“In the overcrowded field of black metal, it’s difficult to stand out. This is even more true when you commit to working within the confines of the genre, rather than, say, employing some gimmick like “black metal meets Barbie meets hardcore.” Yet within two albums, quietly standing out is exactly what mysterious Norwegian outfit Misotheist managed to do. Forging a path that threaded the needle between “accessible” and “dissonant as fuck.” Miso spooky!
“Mastermind behind such acts like Summit, The Clearing Path, Cosmic Putrefaction, and Turris Eburnea, G.G. or Gabriele Gramaglia’s resume is vast and varied, and sets a pretense for new project Vertebra Atlantis. Working with drummer/vocalist R.R. from Homselvareg and Vrangr from Spells of Misery, debut Lustral Purge in Cerulean Bliss offers a fusion of dissonant death metal and atmospheric black metal, not unlike labelmates Prometheus’ debut.” Dissonance dissidents.
“Remember dangerous Norwegian black metal? Remember when just listening to it felt like an act of rebellion? The stuff that made priests and your parents upset? Me neither. Those days seem like a long time ago; the original fury replaced by bands passively crowd-surfing on the reputation and mystique of old. Well, Misotheist, an anonymous black metal group from Trondheim, is here to kick you in balls, spit in your face, and remind you that God is dead and you should quit crying about it.” Cup check!
“I am worried. I find myself in the midst of an unfamiliar situation that I am not sure I am equipped to handle. I am not talking about the global pandemic—I know I am not equipped to handle that. No, the situation I am talking about is that I am staring down the barrel of awarding another 4.0. You need to understand that, when March began, I had awarded a total of three 4.0s across my whole time at AMG. Now, I am very seriously considering awarding a third this fucking month!” The struggle is real.
Dr. Wvrm takes time away from his busy n00b kicking schedule to drop his Top Ten(ish) of 2019 because he cares.
![Hwwauoch – Into the Labyrinth of Consciousness [Things You Might Have Missed 2019]](https://www.angrymetalguy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Hwwauoch-Into_the_Labyrinth_of_Consciousness-768x768.jpg)
“I’m beginning to see a trend as 2019 draws to a close: I like me some weird-ass black metal. And, boy howdy, has 2019 has been a weird-ass year for it. Prolifically, having released a new album from each of its equally weird-ass projects by means of several record labels, the Prava Kollektiv has released quality atmospheric black metal en masse: the frostbitten cosmic stylings of stalwart Arkhtinn, the dark ambient maws of the appropriately named Voidsphere, the eerie and empty musings of Mahr, and the hellish and malevolent tones of newcomer Pharmakeia. But the subject of today’s tragically overlooked album is the latest thing your cat typed walking across the keyboard: Hwwauoch.” Say again?
“‘Too dense, too impenetrable, too fucking spooky,’ a n00b once regarded black metal. That poser embarrassed himself as glorious Icelandic output like Misþyrming sailed right over his head; now he’s putting poor other n00bs on blast over it. That is to say—in the most roundabout way possible—black metal good now. So, much to a lesser me’s surprise, I clamored after the ensuing jump-ball when Svartidauði guitarist Þórir Garðarsson resurfaced with Almyrkvi and Slidhr alums on Sinmara’s sophomore release. Cue the cliché about ‘being glad I did because Hvísl Stjarnanna is great,’ because I’m glad I did, and Hvísl Stjarnanna is great.” From the mouth of n00bs.
