Most extreme metal fans who survived the mid to late nineties will remember just how crucial Finland became in the emergence of the more melodic and experimental side of black metal. While Norway and Sweden clearly held the upper hand in terms of bigger names, their non-Scandinavian neighbours certainly contributed more than their fair share to this exciting new movement.
Having been around for fifteen years, the Spanish black metal act Frozen Dawn has been experimenting with sounds that are inspired by nineties Scandinavian black metal bands – mostly the ones that come from Norway and Sweden – such as Satyricon, Dissection, Darkthrone, Dark Fortress, Watain, and Necrophobic.
A new doom metal “supergroup” releasing a COVID-19 lockdown album in late 2022. That sentence, which describes MMXX‘ Sacred Cargo (Candlelight) in plain terms, will no doubt inspire a variety of different thoughts and feelings in people with an interest in such things. Some might dismiss the concept (album) out of hand. After all, the band’s name translates as “2020” and, well, not only is it not 2020 anymore, but the mere mention of that year is liable to inspire at least a wearied eye-roll if not a flashback to genuine out-and-out despair.