Nordlicht - Nebelmeer (A)

Alright, a sentence might suffice, that being if you're a fan of Paysage D'hiver you will NEED this. Not to say this is a clone but there are some definite similiarities. Might also help to know that Nimosh, the man behind Nordlicht runs Kunsthall Productions with none other than Wintherr (Paysage D'hiver). Now, this being the only material put forth by Nordlicht (except for a song on the "Schneesturm" compilation) I'd say this is one of the best debuts (black metal or otherwhise) i've heard in awhile. A curious thing though, apparently the band was started in 1996 but "Nebelmeer" wasn't released until 2002. So perhaps this was a long in the works endeavor, even with the length not reaching a half hour. Anyways, onto the black and beautiful sonic mysteries that lurk within. Comprised of nine tracks, four being actual songs. The other five are murky, watery drone interludes underpinned by constant static. Transitioning from one piece to the next, they help to create a cohesive, almost one-long-song feel to the album. The songs themselves are walls of sound, thick tremolo picked guitars tangling up within each other making it hard to distinguish individual notes, smeared into a dense, blackened epic noise. All sorts of ambiences lurk beneath the surface, occasionally fully revealing themselves when the distorted guitars die down and offer some respite. Sometimes if listened closely enough to, you might hear, or think you're hearing the same murky drone that serves as interludes between the main songs constantly in the background. The guitars even slip into a downtuned chug every once in a while, reminding one of Darkspace. So again, completely recommended for those already under the wintry spell of Paysage D'hiver. It definetely creates the same image in the minds eye of snow blanketed forests, a shadowy figure hiding 'neath the branches ...

Released through Kunsthall Produktionen.

Nadja - Desire in Uneasiness (A)

Nine albums. Nine fucking albums. That's how many releases Nadja has already put out THIS YEAR (and we're only at the half-way point!). Most artists/band never release that amount in their existence. Saying it's prolific is an understatement. But suprisingly all the material released by duo (husband and wife too) Aidan Baker and Leah Buckareff is quality stuff. Ok, some might not completely agree with that previous statement, saying some of the material can be too samey, but fuck it, I love everything they've put out, granted ever since hearing "Truth Becomes Death" some odd years ago i've been a HUGE fan. Just couldn't resist some kind of dreamy drone/doom/dirge/ambient/post-rock/shoegaze hybrid! It manages to be totally blissed out AND crushing at the same time. So with that said, onto one of the latest of Nadja's releases.

First off, something for those already familiar with Nadja that will certainly raise an eyebrow or two is the art, which certainly gets one ready to expect something different from the music. Cartoonish drawings of chickens, half-filled bottles and chairs with trees growing through a hole in the middle of them adorn the cover and insides of the album. Another quick glance will most likely elicit even more eyebrow raising as in, this album has a real drummer on it! This being the first album to date without programmed drums. And to date, this is probably the most organic sounding of Nadja's releases. Guitar takes to the back burner, smeared into more of an ambient blur than usual, present but never overpowering the other instruments although it menacingly rears its head from time to time. The focal point of "Desire in Uneasiness" is the bass and drums, which usually end up locking into a kind of laidback groove at some point in every song, wanting to stay that way and drift forever. A lack of vocals can be noticed too, which is also a tad unusual for Nadja. Though, it works quite well as I don't see how Aidan's vocals would fit over the "jams" provided. "Desire in Uneasiness" is a definite step forward for noticeable change, one that works rather well and see's a band able to have a recognizable sound and yet move forward in their approach.Something not just for obsessives (like me) and completists. Something that could work to win over new fans. Something to show the skeptics Nadja still has a few tricks up its sleeve.

Released through Crucial Blast.

Bloodrain - III: Nomen Nostrum Legio (A)

My neck sure is sore after a listen to the latest offering from Russia's Bloodrain. From a quick trip to Metal Archives you might come to believe this is just another satanic black metal band in a sea of satanic black metal bands. But if you give 'em a listen you'll find they're more of a blackened technical thrash, super tight and super catchy. Catchy? Uh-oh, that seems to be a dirty word in the world of metal (especially black metal), but i'll be damned if you won't have these songs stuck fast in your bangin' head. And a bangin' your noggin shall be as you're lead through a whirlwind of furious, convuluted thrashing structures with the occasional fast-as-fuck blastbeat. Guitar solo's abound throughout the album, and not some shitty play-as-fast-as-I-can Kerry King solo, no sir, thought out, super melodic and catchy (there's that word again). The production on the album is pretty fantastic as well, ALL the instruments coming through loud and clear (there's even some awesome bass lines here and there!). I especially like the sound on the drums, really powerful and punchy. Helps too that the drummer rules, throwing in some odd time signatures and killer cymbal accents to the precise blast n' thrash. But yeah, production wise something you might not expect coming from a Russian black metal band, especially one who's had releases on Stellar Winter (Blazebirth Hall anyone?). This also seems to be one of those rare thrash albums that can be gone over and over and again without being monotonous, which with my past experiences of thrashier bands is quite a feat ! But i'm fairly jaded, my thrash intake nowadays mostly limited to such bands as Morbid Saint, Destruction, Toxic Holocaust, etc. And just to reiterate, ALL the songs manage to kick huge amounts of ass whilst containing memorable parts galore. So if into black and/or thrash metal, this is surely a band you will want to check out. If you don't mind wearing a neck brace might help too ...

Released through Hexenhammer Records.

Vargr - The Twice High Holy Secret of Constant Generation (A)

With what sounds like a bugle the demo begins only to explode in a fury of buzzing guitars, sounding as if they were run through some sort of broken glass filter, sounding sharp enough to tear right through any unwary listeners eardrums. Everything is awash with noise, even the pounding, stumbling drums seem to have been recorded white hot. And the vocals, when they appear, threaten to overpower everything in a blanket of fuzz. Sometimes the discerning ear can even pick out tremolo picked melodies, but only at a very close listen. Yes, this is truly some harsh and noisy raw black metal. A tad odd too, like the bugle that starts this noisy affair, the rest of the songs are filled with old time miltary snippets. The fourth track rife with them, amidst menacing low end rumble. During this track the mind takes you to a bomb gutted city, a parade of ghostly marching bands leading you through the deserted streets. It makes more sense when you find out the man responsible for this disturbing racket is none other than drone master Henrik Nordvargr Bjorkk (Nordvargr, Toroidh, MZ .412, Folkstorm, etc). This being his third album with Vargr, and marking his third foray into the world of black metal. Here's to hoping for many more releases of "True Black Nekronoise Metal"!

Self-released.

Urfaust - Geist ist Teufel (A)

What to make of an album that features the following in the cd booklet, a black and white picture of a shirtless man holding a torch with the captions "Black Metal Occultists Fire Walt With Us". Not to mention the cryptic black and white pictures within, one being some painting of monk like men praying in fire with a naked devil like figure with a very cartoonish looking face (complete with bulging eyes and exaggerated mouth expression). And they're called Urfaust, named after Goethe's earliest forms of work for his famous play Faust. Well as it turns out the music is even stranger then you could probably imagine, even with all the previous hints. It starts out with a kind of lo-fi orchestral throb with super dramatic, crooning, evil sounding vocals over it. Next is an almost traditional, raw midpaced black metal track, except for the vocals, which transform it into something so much more. Almost over the top, equal parts croon, howl and drunken operatics (!) instantly recognizable once you've heard it. The third track starts with one of THOSE guitar riffs that get stuck in your head, constantly humming along to it, wondering why you aren't listening to it at that exact moment. The vocals follow suit and basically goes along with the riff which is repeated over and over throughout the song, offering only a few changes throughout. Normally that kind of repetition might be a bad thing but here it works wonderfully, plus it's one of those things you don't mind hearing over and over and over. The song could be described as some kind of drunken, loping vikinglike jig played to raw black metal, probably the most "festive" track on the album and perhaps my favorite. Next we have another dirgelike track of raw black metal and of course those over the top vocals making it that much more amazing. Then the albums closing tracks veer more into ambient territory, which as it turns out the band originally formed to create ambient music. The second to last track is a more orchestral based ambience with those unmistakable vocals over it. And the closing track is all ambient swooosh and swiiiish, totally trance inducing, totally blissed out, sounding like it could be a long lost Tangerine Dream song that's collected a bit of dust over the years. Some kind of lo-fi orchestral ambient wierdo raw black metal masterpiece.

Released through GoatowaRex.

Scott Tuma - Not for Nobody (A)

Gorgeously deconstructed folk/country, all guitar twang, creaks and chimes, haunting off in the distant piano, tape pop and hiss, beautiful drones, childlike female vocals and various sound samples. Kind of like returning to some deserted homestead on the western plains to find everything all dilapidated and run down, everything nostalgic, evoking long gone memories, the sun shining through the cracks in the ceiling, lighting the dust kicked up by your feet. Yeah, kind of like that. Only just imagine that put to music and you just about have Scott Tumas "Not for Nobody". There are some suprises for those who have heard Tumas other two albums. The first track "Nobody (river of tin)" for example (and the last track) features vocals which sound like they had been sped up, resulting in that "chipmunk" voice, not to imply that they were actually sped up only that it has that same sound. Suprisingly it works quite well and is actually rather moving. Those of course being draped over that finger picked lilting, creaking, chiming loveliness with some sounds of a car being started up and driving off in the background. And as for other suprises, you might just recognize the melody to the fourth track "Tiktaalik", which is essentially a cover of that song you've probably heard sung around a campfire, that instantly memorable "ol doo da day". My memory fails me as to what the exact name of the song is. The rest of the record follows suit with the same kind of loveliness put forth by the first few tracks. Already one of my favorites of 2008 and i'm sure it'll be the only one to evoke sun dappled evenings of abandoned prairie house wandering!

Also of note, Tuma used to play in the brilliant Souled American, check them out too !

Available through Digitalis Industries.

Havohej - Tungkat Blood Wand EP (A)

The first offering from Havohej in seven years, clocking in at a mere 16 minutes, proves quality prevails over quantity. Taking elements of drone / noise and combining it with Paul Ledney's (of Profanatica and ex-Incantation fame) already fucked take on black metal proves to work in all the worst ways. Any guitars you hear, if any, are rendered beyond recognition, whether it be speaker crumbling, blackened droning feedback or wierd little looped "melodies". Over these disturbed ambiences are placed tribally simplistic and pounding drums, reminding one of such industrial (I use this term lightly) type bands as Swans or Godflesh albeit more primitive. Even an occasional militaristic snare roll pops up now and then or even that "doo dat dat" carnie beat. And the vocals, demonic roars that could only of come from the deepest bowels of Hell. All these elements come together in such a way as to paint some abstract (trance-induced) vision of the underworld, all (hellishly) droned out in its demonic glory. So if you're looking for something different than the black metal norm, something more on the noisy and droning side, or for you who just love their (black) metal fucked up then this EP is wholeheartedly recommended.

Available through Hell's Headbangers Records on 10" vinyl.

Four Burials - Otesanek/Loss/Orthodox/Mournful Congregation (A)

DOOM ALBUM OF THE YEAR. Ok, so that may be a bit premature but fuck if this won't be a contender. I mean, a pairing of four doom behemoths, all with different takes and tweaks on the genre, how can it not be amazing ? ! Up first, the plodding sludge/drone/funeral doom of Pennsylvania's Otesanek. Admittedly I had not heard these guys before, but was made a fan upon first listen. Think Khanate, Bunker and that sort of ilk, slooooow, sick doom. Riffs ring out and crumble back into themselves only to be ressurected later in the song, agonized gutturals and screams cry out, drums plod to a funeral tempo. The only respite being near the end when the distorted guitars fade out and clean strumming takes their place, only lasting a minute if that before everything lurches back into full on crush mode to finish the song out.

Next is the depressive doom of Loss, coming from the most unlikely of places, Nashville. It starts with an almost industrial march, soon follows a sound clip of a man speaking "When I become death, death is the seed in which I grow". Bass chimes in with a bell toll like slowness, guitar strings creak as they're stretched. A guitar melody seeps in, almost pretty and oh so sorrowful, kind of old Katatonia-esque. The prettiness transforms into more chugging doom riffage, still plenty sorrowful of course. The song (death)marches on, as heavy as it is pretty, loooow vocals gurgling beneath. Don't be suprised if a tear wells up in your eye as you continue your stuck-in-molasses headbanging. It ends with that same sound clip previously stated, perfectly complimenting the music. I must say this track is worth getting the album alone, amazing, I do hope they come out with another full length soon ...

Onto Orthodox's track which is, anything but orthodox (I had to). I'm not really sure I would label this as doom actually, more like stretched out improvisational, ethnically tinged experimental rock. Something along those lines, whatever it is, it rules. Drums and bass move to "the doom pace", guitars strumming clean jazzy melodies. Vocals wail overhead, having an effect on them which makes 'em have that sound like when you put your hand over your mouth and move it extremely fast away and back again whilst talking. Yeah. They also get the most loud and emotionally intense out of all the instruments. The piece is accompanied by what I believe is a cello for it's last minute (out of 18!).

Lastly comes in the legendary Mournful Congregation to present a perfect slab of majestic funeral doom ! Like walking through some huge, old European cathedral, mouth agape in awe at the beauty that surrounds you, sun rays occasionally making thir way through the windows, causing everything to glow with a golden radiance. Meanwhile, the majestic doom of Mournful Congregation echoes cavernously off the walls, filling your ears to the brim with its power. Near the middle of the song choir like vocals come in, giving the music an ethereal, almost angelic like quality. And thusly the album marches on, all the way to glorious death!

So if you can't tell already, this is ESSENTIAL for all those eternally doomed ! Let's see if the forthcoming Esoteric 2-disc holds up to this ...

Available through Battle Kommand Records.