Tag Archives: black metal

Code – Augur Nox

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code auger nox album coverWithout a doubt, Code is one of the best-kept secrets of the metal underground. Despite beginning to gather a more substantial following, they still remain unknown to large portions of the metal community. It has been a four yearlong wait for the follow up to Resplendent Grotesque, and a series of crippling line-up changes have seen this band disappear out of knowledge for quite a while, but they have finally returned with their third studio album, Augur Nox (Agonia Records).

 

 

 

Avant-garde black metal is one of those genre names that sends people running. So often used to describe bands that have thrown any old idea together into a clashing mess of an album. Augur Nox is the perfect amalgamation of evolving time signatures and dark harmonies. Having been through such a turbulent time between albums it is no surprise that this release is so different from their old sound. This is more progressive, less overwhelmingly hateful. One of the most noticeable changes in sound however is the vocals. Wacian’s vocals are vile and agonizing, moving into softer, controlled clean sections underpinned by a tight rhythmic backing by bassist Syhr and drummer LORDt.

 

This may not be my favorite release by the band; Resplendent Grotesque is seductively vile in a way that Augur Nox doesn’t quite manage. For a band that has replaced three of its members in the last few years this is a real step up. The album is tight, refined and viciously precise. Lets hope this band doesn’t remain an underground secret for too much longer.

 

8.0/10

 

Code on Facebook

 

Caitlin Smith

 


INTERVIEW: Wolves, Not Sheep – An Interview With Watain

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watain album coverIf anyone knows what evil lurks in the heart of mankind, it is Erik Danielsson of Watain. He has been a student and a teacher to a legion of followers who have ravenously devoured his music, and words like a delicious meal. With their recent album The Wild Hunt (Century Media), Danielsson continues to defy expectations and innovate musically like few other bands in the genre after over fifteen years in existence. Erik chatted with Raymond Westland about the new album, Satanism, misconceptions about his beliefs, and many other topics.

The Wild Hunt should be seen as a stand alone release and not so much as a continuation from the previous works. Can you clarify this, please?Continue reading →


Oranssi Pazuzu – Valonielu

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1185301_10151629766588553_312929272_nFor those in the know, Finnish quintet Oranssi Pazuzu have been one of the most exciting and talked about bands operating in the labyrinth depths of the black metal underground; their borderline unpronounceable name and freakishly weird take on an established sound has been a tonic to those left cold by the standard blood n’ puke splattered fare from the Land of a Thousand Lakes. 2013 sees the release of third album Valonielu (Svart Records) which in the words of the band themselves may well make good of their stated aim of making music “that invites all the arsonists and smokers to hold hands.”

The psychedelic element to Oranssi Pazuzu’s sound has always sat comfortably with their harder black metal basis, and these two forces weave and combine to great effect throughout the entirety of “Valonielu.” Opening track ‘Vino Verso’ is built around a repetitive mid-paced riff that you may find on a Satyricon B-side; clinical and basic, but it’s the swirling electronica that settles like a narcotic-infused miasma on the listener’s mind; the distorted Theremin creating a creepy, spacy atmosphere that elevates the track into something else altogether. The wandering bassline and rushing synth swells of ‘Tyhjä Temppeli’ take things to an even weirder plateau where warped prog structures meet harsh, strangulated vocals, minus guitars of course. At this point in time, reality already appears to be collapsing in on itself.

Languid dissonance is the order of the day on ‘Uraanisula’, again making use of repetition and eerie keyboards over the course of twelve increasingly harrowing minutes. This could be what happened if Pink Floyd had discovered a copy of the Necronomicon and decided to smoke the pages. The pace increases for the final few minutes with a jagged riff suggesting something truly unholy has been summoned as you feel your mind cracking under the onslaught, not helped by the nightmarish psychedelic vibe that seems to keep finding new ways to antagonise your ears.

Nerves are further frayed by the restless, swirling tones of instrumental Reikä Maisemassa’ and the dense, driving riffs of ‘Olen Aukaissut Uuden Silmän’, the latter of which finally throws in a bit of tremolo picking. It doesn’t last long however, as kaleidoscopic prog rhythms drench proceedings in awesome, alien murk once more. We finish off with a few moments of serenity at the beginning of ‘Ympyrä On Viiva Tomussa’ before a shimmering wall of noise hits home and we are off into the void again, flying helplessly away from earth and sanity. The pounding riff and other assorted noises could have been written by Beherit if they practised in a cave daubed by ancient astronaut hieroglyphs whilst off their tits on peyote and rum, and just in case you’re curious, that’s a good thing.

With Valonielu, Oranssi Pazuzu deserve to join the hallowed ranks of the weird that operate on the fringes of black metal, such as The Meads of Asphodel and A Forest of Stars. The level of originality, avant-garde oddness and raw talent is enough to render the panda-painted orthodox brigade as relevant as whatever Varg Vikernes writes on his blog these days. Is it black metal? Who knows what it is, and who cares? It’s in here now, with us, and that’s all that matters.

9/10

Oranssi Pazuzu on Facebook

James Conway


Ulver – Messe I.X-VI.X

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If any band deserves the black metal tag, then it’s Ulver. Though sonically a far cry from what most associate with the genre, it is the spirit of the lawless master that Ulver have long demonstrated in their musical career. But of course, Ulver transcend tags. Never a band to stick to the tried-and-tested, the formulaic, or the predictable, they are a band that live up to their own name. Following their own path and sating their desires to the fullest, wolves they are. And whether or not you approve of any or all of their diverse oeuvre, it cannot be denied that Ulver are concerned with the music as a form of expression, of imagination, and, more importantly, of illumination. And it is this latter aspect that is at the heart of Messe I.X-VI.X (K-Scope).

Commissioned for Tromsø Kulturhus in cooperation with the Arctic Opera and Philharmonic Orchestra, in the liner notes of this CD, the band’s directive is stated thus: “Make something grand, gothic and Ulver-esque,” they said. “Ok.” And without being unnecessarily complex or attempting to challenge every boundary of music ever in existence for the sake of it, so they have. As the next release from this band in particular, while hardly a surprise that they should take such a step, it is simply stunning. Balancing the orchestral with the electronic in perfect measure, this is an experience that demands attention, and one that rejects as much as it embraces. In this work are melodies that captivate, arrangements that enthral, and soundscapes that engulf as much as there are distant depths, walls of subtle yet unfeeling noise, and unsettling tension hanging in the album’s ethereal shades.

This works as an album both to be put on in the background and left alone and as one to set aside for forty five minutes of pure indulgence. It’s uplifting and introspective, subtle and penetrating, all-encompassing and delicately defiant. The masters are at work. Of course it’s not without its flaws (Ulver’s vocalists have never had the greatest of voices) but they are far outweighed by the ambition and its realisation found at every instant. There’s no other way to put it: Messe I.X-VI.X is beautiful.

8.0/10

 

Ulver on Facebook

 

Jason Guest


Watain – In Solitude – Tribulation: Live At The Underground Arts, Philadelphia, PA USA

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Outside the Underground Arts in Philadelphia, a line of people dressed to the nines in black garb waited for the doors to open. A collection of people sported vests and jackets with numerous patches on them, a testament to their devout following of the metal genre. In the middle of the line a twenty-something sold various patches, each one carefully placed on a slab of cardboard. The breezy, chilly night tore through the line. They all waited patiently for the doors to open.

 

 

 

 

 

When they finally did, after what seemed like an eternity, the patrons filed in one by one, handing the doorman their identification. They walked through two large gates, down a flight of stairs that curled round and descended again. At the foot of the second flight stood the entrance to the basement. On the right was the ticket merchant, selling entrance to the show for twenty-five dollars. Inside, the patrons made their way to the bar, loading up on alcohol before the nights festivities began. It was an eclectic selection of drinks — various tapped beers and second-tier liquors. Over on the back wall sat the merchandise table, peddling various t-shirts and gramophone records. After the patrons had alcohol in them, they wandered over to the table, dropping hard-earned dollars on band goodies.

 

The first act to grace the stage was Tribulation, and they played well. Heavy riffs washed over the set, coupled with the urgent speed and intensity. Johannes Andersson’s growls were raw and aggressive. Tribulation is primarily death metal, but there were tinges of black metal mixed in to create a whole sound. Buttressed by the speedy, all-out-attack guitarwork of Jonathan Hultén, the band carried on their half-hour set, full of smoke machines and bright red lighting. The crowd did not seem into it — they were amped up for what would come later on in the evening.

 

In Solitude came on next. Their new release on Metal Blade Records, Sister, hit quite a high mark in terms of reviews, but overall the band was extremely boring. Their vocalist, Pelle Åhman, looked drunk; he wobbled around on stage and sung inaudible lyrics. Musically, their style is straight “heavy metal” (whatever that means), with added influence from gothic rock acts of the 80s. The crowd was more into it, throwing up the metal sign of appreciation. Their set seemed to drag on endlessly. Their set list mixed some of the old with the new — about halfway through their set they played the title track of the new album, which sounded underwhelming. In Solitude was difficult to suffer through; they are not the great band everyone claims them to be. They might attract a lot of people with their sound, how different it is from the rest of pack, but all-in-all In Solitude is a lackluster band with mediocre musicianship and a sound that translates to dull.

 

After the Swedish quintet quit the stage, the crewmen began to set up the upside-down crosses on the stage. They took down the giant In Solitude banner that hung behind the drumkit, and moved the props into position. In front of the drumkit, nestled on the back of the stage, stood an altar with various cups and swords placed on top. As the clock drew closer to ten-thirty, the lights went out and over the various cheers in the crowd and the PA system blaring, Watain took the stage. Dressed in their usual attire of corpsepaint and blood, they started their decimation of the Underground Arts. The floor, packed with drunken metalheads, tore open; the pit engulfed stragglers who came there to just see the group perform. One large and very drunk gentleman began to tackle everyone within his reach, dragging them down onto the concrete floor. Some punches were thrown before the Watain crew stepped in to separate the aggressor from his victim. This continued to happen for some time; the pit grew larger in size and bodies crashed against each other, charging one-on-one like soldiers running into battle. Up on stage, Watain scurried through some of their back catalog before playing new tracks from The Wild Hunt. The overall sound was not up to snuff with the album quality, and with the lack of burning items and animal heads skewered on stakes, the whole ambience of the performance could best be described as lackluster. The mics were too low, the bass cranked up too high, and the guitars churned out black metal tremolos that just blended in with the cacophony. Watain is known for their use of props and elaborate stage presence, but here in the basement of the Underground Arts, they were met with flashing lights and the overused smoke machine, leaving very little room for their whole “Satanic” persona to breathe. The raucous crowd ate it up though, even if the set felt rushed and a trifle boring.

 

The show ended. The bands all packed their gear and props in their tour vans, the merchandise assorted into boxes and put in each van accordingly. The crowd thinned; a few stragglers were left at the bar, drinking away the rest of the evening. Eventually, the doors to the Underground Arts would close. The once inviting gates would be locked, and all that would be left were memories. The patrons would go off into that good night, yearning for another concert and venue, one that would certainly top this.

 

Watain/In Solitude/Tribulation

The Underground Arts, Philadelphia, PA

October 9th, 2013

 

Watain on Facebook

Words: Bill Haff


Abstract, Surreal, And Visceral – An Interview With Ephel Duath

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ed hbtsbdDavide Tiso makes for one of the most fascinating characters to study in the entire realm of heavy music. Through the entity that is Ephel Duath, Tiso has been blending the very best of experimental music, harsh contrasting styles, and deft philosophical lyrics for over a decade now. He has always had a singular purpose, but now he is fully in control of his destiny via a fruitful partnership with Agonia Records. Plus, he has cohorts who can match his talent and vision, such as Karyn Crisis, Marco Minnemann, and Bryan Beller, and he can fulfill his artistic vision. Chief Editor Raymond Westland interviewed Tiso about a range of topics, yielding some surprising answers.

 

 

 

Congrats on releasing such a strong and convincing album as Hemmed By Light, Shaped By Darkness. Are you happy the way it turned out?

I’m very, very proud of Hemmed By Light, Shaped By Darkness. I did my best to put together some meaningful pieces of music, I got an exceptional line up performing the songs and one of the best extreme metal producers out there working at my side. The album’s artwork is absolutely gorgeous and so are the formats and packaging available: yes, I’m happy for the way everything turned out.

 

The album has a rather enigmatic title. What’s the meaning behind it?

 

Ephel Duath has always been a band that feeds itself with opposites: lightness and heaviness, empty and full spaces, colors and darkness. The new album pushes this dichotomy even more, and I felt like marking the title itself with it.

 

There’s a constant search for dark sounds in my songs but there’s no real darkness without light. My music often diverge towards softer melodic parts just to create more tension, this way the release gain a much more dramatic effect. Lightness plays an important role in Ephel Duath just because it is in direct function and symbiotic correlation with heaviness. My lyrics and Karyn’s raw, lacerating way of singing my words, mark even more clearly how important are contrasts for this band: the harsh juxtaposition between this abstract and surreal music with these visceral, painful words create an odd balance that perfectly represent myself and Ephel Duath in 2013.

 

Can you take us through the motions of writing and recording the album?

 

I started working on these new songs right after we recorded 2012 EP On Death and Cosmos. From the second half of 2011 and the whole 2012 I did nothing but writing new music for Ephel Duath.

Drums for Hemmed By Light, Shaped By Darkness were recorded by Marco Minnemann in the 2012 summer. Bass was recorded by Bryan Beller in September/October 2012. In February 2013 Karyn Crisis and I flew to Mana Recording Studios in St. Petersburg, FL, to record guitars and vocals with Erik Rutan. We finally mixed and mastered the album this past July and August.

Working on the album spanned in almost a two years period. Composing the music was overall a pretty smooth process, I experienced a burst of creativity and inspiration that let me nail one song after the other in a relative short amount of time. It took me more time to write the lyrics, I wanted to heavily dig inward in my head this time around and I took all the time I needed to make any words count. Recording, mixing and mastering the album has been a long and fragmented process. I’m glad we opted to book some extra weeks to mix and master because we badly needed more time. Hemmed By Light, Shaped By Darkness reaches over 50 minutes and being the music so layered and structurally complex we didn’t feel like rushing anything just because we were passing the deadline. Both the studio and the label have been accommodating and understanding through all this process and now the album sounds like it should.

As writer and composer what are things you’re aiming for when working on Ephel Duath material?

When I work on new material for Ephel Duath I aim to use music notes to walk myself and the occasional listener to the place I hide in my head. This band might be the most truthful tool I found to open up and reveal my inner self. Being this course of action so intimate, I often feel I should not even share Ephel Duath’s music with people. Not every listener out there feels like entering in someone else troubled mindset just for the purpose of listening a piece of music. Some people just want to listen music to be entertained, not to be challenged and how can I really blame them? I am so protective of Ephel Duath because I frankly don’t see its music like a way of communicate with people but my own personal vehicle to come to terms with myself.

Hemmed By Light, Shaped By Darkness is the album where I most successfully shut down that wall that protects me from the external. This is the album where I blindly immersed myself in my head the most, without even try to filter my words and my music for fear of revealing too much. This music will now be dissected by reviews and people’s comments: I’m not looking forward for that. With each new album, I’m not trying to gain a wider public, I’m trying to express myself more and more but to do so truly, I cannot afford to worry about what people’s reaction to my music might be.

 

Ephel Duath is signed with Agonia Records nowadays. How is it like to work with them compared to Earache records?

The main difference to underline is straight and simple: Ephel Duath is one of Agonia’s priorities; we never had the same status at Earache. I can’t stretch enough the importance to be in this position: after so many years playing this music, I’m very glad to have found a label that blindly supports the band. Agonia is doing an excellent job promoting Ephel Duath. They believe in my music, they are betting on my music and they are going way overboard to offer me the very best they can. Our new album is coming out in a limited double gold vinyl edition, how awesome is that? I’m very grateful for having such dedicated people working for my Ephel Duath. Another difference between the two labels to underline is that I’m in a position of total control with Agonia. Everything concerning Ephel Duath is discussed together, every decision we make needs my final approval.

 

Two years ago you decided to turn Ephel Duath basically into a one man project with a revolving cast of musicians in order to execute your musical ideas. What prompted this decision and how do you see things in regards of this nowadays?

This band is my own personal trip since many years, not just two. I composed every song and lyrics for Ephel Duath since 2001. Recently I just opted to work with exceptional session musicians as rhythmic section to make the whole process smoother and faster. Since I live in the US I never found a full line up for Ephel Duath, plus now I have a regular full time job: I can’t keep dedicating much time looking for musicians to jam, I prefer to spend my energy composing the best songs I can and hire professionals to record for me. This specific choice is making each release more economically demanding but in terms of musicianship, well, these new songs are reaching so much dynamic, expression and character. This is so rewarding for me, I’m investing all I have in this band and I want the best for this band. I aim to keep putting out albums that are strong statements and will stand the test of time. I feel very grateful for the opportunity I have to share and perform my music with such talented musicians.

 

With Bryan Beller and Marco Minnemann in the band you have one of the most talented and coveted rhythmic section within (experimental) rock and metal. How is it like to work with them for you as bandleader and composer?

As a songwriter, it is extremely refreshing and liberating to have such strong collaborators at my side. When I send the pre-production of my songs to Marco Minnemann, I know that he will promptly send me back the files with his parts to listen to. It is incredible how professional, fast and efficient Marco is. I feel that he’s able to adapt his drumming to my guitar style in such an elegant and eclectic way. Every guitar’s accent is interpreted and enchanted by the drums and there is definitely a good, magic at times, alchemy between us two.

 

Working with Bryan Beller for the bass parts has been absolutely great too. His parts are literally locking guitars and drums to each other and they add power, attack and heaviness to each and every riff. Bryan’s bass lines are very rock music oriented and his tone is so warm, rounded and well balanced: it perfectly complements my guitar ones.

 

Hemmed By Light is recorded with Erik Rutan. What did he bring to the table as far as ideas go?

Structuring, recording and mixing this album was pretty challenging. There’s really a lot going on in each song, Erik and I tried our very best to make any instrument, any part, any detail shine on its own and cohesively work together. Dealing with my guitars’ panning was particularly difficult. My parts resemble the shape of a spider web more than a typical metal rhythmic + solo guitar structure: every riff has different layers and harmonization’s that come in and, sometime, abruptly go out. Mixing wise, my guitars cannot be easily separated in left and right: Erik was extremely helpful adapting his way of working to this album’s special needs and he worked so very hard to make these songs dynamic and crushing. After few days of working together in studio we realized that nailing the right guitar panning was crucial for this specific album, especially for what concerned the heaviness of the music itself. We opted recording every guitar part twice and panning everything in stereo with different spectrums’ opening percentages; the result is a pretty odd and unique listening experience that grows and slowly reveal itself at every spin.

 

 

Rutan is mostly known for his work with death metal bands. Why did you choose to work with him?davide tiso promo shot

Since I live in the US I keep choosing Erik Rutan for my productions because of his talent, dedication and military work ethic. Erik expects nothing but the best in terms of performances by the musicians he chooses to work with and he’s not that shy to let you know when you are playing sloppy. His perfect pitch hears and his attention for details is absolutely out of the ordinary and the results of such hard work pay back profusely. My music needs a producer that is ready to commit 100% to the songs and it’s ready to take the music to the next level: Rutan is giving me that, plus the drive of an extra band member and the support of a great friend.

 

What touring plans do you have in support of Hemmed By Light?

We just started booking an April 2014 European tour with Nero di Marte as main support. For updates and more info about ED please check facebook.com/ephelduathofficial. Thank you for the interview and support!

 

Ephel Duath on Facebook

 

Raymond Westland

 


Incubate Festival Report

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incubate festival 2013 posterLet’s tell you something about Incubate first; This cultural circus settles itself in Tilburg every year for a week. With art and theatre and music of various kinds, lectures and general cultural goodness it’s known to turn every pub into a venue. It’s not particularly known as a metal festival, however enticing us with a black metal Friday this year, billing names such as Immortal and Mayhem, we couldn’t resist to take a peek. This year Susanne Maathuis and Kaat van Doremalen will brave the tidal wave of different cultural influences to report on the darker and louder sides of this wonderful festival. On the 20th of September they were set up for a good night of some old-fashioned (and some new stuff) black metal. And even took a look at some nice doom on Sunday.Continue reading →


Divinations At Night – An Interview With Code

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Code 1Forward thinking Black Metal outfit Code suffered from a series of crippling line-up changes, which made the band disappear below the radar for a couple of years. With a brilliant new album, entitled Augur Nox (Agonia Records), in tow, the band is back with a vengeance. Guitarist Aort is more than willing to put in his two cents on Code’s past and present, the new record and the struggle for musicians to make ends meet with their craft.Continue reading →


Scars Worn With Pride: An Interview With Glorior Belli

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Glorior Belli 2With five full length records and over a decade of music biz experience under his belt, Glorior Belli mastermind Billy Bayou has seen his share of ups and downs. Hailing from France, one of the greatest places in the world to find exciting and challenging art, Bayou’s music blends black metal atmospherics with down-to-earth rock ‘n’ roll grit to produce a quite unique blend. He took the time to chat with Ghost Cult, and explain a few things about his personal connection to the blues, the band’s recent move to a new label, and the French black metal scene.Continue reading →


Sarkom – Doomsday Elite

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SARKOM-Doomsday-Elite-cover-new-RGBFollowing the release of sophomore album Bestial Supremacy back in 2008, Norwegian five-piece Sarkom have left a couple of EPs and a split with Urgehal in their wake and whilst this may have temporarily sated the appetites of fans of their depraved and brutish sound, it didn’t keep it at bay for long. So it seems that third full length Doomsday Elite (Dark Essence) could not come soon enough.Continue reading →