Funeral Winds - 333 (2024)

Delivering a swift and brutal onslaught of pummeling rawness, today we have Funeral Winds with “333”. Featuring eight tracks and nearly 40 minutes of music, this album is not for the faint of heart as it is as raw and punishing as they come. Almost releasing one album every year after their long hiatus between 2007 and 2018, Hellchrist Xul keeps things powerful and down to basics.

Opening with the blistering “Sovereign of Shadows”, we are quickly taken back to the days of 90’s Black Metal, with buzz-saw guitars, crafty melody and devilish snarls. Tracks like “Eternal Nightmare” and “Cast the Gauntlet of Doom” nicely blend in some doomy influences, making the release more sinister as it transitions into more furious onslaughts thanks to crafty drumming and tempo changes.

Songs to headbang non-stop include, our favorite, “Forever Cursed and Bound” and its mid-tempo passages. For those looking for raw and slower moments, the closer “Conjuration of the Blind One” is one track to enjoy. Overall, “333” is one solid release full of engaging music with a very retro and yet punishing sound. If you like raw and sinister Black Metal, this is an album to fully enjoy.

Label: Osmose Productions

Release: January 26th, 2024

Genre: Black Metal

Country: Netherlands