VENUS STAR: "Nivritti Marga"

Finland's riff & melody fount Rauta is not solely busy with creating new haunting Circle of Ouroborus tunes as recent years have brough upon a spate of crushing death metal influenced releases under the Venus Star moniker. Granted, both full-lengths lacked something that would've made them deserve truly hyperbolic praise, but what's sure is that the key elements at play are always promising: murky, primitive black doom death with deranged vocals. It's then always a question of how much longevity a full album of this style carries, but here we have an EP length of the very style, clocking at ten important minutes.

Nivritti Marga's first side begins with ”Osiris Virgin”'s punching downtuned palm-muting, stripped soundscape providing nothing but crudeness. The guitars sound a little sharper than on the recent album Setyphorus, a nice change to the full-length's deliberately abyssal, brooding tune. This, instead, is pure killing. Nothing out of the ordinary really happens on the track: it's a 100% Venus Star track that some will loathe for its uncompromising (anti)development. Those listeners will probably gain more from the B side song ”Strange Backwards Seeing” which I admittedly find to be perhaps the best song from the band so far. The kernel elements are the same, but its a slight step towards a ritualistic Ride for Revenge esque sound, spiced with some very tasty acoustic guitars, thanks to which the track evokes an atmosphere unlike any other.

If I was to introduce someone to Venus Star, Nivritti Marga would be the starting point. It simply can not bore due to its brevity, and it showcases the project's sound accordingly (”Osiris Virgin”), as well as adds something new (”Strange Backwards Seeing”). The package also includes some sweet occult artwork along with the lyrics present. At the time of writing this I realize that my copy of the latest tape Wild Grains & Turningheads... is still unplayed, so I can not say with absolute certainty that this EP is the very best moment of Venus Star's career so far, but a damn great one nonetheless. If my memory serves, this is part one of a trilogy of seven inches, so there's a lot of expectations for the future.

4.5 / 5

ZERVM: "Nex Cvltvs"

I remember obtaining Zervm's 2008 demo tape Nihil Morte Certivm from a distro for two euros or so, and how happy was I for getting such a score. Not that it would have been a truly awesome hidden gem from the underground, but in comparison to how cheap it was, I enjoyed spinning it surprisingly often. A little bit deranged, filthy black metal was Zervm's style back then, and it's not much unlike their offerings on the brand new album Nex Cvltvs.

Simply put, Zervm here is somewhat murky power chord firing with ominous twists, i.e. the rather traditional ravaging riffs sometimes diverge into atonal notes. Barbaric drumming backs this up, and on top of all are the leprous snarls of the vocalist, half-spoken, or more like uttered. This is the paradigm under which the band plays through the whole album without any alterations really, but luckily it tastes pretty good: these seven horrid spells are all effective. However, in the big picture, they tend to resemble each other a bit too much. In the course of listening throughout the album, and I've done it maybe six times now, my mind starts wondering off always at some point, and then I need to skip back a few tracks to the moment when my mind departed.

The stripped production and overall style resemble that of Hrizg's latest offerings Anthems to Decrepitude and Inferno, so if those appeal to you, so should Nex Cvltvs. The atmosphere is pretty damn well accomplished here, both suffocating and somehow cavernous, but song-wise I would have liked to hear some more variation, I guess. The basic elements are handled like they should be, meaning that there's nothing wrong with the instrumentation nor sound, but I still find it lacking something that would raise it higher than many others in the field.

3 / 5

NORDWIND: "Wendehorn"

What comes to Canadian black metal, I do revere Pagan Hellfire, and Revenge doesn't suck either even if not being entirely my cup of tea, but generally speaking I can count truly good black metal bands from Canada with one hand's fingers. Hence coming across an act like Nordwind is a great pleasure: two Godless North related persons playing crude black metal without any gimmicks whatsoever.

And while many fail at the delivery of uncompromising black metal, i.e. actually sounding good and interesting with the minimum equipment and means at use, Nordwind seems to belong to the few bands who know how to hit the right spots. Their debut album Wendehorn is downright harshness and coldness from the north, further accomplished by the very deft playing of instruments. There's not much bass in the soundscape; instead, the raw guitars are are in the leading role, firing ferocious riffs one after another. Just listen to the main riff crushing on ”Gazing from the Void” - brilliance! ”Spear of Mastery” shows how tasty lead melodies are done on top of a rumbling rhythm section, and ”Death Asceticism” encapsulates the essence of powerful palm-muting.

Admittedly, Wendehorn might later on start suffering from a lack of longevity as the songs build around rather simple (yet effective) ideas, but a part of the album's charm, as a counter-effect, is indeed its brevity: the album comes, kills, and leaves. Six tracks of merciless action, and then it's done. Nordwind's performance here is commendable, though of course rather predictable as there's nothing majorly unique about them, but I really can't start philosophizing about 'lacks of that and that' while listening to this piece of grabbing fierceness. Wendehorn does what it's supposed to do, and hence deserves a good rating.

4 / 5

BLOOD RED FOG: "Death Cult II"

The second part of the Death Cult couple spreads its pernicious message in very similar ways as its first half: staying true to their style since day one, Blood Red Fog is menacing and slovenly, yet thoughful, black metal under the banner of Jyväskylä from where many likeminded groups stem (Saturnian Mist, Arvet, Verge and Orfvs to name a few). On part II, the sound is perhaps even a bit messier than on the first part, and I sense a focus on the harsh, callous side of the band instead of catchy melodies that the band is known for providing as well. Here it is mostly the abyssal, hope-shattering riffs that play a dominant role.

B.R.F.'s trio on the demo, comprising other noteworthy persons from the underground scene (Desolate and Profundiis), plays flawlessly here. It doesn't mean it's superbly tight in execution, as if they were some professional musicians, but they all serve their insruments in a way that the compositions flow perfectly: there's no uncertainty, but purposeful killing and death worshipping in the form of black metal. Add the deathly howls to the package, and yours truly can't complain. As it's evident, these lines deliver ideas of vanity and dying, but not necessarily in a negative way, like ”Pierced by Black Rays” tells:

”Through the mazes of misery and sadness / Through the halls of soul crushing emptiness / Through the corridors of solitude and madness / And finally there shines the knowledge / Of how beautiful is the transition from life unto death / From futility of common man / To the grandeur of eternal being”

Due to the second part's less catchy compositions, I'm settling for a lower rating than what I gave for part one, but this is not to say that Death Cult II is bad in any aspect. Not at all, as it's competent, worthy black metal all the way through. Here's to only hoping that the second full-length gets finally released some day as it's been so terribly delayed. There's nothing wrong with these minor releases, but a full hour of new Blood Red Fog material wouldn't be bad either.

4 / 5

BLOOD RED FOG: "Death Cult I"

Blood Red Fog is an interesting case in the assortment of Finnish black metal. Since their debut appearance on the 2005 demo tape, the band has been churning out new material steadily throughout the years, mostly on short-length releases like splits and EPs, and I've had the pleasure to follow their career since the massive eponymous opus from 2006. So, in spite of their constant delivery of nothing but quality, and various live appearances even outside the homeland, you don't see many people talking about the band. Maybe the reasons reside somewhere in the fact that Blood Red Fog is definitely not reinventing the wheel, but damn, how someone can still overlook these golden riffs?

For some references in regard to their sound, you can think of their country colleagues Cosmic Church, Funerary Bell and the likes that deliver filthy and melancholic black metal with plenty of authentic philosophy behind the mere sound. However, while the aforementioned bands focus on the Great Work from different angles (i.e. a rather romantic reverence of Satan and one that contains elements of horror, respectively), Blood Red Fog is all about death and decay – the process of mortification. This becomes even clearer on their two-part minialbums of which the first one, Death Cult I, is now in scrutiny. First of all, tape format suits the scruffy sounding, almost rehearsal-like black metal perfectly. The guitars screech and wail just like they're supposed to in raw black metal. As a good example, just listen to the violent feedback on ”Pendulum”, or even just the folky melodic touch of the intro. Or the ominous flow of riffs on ”With Open Arms” that truly immerse the listener.

It's not always easy to say what makes a rather traditional underground black metal release better than some other, but the fact is that Death Cult I stands above many in the field. B.R.F.'s ingenious sense of riffs and melodies is very much in presence here, and when it's combined with the lovely soundscape of the tape, I can't find much to complain about. Also, I can't end a Blood Red Fog review without mentioning the vocals that I regard the country's best along with Wyrmfang and Antti Klemi: these semi-harsh howls reek of utter death and unholiness. The tape is getting sold out by now and if you are too late, look out for these if they get reissued some time in the future. Not into the black metal that Finland tends to spew forth? Then there's nothing for you to see here.

4.5 / 5

CHARNEL WINDS / VERGE: "Two Serpent"

When two basically seminal Finnish black metal serpents of late times appear on the same split or, even better, join their forces to create a collaborative piece of work, it is pretty much bound to be good. Charnel Winds and Verge are the big names here, and anyone following the country's output has most likely heard of both bands, Charnel Winds for their praised 2007 demo and the ambitious full-length Der Teufelsbund, and Verge for their rather long career already during which they've crafted such diamonds as Hatemagic and Sex & Violence.

The minialbum embarks on its brief voyage with the ominous groove of ”Archons” that nods to Charnel Winds' direction both in execution as well as in overall sound that has a certain kind of cleanness to it which reminds me of their debut album. It's not a negative element, rather a professional feature that still retains the necessary roughness. The meandering main riff later breaks into a hypnotizing guitar plucking that then again is pure Verge, as are Wyrmfang's vocals. ”Serpent Tongue” swims in similar, convulsing waters which later incorporate some sweet clean vocal output, a style further explored on the record's highlight track, the epic ”Wingless Dragons” which I find to be pure gold in all possible aspects. ”Godhead” ends the EP with raucous, relentless black metal, a level more traditional in style, which works very well as well, yet it does pale a little in comparison to the earlier tracks.

Lyrically, I'm not sure if there's any strict theme to the whole, but the underlining currents always carry the ideas of destruction and hopelessness along with ascension. While ”Archons” includes lines of extreme 'nihilism' (”No one has the right to practice anything / in the name of anything else / than naught”), ”Serpent Tongue” delivers reverence of Satan, the ”twisted tongue”, the ”evil tongue”. ”Wingless Dragons” depicts people, the mundane humanity that wastes its potential, ”lacking virtue, lacking will / devoid of chance to ascension”, and hence are "too blind to see the inner sun". I believe there's a real-life story to the last track but I'm much unaware of it, but this godhead is given some references to in such lines as ”Every satellite has the right to rebel / to question the motivation of its creation”, I suppose.

With ever-competent music and thought-provoking lyrics, the combination of Charnel Winds and Verge - two bands that clearly fit together due to very similar spirits – works to great extents. The brevity of the running time makes Two Serpents pass fast by, so the music deserves some real attention to be fully digested. Noxifer has painted some detailed, brooding paintings to the booklet which make it even a worthier package. Although the material presented here might not be of such mindblowing level as yours truly regards e.g. Hatemagic, one can't really go wrong with this record either.

4 / 5

ARS DIAVOLI: "Clausura"

Six years ago (whew...) I remember buying Ars Diavoli's demo tape The Absence of Light, and how I listened to it quite a bit back then, enjoying its ear-shattering roughness combined with the melancholic melodies. Years pass and Clausura, Vilkacis' second full-length album already, has been out a long time by now, but I started digesting it only recently. Perhaps my lack of enthusiasm to follow the band's activities is corollary of the major debut Pro Nihilo Esse not impressing me properly, and unfortunately I'm having somewhat similar thoughts on the second effort, another album that kind of lingers in the already heard ideas.

Simply put, Clausura is depressive black metal. A load of reverby atmosphere with guitars fluctuating between the distorted tremolo picking and clean note plucking. Steady drumbeats are provided by a tad too clear drum machine, and mostly in tempos that verge on doom metal. Some exceptions do occur, like the rather fast-paced beginning of ”Momento Inerte”, but the general speed is slow, and fittingly so. There's no major flaws in the music here, the only yet too severe glitch is the fact that there's nothing really refreshing about Clausura: it's depressive black metal by the book: funereal atmospheres, evocations of hopeslessness, the inescapable decay of all living...

Giving this album a listen in total darkness and in the right state of mind may, or must, result in a more positive impression than giving it a go in the middle of all the daily fuss. I'm too often guilty of inclining towards the latter category, a category that does not go hand in hand with something like Clausura. If depressive landscapes in the rather traditional black metal way haven't bored you by now, Ars Diavoli's second album is most likely a worthwile album to check out. And even if you find the subgenre tiresome, there's no way of saying that Clausura was somehow badly done. Not at all. For my taste, it is just a bit too predictable.

3 / 5