It’s been four years since me and my good friends (in spirit) in Häxenzijrkell traded words. Last time around I tossed out a pleasant 4.5/5 for Die Nachseite, referring to it as “Halloween black metal.” This does not apply this time around and I need to be more serious. Showing a surprising ability to […] The post Häxenzijrkell – Portal (Atmospheric Dungeon Metal) appeared first on Deaf Sparrow ..read more

We’ve had a lot of high-production black metal recently, quite good, but how about something raw, eh?  Been awhile since we took a piece of flesh off of the side of a cow and just chewed on it, no salt even.  Not even a fork or knife, we’ll tear at it with our fingers and teeth as they are, covering ourselves in a total mess of innards.  Why?  Because Xasthur is garbage, and so are his videos, he’s an atmospheric black metal image-monger wearing the mask of the sickening and raw, except it’s one of those Collegeville messes of plastique.  Not even close, buddy, ne ..read more

  This is a debut? Amazing. It almost seems not in the realm of possibilities. I’ve heard many attempts at this kind of thing, and I hate genre-tagging criticism, but man there’s a lot of stuff in here. Shoegaze, blackgaze, blackmetal, atmospheric metal, post-metal, doom metal, folk metal, dark folk, post-shoegaze, damn it almost sounds like they couldn’t decide what in the hell they wanted to do with their lives! But, as much of a mess as that sounds, they do it beautifully. Put a few actually skilled musicians together, give them a dark dream, and Nimue is the result.   Nimue by D ..read more

  Ahhhh breathe in that atmosphere. I’ve honed my tastes over the past few years and this is proof. Actually, make that a decade or longer. Fact is I receive so much stuff I’ve heard practically everything imaginable. And I’ve said it a number of times, black metal can rarely wake me up, let alone anyone else, if it’s going to do the same stuff we already heard in the 1990s. Enter Luring, a USBM outfit that recently picked up an impressive CD/LP deal with Iron Bonehead Productions after only two demos and an under-the-radar full-length. That itself speaks volumes, but if you need more pr ..read more

  Again I’m convinced only the French can pull this style off as well as they do. People always rip on French stereotypes, and maybe there’s occasionally some truth in it, but if there’s one stereotype of which they should be proud, it’s their absolute mastery of emotional, atmospheric black metal. I mean jeez every time I see those terms and know its from France I get my memories and tissues ready, because tears will ensue. Add to that an excellent, overreaching theme and purely controlled musical skill? Damn, Portraits is great.   Portraits by AODON   I can’t remember if I ha ..read more

  You ever feel like you have an ouroboros weaving through like your skull but upside-down? And like there are bells in your eye sockets? And like they’re hanging on a stick in a misty forest? Then holy shit this is exactly what you’re looking at above! Damn! As stupid as I made that all sound, and as much as you may expect the worst, this here is easily the greatest Slovenian band of the underground now and probably ever. Did you not know Slovenia is a real country? Lol, get started with Kamra! It’s a baby step into a world of wonder!   Cerebral Alchemy by Kamra   Cerebral Alc ..read more

  I was trying to understand the hate I saw this debut getting on the onlines but then I remembered most people are idiots and I’m the best at this review thing. To summarize the brief lameness I witnessed, I read that Les Retranchements was lacking focus in its combination of the delicate with the harsh. Was I listening to something else? Oh, I get it, the rest of you cucks are just inexperienced. Got it. The black metal is typical, many seem to have said. This mentality seems to lack of an important thread; namely that mixing typical with astounding is effective.   Les Retrancheme ..read more

  Hey, it’s Greek black metal! I’m not sure what else I can say beyond that but let’s give it a try. Dødsferd is one of Greece’s oldest black metal acts, and by virtue of that fact alone they already deserve to be at the front of the cavalry charge into the riff blizzard we expect and desire. The question of whether they are deserving of a heavy war horse in the attack rests in two details since this is classic shit: one, do they understand “the classique,” and two, can they play it better than othevrs? Let’s see with their latest, Skotos.   Skotos (Atmospheric Black Metal) by DØDSF ..read more