2017

Faruln – Faruln [Sweden, Black] (2017)

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Self Released | 11-23-17

I find it amusing and comforting that the Banedcamp header is the famous still from The Seventh Seal which is a movie that has become known for its vintage depiction o death and mortal pondering. This maybe a perfect place to start for black metal and in fact, is probably one of the more honest framings of the sound as beyond costuming lies the dance of life and death.

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Krÿs – Hexen [Germany, Black] (2017)

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11-13-17 | Narbentage Produktionen | The Hidden Art

Krÿs is from Germany and I do not think the band’s name has any easy translation into English. The name Hexen is already known enough not to be mysterious and most of the song titles do not hold any deep level of esoteric meaning. For the most part this demo is a pretty transparent package of black metal without many gimmicks or talking points. I feel for this reason, it succeeds beyond similar releases of this year.

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Apologoethia – Pillars [Spain, Black] (2017)

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Self Released | 11-24-17

Listening to records is important .. obviously. I base my initial searches based on album art so I find the visual compenet to be just as important. Though the artwork for Pillars initially grabbed my attention, it wasn’t until after diving into this Spanish act’s music that I found my judgement wrong. Here I thought I was in store for some raw lo-fi black or death metal and what I got was decent production that holds court in the backwaters of black and death metal and doesn’t swear allegiance to anyone in particular.

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Almyrkvi – Umbra [Iceland, Black] (2017)

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Ván Records | 11-24-17

For the sake of brevity, I decided to just put “black” as the genre as a full explanation would be too long for the post. It only takes a couple of minutes into the opener “Vaporous Flame” to realize that Almyrkvi’s debut operates on a different level than most atmospheric black metal as well as what has become known as Icelandic black metal. With no real place to stand, this act seems content in gazing up at the stars or most specifically the void between stars.

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I I / Lihhamon – Miasmal Coronation [Germany, Black / Death] (2017)

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11-24-17 | Ván Records

If the swirling and cacophonous introduction of “Indoctrination of Deaths Command” is not enough to get you in the mood for complete obliteration, then I do not know what to tell you. Miasmal Coronation is a split with two new and relatively unknown black / death outfits from Germany. with an embrace of war themes and a sneering disdain for most things living, this split is a ferocious explosion of anti-human sentiments.

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Himelvaruwe – CCIII [Netherlands, Raw Black / Ambient] (2017)

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Self Released | 5-25-17

Yes. this is the weird shit I come to the internet for. From the very fitting grainy cover to the fact that since its release back in May, I have heard very little of this project proves that this is a great find. to be honest, I started this review months ago and let it go to draft only to find it sitting waiting for me. What I realized is this sound is still pleasing and still exciting even after these many months.

The ambient side of this project is important as the swirling atmosphere is completed by the distant and fading memory of black metal. Similar to things like Paysage D’hiver, these types of releases rely on the support of people who want to hear music that is closest to white noise as possible. When discussing fidelity and choices in sound production, Himelvaruwe succeeds at brining the sound perhaps to the edge of music/noise while still retaining its emotional components. I am glad I found this after so many months.

there are a lot of releases in 2017, and sometimes releases just sit on shelves without he attention it deserves. This band has not done anything outside of this demo but still has some updates regarding physical copies of this demo. I am going to strive to make it a point to follow this act and make sure I listen and report the same month as their next release. No promises though.

Holokauston – Yersinia Pestis [India, Black] (2017)

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Self Released | 11-23-17

“Yersinia pestis (formerly Pasteurella pestis) is a Gram-negative, rod-shaped coccobacillus, non mobile with no spores. It is a facultative anaerobic organism that can infect humans via the oriental rat flea. It causes the disease plague, which takes three main forms: pneumonic, septicemic, and bubonic plagues. All three forms were responsible for a number of high-mortality epidemics throughout human history, including: the 6th century’s Plague of Justinian, the Black Death, which accounted for the death of at least one-third of the European population between 1347 and 1353, and the Third Pandemic, sometimes referred to as the Modern Plague, which began in the late 19th century in China and spread by rats on steamboats claiming close to 10 million lives.”

Aside from the name of this project and some of the original covers with the frontman looking gloomy, this project is pretty alright. I say this know that breaking into nihilistic black metal with a soft spot for bleak history as your theme can be tough given the flooded market. It is true that this project is from India and could possibly make itself distinct given the location. With that said, I feel the strengths of the Yersinia Pestis demo rests in the bands ability to make nihilistic black metal interesting and not stale.

One of the largest strengths for this demo is the mixing as the one man metal template sounds full given the harsh yet manageable DIY production. the vocals from 17 year old Arjun Somvanshimakes this whole project sort of exciting given the young age of its creator as well as the level of quality in its finished project. If one wanted to sttle in for the night with plague ridden black metal, this is a fantastic addition to your night. The extra sound effects and “oriental” flair of songs like “Harvest Of The Departed” makes this a demo that swims in waters with plague rats and laughs while doing it.

Xenotaph – Media Morte in Vita Sumus [US, Black] (2017)

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11-13-17 | Transylvanian Tapes

It is strange to talk about music in terms of temperature but since being shared and sharing this band with others, the description and atmosphere of coldness reaching the point of ice is an apt description. Xenotaph is a west coast black metal project supported by the ritualistic Transylvanian Tapes. Media Morte in Vita Sumus is the debut full length after a brief round with a demo and split and proposes to be many peoples introduction into the cold unforgiving world of Xenotaph.

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Taphos – Premonition Promo MMXVII [Denmark, Death] (2017)

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Self Released | 11-3-17

Taphos almost feels well known and well liked among friends I probably do not have. Perhaps it is the sound of grimy death metal with a tone that looms in empty warrens and caves. Perhaps it is the fact their logo looks similar to bands like Grave Miasma. Perhaps it is because there is so much good metal coming from Denmark within the last few years. What ever the case, the third release from this group does more to cement their place in the underworld.

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Malakhim – Demo I [Sweden, Black] (2017)

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Self Released | 10-18-17

At thius moment, it appears everything is working in this band’s favor. Not only does this Swedish act have a bit of a following for a debut demo but everything from the aesthetic, to sound, to just general presence seems to be working together. This is probably why this demo is making its rounds in small internet circles as Malakhim doesn’t ask for patience rather throws a chair at its listener within the first few seconds.

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