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    Abstracter – Wound Empire (2015)

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    Hailing from Oakland, CA, today we have the Abstracter and their 2nd punishing aural assault titled “Wound Empire”. Featuring over 40 minutes of crushing Blackened Sludge/Crust/Doom music with some Post-Metal elements, this is one hell of a punishing release that will subdue the listener from start to finish.

    The opener “Lightless” slowly builds up with pummeling riffs and a nice progression as the nearly 11-minutes of music go by. The vocals are quite strong and nicely fit the equally crushing guitar riffs. Abstracter goes into further exploration of their dark sound in the atmospheric “Open Veins”. This song provides us with some more typical Sludge/Doom riffs arranged in a very precise manner to fit their atmospheric passages and massive drumming.

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    Vyre – The Initial Frontier Pt. II (2014)

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    After blowing us away with the first part of “The Initial Frontier” back in 2013, this German band comes back with part 2 with great style. Delivering over 45 minutes of expertly crafted Symphonic/Avant-garde Black Metal, the band further develops their unique sound with more atmospheric elements and great riffing onslaughts.

    Opening with the superb “Naughtylus”, the band blasts away with some epic melodic riffs, crushing bursts of aggression and highly melancholic Cello passages. As the futuristic atmospheric keyboards and precise solos close the first track, the band quickly jumps into the intoxicating rhythms of “Diabolum Ex Machina”. This second song feature some quite interesting tempo changes and tribal-esque passages that make this song a magical listening experience.

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    Vyrju – Black (2014)

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    Today we have the one-man battalion Vyrju and its debut EP release titled “Black”. Hailing from Norway, this outfit delivers four tracks and around 22 minutes of catchy and sludgy/doomy Black Metal. With a great emphasis on crushing riffs and demoralizing shrieks, this release is a short but sweet one for fans of the genre.

    Opening with the catchiness of “The Constant Void”, we get a Satyricon-esque vibe with Sludge/Doom elements thrown into the mix. This song has good dosage of Black Metal influences thrown into the mix, making it quite engaging and entertaining.  As a personal favorite “There is no Grave Big Enough to take all my Sorrows”, this track is quite hypotonic and perfectly crafted with the graceful clean vocals of Tim Yatras who plays drums and clean vocals as a session member.

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    Pryapisme – Futurologie (2015)

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    After blowing us away with their weird and extremely experimental “Hyperblast Supercollider”, France’s Pryapisme returns with an even more chaotic “Futurologie”. Pushing sonic boundaries even further, the band greatly builds up on their crazy video-game/experimental music and delivers a crazy EP with one songs divided into 11 parts for around 25 minutes of music, and the orchestral version of said track is included as well.

    The release kicks off with the very progressive and jazzy extravaganza of “Petit traité de futurologie sur l'Homo cretinus trampolinis (et son annexe sur les nageoires caudales)”. The first and second parts of this song feature a wide palette of video game music and some Japanese/Asian influenced orchestrations with a collection of odd tempo changes and jazzy Oboe. Things vary from Ska-like to pure head on madness through parts III to VII with some very fast paced sections (VI) and crazy catchy instrumental interludes (VII).

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    Arcturon – Expect Us (2014)

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    Hailing from Switzerland, today we have Arcturon and their latest EP titled “Expect Us”. With a first impression of this band looking like a Goth/Industrial outfit based on the picture of their cover art, we were pleasantly surprised that the band plays some solid Melodic Death Metal with some Industrial/Djent touches here and there.

    Opening with the crushing riffs of “My Treasure”, the band makes a powerful statement on this first song. The guitars are heavy and the atmospheric elements nicely elevate this song to a good Melo Death piece that is greatly complemented by some clean vocals and solid guitar solos. The EP title track brings us some Djent infused grooviness that makes the band sound a bit mainstream/Modern Metal-like but with a clearly defined line when it comes to not being cheesy.

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    At Dusk – Anhedonia (2014)

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    Hailing from the USA, today we have a nihilistic Depressive Black Metal band named “At Dusk”. As you can imagine, this is a one man outfit that delivers waves of mournful screams paired with some pretty solid mid-tempo Black Metal. Featuring four songs and around 59 minutes of music, this debut full-length is one hell of a stepping stone for the band.

    Opening with the oppressive “Anhedonia”, we get around 5 minutes of purely atmospheric passages until the harsh and desolate BM onslaughts start. The band reminds us of a more depressive version of Mortualia with considerably better vocals. The second track, “Agonia”, starts with a barrage of riffs and intense drumming, keeping the tempo quite hectic to deliver a powerful punch to the listeners in the first few minutes.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Kalmankantaja - Musta Lampi (2014)

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    One man battalion Kalmankantaja is running for the most productive band of 2014 by releasing four full-length releases in the same year. This time, this prolific Finish outfit presents us with the two-track 41-minute crushing release titled “Musta Lampi”. With a heavy emphasis on a bleak atmosphere, the band’s Black Metal sound is but punishing and demoralizing.

    Opening with “Hiljaisessa Syvänteessä”, the band nicely builds up momentum with several minutes of ethereal instrumental passages before the first distorted guitars appear. The guitar sound is quite metallic and fuzzy, fitting very nicely the bleakness of the atmosphere. As the hellish screams appear, the music elevates to a new level since all elements are perfectly delivered to punish the listener.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Grimoire – L'aorasie des spectres rêveurs (2015)

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    Arriving from Canada, today we have the frosty Grimoire and their EP titled “L'aorasie des spectres rêveurs”. Featuring around 25 minutes of melancholic Atmospheric Black Metal, this is a very solid offering from Eisenwald to start 2015.

    From the mastermind behind Csejthe and Forteresse, this one man band delivers four tracks of excellent atmospheric music filled with harsh vocals and traditional Black Metal onslaughts. “Tragédie des ombres” opens the release with superb melodic riffs and extremely melancholic keyboards. Just after a few seconds we immediately feel the oppressive and lush atmosphere created by Grimorie.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Triumvir foul – An Oath of Blood and Fire (2015)

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    Crushing rawness are the first few words that come to mind when listening to Triumvir foul’s first offering, the “An Oath of Blood and Fire”. Originally released in cassette as their demo, Godz Ov War and Third Eye Temple took upon themselves to unleash this gem in a 7” format. Featuring members of Ash Borer, this band delivers one of the most decadent old-school Death Metal sound.

    Blowing things wide open with the punishing “The Vacuum of Knots”, the band spews their nasty sound immediately. Featuring fierce vocals and oppressive riffs, we are taken aback on how raw and old-school this release is. “Abhorrent Depths” keeps things dark with another dissonant onslaught to close this side.

    • Posted By: Dark Emperor
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    Omit – Medusa Truth, Pt. 1 (2014)

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    Going out of our way to review something we didn’t get as an official promo is something that seldomly happens these days, and we are glad that we took the time to listen to Omit’s masterpiece “Medusa Truth, Pt. 1”. Recommended by one of our fellow Metal writers, this is one hell of an Atmospheric Gothic Doom Metal that will drive you to clinical depression. Masterfully crafted, three songs clock in at almost 49 minutes of depressive brilliance.

    Opening with “Distrust”, we are treated to a lush orchestral opening that is not overly pretentious or exaggerated. Cecilie Langlie’s vocals are just the right amount of sad to solemnly adorn the already very bleak music. There are some clear old-school The 3rd and the Mortal influences and we love them. Perfectly balancing the classical instruments with piercing riffs, the band creates a unique 16 minute masterpiece. The short but sweet (6:37 minutes), “Denial” is one hell of a ride with jazzy passages that are very pleasing.

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