t know… fucking… all of them I think.

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Aoratos – Gods Without Name

The prolific output of Naas Alcameth makes it difficult to resist exacting upon Aoratos a bit of comparative analysis against its infernal siblings. What Aoratos projects is a supernatural force which is both external and worldly, and can hence be more easily demarcated from the dread internal psychic nightmare of Akhlys, as well as from the more subterranean hellish inferno of Bestia Arcana. That leaves Nightbringer as Aoratos’ closest relative, but here there are important differences. Lacking the epic keyboards and heightened shrill falsetto guitar lead of Nightbringer and bringing instead a nuanced industrial edge, Aoratos forgoes the immense, sprawling apocalypse of Nightbringer and instead emotes a monstrous haunting; more local, more rural, and more terrestrial. The power of this album is absolutely annihilating. Recommended: ‘Gods Without Name’, ‘Thresher’, ‘Watcher on the Threshold’. See full review HERE.

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Schammasch – Hearts Of No Light

One of my two most anticipated albums of the year, Schammasch (unlike Fleshgod Apocalypse) did not disappoint. Overall, both lyrically and musically, Hearts Of No Light exudes something that is darker, more negative, and more personal than previous albums. Lacking the usual concrete motif, Hearts Of No Light instead consists of multiple tenebrous approaches to a wider and more varied array of areas deep within, where shadowy undercurrents hold sway, where rays of light are glimpsed, and where outward cohesion begins to dissolve. In this way, Hearts Of No Light signifies a progression not only in terms of wider musical variance, but also in the way that the whole is composed… while each track addresses different nebulous aspects of being and tends to individually move from a state of abstraction towards increased emotive cohesion, of the lack of a distinct overarching thesis is itself a statement about the chaos and darkness of inner existential turmoil. Recommended tracks: ‘Ego Sum Omega’, ‘I Burn Within You’, ‘Katabasis’. See full review HERE.

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Asagraum – Dawn of Infinite Fire

If you are looking for straightforward, no frills, epically aggressive familiar Swedish sound (ala Sworn To The Dark / Lawless Darkness and Vobiscum Satanas / Diabolus Interim) complete with persistently satanic themes, casually blazing riffs, relentlessly tasty ballistic percussion, scorching vocals and that horns-in-the-air ‘let’s burn this fucker to the ground’ insolence, look no further than this musical inferno. Everything about this release positively glows with sincere and authentic classic black metal audacity, and they are doing it WAY THE FUCK BETTER than more established contemporary acts (yes, looking right at you, Watain and Dark Funeral). These ladies are fucking DOMINATING right now and if you like that style and you haven’t been paying attention, please get off your ass, because Dawn of Infinite Fire is downright ruthless. Recommended tracks… fuck, same as Misþyrming, this whole thing is amazing.

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Mephorash – Shem Ha Mephorash

Shem Ha Mephorash is a work of massive ambition, and I have to admit that a significant part of the appeal is not just the music (which is fantastic but pointedly contemplative and ecclesial and not necessarily superior to 1557-Rites of Nullification in my opinion) but the sheer developmental advancement and enormity of the album (clocks in at 74 minutes), the stunning artwork of the physical product, and the overall level of ambition and coherence. The lines between the daemonic and theistic blur here as Mephorash seems to obscure such trivial distinctions, the trumpets of both Heaven and Hell harkening a sacred fire to the spirit, casting the listener simultaneously above as crystalized vapors of ethereal perfection and below to infernal ashes of annihilation. Woe to the profane secular flesh and petty ego, gasping and choking on the smoke from a numinous flame. A modern esoteric black metal masterpiece, Shem Ha Mephorash radiates with transcendence, sacramental power, and a terrible, beautiful white flame of holy judgement. See full review HERE.

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THIRD TIER (ten selections)

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Kaleikr – Heart of Lead

This one is a bit of an enigma. There’s a LOT going on here that Kaleikr managed to seam together very well. Starting out very close to the beautiful, utra-melodic, atmospheric black metal sensibility of Saor’s Forgotten Paths (ironic because the albums were released at almost the same time), Heart of Lead quickly evolves in a myriad of different directions, like more menacing progressive black metal, technical death metal, progressive death metal, and prog-rock. It even gets a little bit into that claustrophobic and suffocating Icelandic sound with the short title track… but this is minimal and not overdone. A good thing in my personal opinion.

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Musmahhu – Reign of the Odious

A fucking savage blackdeath offering curtesy of Swartadauþuz, mastermind behind Bekëth Nexëhmü, contributor to Gardsghastr (see below), and a surfeit of other extreme projects. This one ranks as perhaps the most violent of all my year-end picks, and might be compared somewhat to Aoratos as an immediate reference. Reign of the Odious is more death metal-oriented, but similar in terms of unremittent pitch-black maelstrom mixed with subtle industrial(ish) elements and an undercurrent of epic cataclysmic ruin. Completely necessary. 

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Eternal Storm – Come The Tide

I won’t get too into it because it isn’t black metal, but this is a magnificently written, powerful, very melodic opus of beautiful epic artful death metal, which got LOTS of playtime from me. For fans of An Abstract Illusion, Exsickator, and Rivers Of Nihil’s Where Owls Know My Name (but more melodic DM than technical DM). Recommended tracks: ‘Through the Wall of Light Pt. I (The Strand)‘, ‘Through the Wall of Light Pt. II (Immersion)’, ‘The Mountain’.

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Wormwood – Nattarvet

In 20+ years of listening to extreme metal, there has been only ONE time that an initial listening experience was so profound that I was almost brought to tears from the opening minutes of a song… What is crucial about ‘The Isolationist’ (the last song, track 7)  and in a more general sense Nattarvet as a whole, is the ability to capture a profound paradox: It is a journey both within and also beyond, aptly conjoining the psychological tragedy of isolation with the coldness of natural indifference, and achieving a dissolution of the self through immersion in the solitude that pervades reality as a whole. See full review HERE.

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Hath – Of Rot and Ruin

Another death metal album. A fantastic one… a near perfect combination of groove, speed, classiness, melodicism, brutality, progressiveness, and technicality, complete with tasteful acoustic interludes and fantastic vocal variation. For fans of Black Crown Initiate before Black Crown Initiate decided to try to sound like Tool. With vocals kind of like Travis Ryan ala Cattle Decapitation, but without those melodic highs. It’s really just badass in every way.

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Panzerfaust – The Suns of Perdition, Chapter 1: War, Horrid War

Monstrous, crushing, war-themed blackdeath with limited tasteful atonality, overpowering vocals, and some doomish sensibilities (mostly in terms of production and an overall sense of progressive desolating inevitability, not in terms of speed)… what can be said about this album that hasn’t been said before and more elaborately? This is one that just demands a listen in order to get it. It’s difficult for me to describe it in a way that makes the album sound unique, but it IS unique, and its short length and promise of subsequent installments makes it easily digestible, leaving one pining for more. I hope we get it in 2020.

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Totaled – Lament

You ever get those moments when you give your chosen listening device a raised eyebrow because of all of the asskickery that is suddenly occurring? Like it was sort of kicking ass in the first place but then it gets taken to the next level and hits that sweet spot when you are just like ‘fuuuuuck’? Well, Lament has a SHITLOAD of those moments. It’s a fusion of black metal and galloping no-damns-given punk/crust/core/grind/violence/something belligerence. On the BM side of things there’s some classic Swedish melody taking place, not unlike old Dissection or mid-era Watain, etc., but there also some much more aggressive, cutthroat Tsjuder-like ripping which really helps bridge the gap between the epic melody and the whateverthefuckitis in such a way that the tracks can vacillate between the disparate styles and sometimes outright mix them together while always sounding entirely seamless. I managed to pounce on the last fancy LP on Bandcamp and the package came with this really cool set of Tarot cards which match the cover art. Definitely highlights this as a top release for me.

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Vukari – Aevum

With only moderate hype, this album turned a lot of heads when it dropped (at least in my social media circles)… and for good reason. Progressive black metal done perfectly: great focus, great balance, great drive, great production. The sound, while not as “warm” as one would find with many post-black offerings, but it is certainly not “cold” either, and the mix embraces the sort of enveloping, balanced, crystalline density that one can find, for example, with Gaerea’s Unsettling Whispers (2018)  or Beltez’s Exiled, Punished, Rejected (2017) … the sort of mix where you can hear everything, nothing is in excess, and it all sounds terrific. There’s nothing here that isn’t downright tasteful, and it fucking rocks on top of it.

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Vortex of End – Ardens Fvror

Vortex of End definitely gets my most underappreciated band of the year vote. Despite one previous album already under the belt, captivating album artwork, a surprisingly elaborate physical product (I grabbed a gold LP), and my own best efforts, it never really seemed like Ardens Fvror gained much traction as the triumphant black metal monument that I think it is. Musically, this is undeniably compelling: a slightly death-tinged, powerful, ferocious, yet artistic orthodox BM masterwork with an array of exciting elements and plenty of room to breathe. The vocals are particularly noteworthy… varied, interesting, and effective. What it reminds me the most of is a more muscular evolution of Ascension’s acclaimed Consolamentum album, while simultaneously being much better than anything Ascension itself has put out since. PLEASE LISTEN TO THIS. 

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Rorcal – Muladona

Based on a novel of the same name by Eric Stener Carlson, and featuring narration of the story by the author, Muladona is the extreme auditory interpretation of a horrific tale of disease and decay, death, violence and stench, grotesque pubescence and entrenched evil. Heavy to the point of devastating, suffocatingly dense, and with a compressed magnitude which is a bit hard to explain, it is no surprise that Metal Archives inadequately describes the band as “Sludge/Doom Metal/Post-Hardcore” but, I’m somewhat curious that the “Blackened” tag is omitted. I’m not sure about older albums, but this one certainly warrants it. Much like the Reverorum Ib Malacht release last year (but sounding nothing like it) my reaction isn’t really “I like this”, but more like “I am in awe of this”.

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FOURTH TIER (fifteen selections)

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Blut Aus Nord – Hallucinogen

Hallucinogen is a prismatic, spiraling, inspired voyage that intentionally waxes towards both the outer realms of cognition as well as towards the far fringes of an eccentric discography which is already so varied and visionary that Blut Aus Nord holds a categorically exclusive, unique, and unmatched status within black metal at large. See full review HERE.

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Drawn Into Descent – Endless Endeavour

A melancholic and moving combination of DSBM (which I almost never listen to) and post-black warmth. Much like the Wormwood release, the album is full of quality tracks, but there’s one that really caused me to make the investment, and that was “Wither” (track 2), which a peer shrewdly described as “the ‘Sultans of Swing’ of black metal”… can you hear it? Since I do believe that ‘Sultans of Swing’ is probably one of the best 5 rock songs ever written, let’s just say I was convinced.

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Ashbringer – Absolution

Easy Americana-folk infused barelyblackmetal with meandering, woodsy melodies, lightly cascading percussion, straightforward vocals, positive Lennon-esque message, and a very organic, natural, mellow production. Very little distortion or aggression to be found here, this is for times of peace. My only complaint is that the vocals could use some variation, they stick to the Harakiri For The Sky-ish yelling pretty much exclusively. Quite beautiful overall though and probably my most laid-back pick of the year. Great tunes for a wayward northwestern drive amongst the trees, and truly a unique album, musically and visually.

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Akasha – Canticles Of The Sepulchral Deity

Malignant, audacious, and relentlessly abrasive, Akasha is a hybrid of venomous, frenzied raw black metal and savage, necksnapping D-beat driven crustpunk. Unlike Totaled, there is zero melody to found in these tracks, only slight variations of speed which ranges from paced predatorial malevolence to frenetic, driving bloodlust, all the while spearheaded by riffs to rip out your throat and vocals to mar your soul. Shockingly, singularly, and utterly vicious.

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Consummation – The Great Solar Hunter

Pummeling drums drive forward anxious riffing before seamlessly progressing to up-tempo headbanging extravaganza sections. Short but violent guitar solos are dispersed throughout, as downtempo passages featuring ominous chants emerge. Mid-paced groove proves to be one of the more stellar aspects of the album, among many other impressive qualities. Swirling, threatening, almost nauseating guitars atop simple ritualistic beats transition to more doomy, melancholic, and at times quite beautiful measures featuring soaring leads and spoken word. See full review HERE.

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Gardsghastr – Slit Throat Requiem

For me, there’s a lot to not like with about 95% of all modern symphonic black metal. Gardsghastr, essentially a supergroup comprised of Swartadauþuz (Bekëth Nexëhmü, Musmahhu, etc.), Alex Poole (Chaos Moon, Entheogen, Skáphe, etc.), the Blackburn brothers (Chaos Moon, Accursed Aeons, Guðveiki, etc.) and relative newcomer voice Glömd avoids all of those pitfalls, hurling forth an album that is at once grandiose and furious. Symphonic elements accentuate the songs instead of trying to carry them, and the tracks blast forward with surprising aggression and brazen scorn, tempting comparisons to more assaultive works within the subgenre like Anorexia Nervosa’s Drudenhaus (but less reliant on orchestration) and Nightbringer’s faster songs.

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Aihos – Hävityksen Maa

Immediately virulent melodies ala MGLA, Dumal, or Uada… helplessly addictive headbanging-in-traffic grooves… beautiful clean acoustic moments… unabashed black and roll qualities of Instinct / Assassins era Nachtmystium… the folk inspired flavors of Nokturnal Mortum… both the classic magnitude of Sworn / Lawless and the more stripped-down galloping orthodoxy of Casus / Trident Watain… fateful march-for-the-horizon-with-your-head-held-high epic ala Catamenia‘s Winternight Tragedies… and all wrapped up in just the right amount of Finnish fuzz. It might not be breaking any huge molds, but this album interweaves multiple facets of straightforward melodic black metal. An instant classic, second in line for most underappreciated album of the year.

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Ultar – Pantheon MMXIX

A critically underrated release from earlier this year. A soaring and complex melodic post-black Lovecraftian opus with a long list of fine attributes, not least of which is an amazing and varied vocal performance and soul-tugging guitar solos. While the music tends towards epic, bombastic scales, the vocals serve to maintain integration with both more traditional black metal currents as well as loop in some post-rock and black-folk elements (specifically similar to the little-known American one-man act Appalachian Winter). I was midway through the third track on the first playthrough when I found myself going for the Buy Record/Vinyl button.

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Grima – Will of the Primordial

Nature-centered and frost bitten, this Siberian black metal places a heavy emphasis on melancholic inflection, an icy subzero vocal delivery, and shitload of damn appropriate accordion. Not to mention other cool stuff like winter bells, blizzards of furious double kick, and whirling guitar riffs, and frigid synth. As a bonus, when Naturmacht Productions opened up preorders they also made the previous album, Tales of the Enchanted Woods available on vinyl for the first time. Thankyouverymuch.

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Sühnopfer – Hic Regnant Borbonii Manes

It is difficult to describe what takes place across the vast and furious sonic landscape of this album. The music embodies austere medieval granite… yet shimmers with golden empyrean aristocracy; the sound is gritty and hard… yet so clearly of the air and the heavens; belligerent and ruthless… but brimming with a passionate hyper-melodicism; a furious bombardment of harmonized antipodes. It is a shockingly flawless display of weightless chaos and choreographed intensity, breathtaking not only for its sheer aesthetic beauty but also because one can scarcely comprehend how such a beautiful maelstrom of orchestrated complexity is possible. Disorientation almost guaranteed unless full attention is given, and even then, it’s a gamble. See full review HERE.

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Remete – Into Endless Night

Steadily driving, foggy melodic black metal, courtesy of D, mastermind behind post-black prototype Woods of Desolation and the rawer(ish) and folk-energized Forest Mysticism. Synth and probably various other instruments adding heavy doses of melancholic presence make this some perfect wintertime midnight music which gets better with every subsequent listen. Into Endless Night is at the top of my list of albums that I’m willing to get pressed onto vinyl at some point. 

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Dead To A Dying World – Elegy

Sort of an odd pick for me if I’m being honest. Also, hard to categorize with some sludgy elements, progressive aspects, doom pacing, black metal flourishes, and “epic crust” is given a nod on their Bandcamp page. Also, multiple vocal styles of deep roaring, blackish screaming, male and female cleans, and array of interesting instrumentation including viola, hurty gurty, Hammond organ, piano, tubular bells, clarinet, hammer dulcimer, and cello. Forlorn, complex, and heart-wrenchingly beautiful much of the time, the wake of my own personal hype surrounding this release led me to retro-collect their entire catalogue, and I regret nothing. 

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Noctem – The Black Consecration

With The Black Consecration, Noctem have definitively annihilated any preconceived notions of what their 5th studio album should sound like… and it is tremendous. Abandoned are many of the death metal elements, grandiose epic flourishes, crystal clear pristine production, and overall vastness of musical concept. What has been embraced is something significantly more stripped down but not raw, focused but not primitive, and straightforward but not simplistic… something more… black metal, and with a noteworthy compacted production to boot. See full review HERE.

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The Great Old Ones – Cosmicism

Like some immense cosmic horror, tentacles reaching through time and space to spread its monstrous alchemy across the vast universe, Cosmicism is immense, Lovecraftian supernaturalism, carefully layered into ambitious and complex, deep yet expansive melodic black metal. The void’s cold smolder, the frothing of measureless and beautiful empyrean dread emanates from these tracks, not in a relentless explosion, but in a calculated, purposeful, majestic cosmic imperialism, more powerful with every return.

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Nihilism – Obscurite Noir

Jet-black and insidious, this album makes use of addictive, needling riffing (including something that sounds, awesomely, almost identical to parts of the anxiety-inducing film score in 28 Days Later [track 2]) and blistering percussion. It was one of the earliest albums I found this year that really resonated with me (Veldes being the only one of note that I discovered prior to it), and thus it has gotten a lot of periodic listens over the last 12 months, each time reminding me just how fucking solid it is. I would certainly buy this on vinyl, were it available.

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FIFTH TIER (twenty-five selections)

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Veldes – Flameless

This one has the benefit of being the very first album that resonated with me in 2019… earnest, verdant, nature-based melodic post-black luxuriance with prominent (if slightly overbearing) vocals. FFO Woods of Desolation etc. etc.

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Ancient Hostility – Ancient Hostility

Vitriolic black metal with scornful, torturous, and pensive mid-to-slow paced music and absolutely caustic, scathing vocal delivery courtesy of Imber (ex Synodic, Aludra, and hopefully more TBA!).

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Decoherence – Ekpyrosis

Unnerving dissonance, mechanized inertia, catastrophic atmosphere, and ominous spirit, this is Blut Aus Nord worship of the highest order, managing, like Almyrkvi (Umbra, 2017), to surpass the master.

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Qayin Regis – Doctrine

Excellent occult black metal, reminiscent of a more stripped down variation of Naas Alcameth’s various projects (mostly due to the vocals, but also due to a palpable sense of authenticity) with Schammasch-like meditative pacing and even DSO Si Monvmentvm Reqvires Circvmspice style riffing at times.

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Beorn’s Hall – In His Granite Realm

American Viking/black, surprisingly pleasing despite (or maybe because of?) a particular looseness and rudimentary approach with timing, tempo, and production.

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Falaise – A Place I Don’t Belong

Urban, isolative, and despondent, this is warm post-black featuring a particular song that is heroin-level addictive (‘Leaves in the Wind’).

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Fleshgod Apocalypse – Veleno

FA will always have a place in my heart, at the very least due to at one point being an all-time favorite band. They’ve changed a lot. Veleno is good, but I hope this album grows on me more than it has so far.

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Misertus – Daydream

Lush, atmospheric post-black melodies absolutely drenched in an almost blinding distortion and featuring a vicious vocal approach, very cool combination of beauty and malice.

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Temple of Perdition – Homage to the Dead (EP)

Religiocritical hymns saturated in warm, heavy cathedralic aesthetics, and featuring choirs, celestial instrumentation, grandiose movements, blasting percussion, and transcendental nods towards ego dissolution and ascension. See review HERE.

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Worsen – Cursed to Witness Life

Hard-hitting melodic, misanthropic American black metal with thrashy flavors and hints of melancholy.

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Sulphura – Voidpulse

Instrumental atmospheric meditative ambient ritualistic drone side project of CSR (Schammasch). If you are familiar with the ambient bits of Triangle, Maldoror Chants, and Hearts Of No Light, then you know exactly what you are in for. 

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MGLA – Age of Excuse

Polish masters of melody return with exactly what you would expect: infectious riffs and absurdly complex percussion that only MGLA delivers.

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Heilung – Futha

Massive neo-folk tour-de-force in a style similar to Wardruna, with a profound live show, fusing tribal beats with a plethora of instrumentation highlights and a vague ritualistic dance quality.

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Haxandraok – Ki Si Kil Ud Da Kar Ra

Occult black metal managing to blend ritual and melody, featuring guitarist of Acherontas and primarily semi-clean pseudo-chanting vocals, similar to what Schammasch does on the regular.

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Imha Tarikat – Kara Ihlas

Unique and candid black metal with back ‘n’ roll sensibilities, a particular shouting vocal approach, and fiery solos.

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Meszaroth – Caro Data Vermibus

Caught up with this one earlier in the year and it did the trick keeping me tuned in and primed for that Mephorash / Schammasch sound before either of the latter dropped their new albums. 

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Thormesis – The Sixth

Very solid melodic progressive black metal, which sounds a lot like Harakiri For The Sky or 2019 Saor (except with keyboards instead of the Scottish instruments and more typical vocals). 

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Minenwerfer – Alpenpässe

A strange but alluring combination of almost Agalloch-esque woodsy atmospherics, raw BM primitivism, war-metal callousness, and World War motifs. 

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Stillness – Hermit

Warm, folky and fanciful with lots of synth, bagpipes, violin, piano, acoustic guitar, clean vocals etc. makes this damn near appropriate to make the family listen to during the holidays. Except when it’s not.

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Gorgon – Elegy

Polished, well-produced, epic, muscular, fully modern symphonic death metal with touches of industrial elements, fits snugly alongside bands like Dawn of Ashes, Empyrean Throne, Shade Empire, The Monolith Deathcult, and Septicflesh.

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Decarabia – Ancestral Kingdoms

Medieval black metal drenched in ghastly, murky, and archaic dungeon/dark ambience; also, vocals are quite submerged in the mix, which I have been appreciating lately, at times evoking a sense of ancient suffocating dread, despite being fairly easy to listen to.

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This Gift Is A Curse – A Throne of Ash

Blackened crust/grind/noise-core, surprisingly sophisticated and actually a bit epic at times, while yet exhibiting an unrestrained, almost hysterical barrage of white-hot hatred.

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Frostnatt – Rimfrost

A short melodic blackish instrumental featuring guitar / percussion (particularly cymbal) reciprocation and precision not unlike MGLA, except with a more synth heavy folky trajectory… think MGLA + maybe Falkenbach or Windir or something like that.

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Iapetus – The Body Cosmic

Aspiring and brilliant progressive death metal, flaunting a constellation of great approaches and talents, including percussion from Dan Presland (of Ne Obliviscaris, a reasonable comparison). Not a huge fan of some of the vocals but this album is a bit of a masterpiece in the progdeath world.

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Cult of Erinyes – Æstivation

The placement of this release is based almost entirely on how late it came to the game and the fact that it is still vying for position amongst everything above… a wild, occult auditory assailment, which, like Vortex Of End above, benefits heavily from fucking insane vocal performance and which, like Rorcal above, is almost supernatural in its ravening violence.

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And here, with Cult of Erinyes, an end-of-of year decimator which adequately represents the imminent black and extreme metal excellence that we will continue to see in the year(s) to come, seems like an appropriate place to stop and bid farewell to 2019. I want to give a humble salute to all purveyors of extreme music that I have interacted with this year, the fellow admins and superior members of Order ov the Black Arts, and Dex with Black Metal Daily and Rick with MoshPitNation for giving me the opportunity to ignite the flame with all reviews this year.

Forward, and may thy will be done. 

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Email: blackmetaldaily@outlook.com

Reign of Ghosts – A Review of Sühnopfer’s ‘Hic Regnant Borbonii Manes’

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Blisteringly melodic maestro Ardraos is back with a third full-length slice of virtuosic violence from his solo project Sühnopfer – an album that not only incorporates melodies adapted from 14th century medieval pieces, but one that took its composer more than five years to craft… and is worth every minute of that wait.

Contributor Ivan Gossage returns to share his considerations on the stunning HIC REGNANT BORBONII MANES. Read on.

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It is a bit difficult to describe the full degree of what takes place across the vast and furious sonic landscape that is Hic Regnant Borbonii Manes. The magnitude of musicianship displayed by multi-instrumentalist and sole creator Ardraos defies easy description. Every instrument, every progression, seems to be brought to the forefront simultaneously with a delivery that is so rapid and multifarious, so entangled and tortuous, that the entire work harkens the experience that the cover art depicts: not just observing, but being caught amongst a pitching, shifting and turning murmuration of violent blackened carrion starlings, engaged in frenzied serpentine dance ‘round the morbid column of some ancient medieval spire. Sühnopfer has offered us something that is truly brilliant.

Ultimately, what is harnessed are a number of conflicting elements, gorgeously and dreadfully entwined: the music embodies austere medieval granite… yet shimmers with golden empyrean aristocracy, the sound is gritty and hard… yet so clearly of the air and the heavens, belligerent and ruthless… but brimming with a passionate hyper-melodicism, a catastrophic bombardment of harmonized antipodes which reaches the most epic heights. It is a shockingly flawless display of weightless chaos and choreographed intensity, breathtaking not only for its sheer aesthetic beauty but also because one can scarcely comprehend how such a beautiful maelstrom of orchestrated complexity is possible.

Guitar lead? Yes, there is guitar that is ALWAYS leading, razor-precision riffing that one moment climbs, then skirts to the side, dives, comes at you and shies away, probing and seeking out what is possible amongst the crags and precipices, guitar that thirsts – RAGES – for life, for expression, movement for the sake of insane fucking movement, and the bass guitar is right there alongside it. Drum fills? Yes there is drumming that is ALWAYS filling. Filling every moment with some variation of blasting, here the snare, there the kick, a sudden flurry of high-hat and crash. Not content to simply provide the pillar for this skyward citadel, the full kit is used to plow the progressions forward, unrelentingly driving the song this way and that, pulling the music aloft, releasing it momentarily at the apex, and then plunging it along with the manic fluctuating gallop of a herd that shatters clouds. Neither buried nor overbearing, the vocals overlay the madness as drawn out syllables of snarling black metal scorn and groaning malice portraying robust measures of wrath and contempt, but also an antediluvian dignity and perhaps even a touch of primordial sorrow.

All of that said, let it not be assumed that what occurs is completely disorienting, for over and over melancholic grooves emerge and solid structures are unraveled, almost towards a threshold, at which point the music breaks free once again to explore further limits. The album also graciously bows away from a constant assault. Tranquil moments are dispersed throughout the album to fantastic effect. Brief chanting samples and clean utterances, sudden moments of serene acoustic guitar, simple tribal rhythms… these brief but tasteful interludes provide the listener with an ephemeral respite from the tumultuous pace and, paradoxically, produce an even more pronounced feeling of being again swept away by the inevitable explosion that follows at just the right moment. And one is, quite distinctly, grateful for that exhilarating dynamic rush; so gracious to render one again powerless, so that the spirit may be flung both below upon the ancient stone, and above towards the most pristine summits.

Hic Regnant Borbonii Manes is a masterful force. Submit to Sühnopfer and be carried away.

For fans of, but distinctly unique to: Forteresse, Aorlhac, and Véhémence.

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Hic Regnant Borbonii Manes unleashes in full on the 10th of May, under the eternally glorious banner of Debemur Morti Productions. Hails.

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Purchase Hic Regnant Borbonii Manes on CD, vinyl or digital from Bandcamp here.

Support Sühnopfer:

• Official Facebook

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