“For the uninitiated, Tulus has been around since ’91, 1996 debut full-length Pure Black Energy considered a cult classic of early black metal. Although taking a six-year break between 2000 and 2006, the trio has amassed six full-lengths and a compilation over the project’s career.” Olde and still Khold.
“You don’t know shit until you read this. It’s not opinion; it’s science.”
“All the way back in March 2019, Norwegian black metal quartet Nordjevel impressed Grymm with sophomore effort Necrogensis. Snagging a 3.5 from the Grymmster, Nordjevel brought icy riffs and Norwegian fury to his Floridian home but it was not a record completely free from issues and had a notably stronger second half, suffering also from a little bit of bloat and/or lack of self-editing. With a line-up that has held steady since Necrogenesis and features former members of Dark Funeral, 1349 (drummer, Dominator), Morbid Angel and Zyklon (guitarist Destructhor), can Nordjevel now up their consistency, tighten their songwriting and take things to the next level on third album Gnavhòl?” Beyond the Grymm horizon.
“Khold combines Carpathian Forest-esque black ‘n’ roll, Satyricon accessibility, and Darkthrone-like sinisterness that molded Grier‘s tiny heart into a lump of coal for nearly a decade. Then, 2014 saw the end of the band. During this time, the crew resurrected their thrashy black metal counterpart, Tulus. Which felt like a somewhat natural progression following Khold’s odd 2014 swansong, Til ended. Also, the band’s founder/drummer found success with Darkthrone’s Nocturno Culto, releasing album after Sarke album. Fast forward to 2022, and the boys are back.” Ice Khold.
“Black metal has a weird reputation. If you ask anybody walking down the street about it, given its nuances of church burning and Satanism, they’ll shudder and tell you “that stuff is scary, man.” However, if you ask a person who regularly listens to it, it becomes a different beast entirely: using Burzum’s self-titled as an example, you’ll hear an angsty Ewok grumbling about his mom taking away his Satanic Bible while abusing a Walmart guitar.” Fear and loathing in Portugal.
“Black metal is a branch of the heavy metal tree that once, a long time ago, traded on fear and a reputation for violence and chaos. Nowadays, the genre does not inspire nearly the same degree of terror it once did. Somewhere between corpse-painted cat memes, dalliances with commercial success, and the general overreach of the internet, the teeth of those early days have been filed down quite a bit; another form of dark expression saturated by the direct sunlight of too much attention. Enter Domgård, a band formed in Göteborg, Sweden back in 1997 by Jonas Almén, aka Vindkall.”
“I find black metal deeply polarizing. While helplessly captivated by the cold, desolate aura of much of the genre’s higher quality output, I also find myself mind-numbingly frustrated when magnificent records are in my view ruined by intentionally dreadful production, sounding as though they were recorded not in a studio but rather in a metal bin at the bottom of a distant lake (Transilvanian Hunger anyone?). Founded in Bergen in the early nineties by frontman Aphazel, the aptly-named Ancient have been diligently plying their trade for almost a quarter of a century now, establishing a back catalogue of uncharacteristically lush-sounding black metal and recruiting a small but loyal following along the way.” Old and cold, or old and bold?
“I won’t lie, when I heard there was a new Sarke poised to drop on the unsuspecting masses, I scrambled to get my hands on it before Steel Druhm could review the unholy hell out of it.” And I would have too if it weren’t for you meddling kids!
“I’m inclined to jump at the opportunity to review any music that surfaces out of the Icelandic metal scene. Their strong talent, adventurous spirit, desire to cross or mix genres and their overall quirkiness usually makes for an exciting listen. That was my expectation with Naðra.” Feel the Icelandic burn!
“I typically associate the Norwegian style of black metal with either the raw aggression of say Gorgoroth, Carpathian Forest or Taake or the more classic atmospheric beauty of Burzum or Ulver. One of my favorite movie depictions of this very dedicated brand of black metal is that goose-bump moment in Until the Light Takes Us when Fenriz is sitting on the train and Ulver’s “Not Saved” starts playing… atmosphere as thick as mist you can’t help re-playing that moment over and over. So when did this very somber brand of metal, so dedicated to opposition, start to follow the crowd and take on such a dirty, ear-friendly, catchy groove?” This is a valid and intriguing question and Madam X demands answers! Comply or get whipped.
