Craft - White Noise and Black Metal (2018)

Void arrived at a six-year gulf from its predecessor Fuck the Universe, and inevitably became a bit of a disappointment, if not remotely bad. White Noise and Black Metal, however, came after a seven-year break in studio releases, the longest wait in their career (until now, as we are approaching 8 years and counting); and I feel like this time must have been well spent since the songwriting and energy is quite refreshed. It plays within the same ballpark as their other material, but it doesn't feel quite so drudging or dreary as Void did, there's a more adventurous sense to the guitar riffing, and a lot more tasteful detail through repeated listening. Craft is an interesting band, because they are simple and easy to grasp, but their albums are always growers (one shrinker), and when White Noise and Black Metal came out, I picked up the CD, enjoyed it well enough, but didn't think much about it until the ensuing years of spins.

Today, I think it's pretty awesome. The sound is a little less bulky than its predecessor, I'd hate to say 'graceful' or 'vibrant' with a band as apocalyptic and evil as these Swedes, but a lot of the guitar tone is lighter and gives a higher-pitched feel, and that's where a lot of those details are. They are still largely a band that moves at that slower pace, and you get some killer churn riffs like in "Again" or the awesome "Darkness Falls". However, that space is filled in better here, especially by Daniel Moilanen's drumming, which is by far the most interesting that has appeared on a Craft record. While I wouldn't go so far as to call this material 'progressive', he certainly adds an element of that flexibility that he's brought to the recent streak of Katatonia releases, and it's another way in which White Noise stands out against the back catalogue. But the Joakim and John also keep the guitars interesting, with a bag of new BM tricks that poke through most of the tunes, and the added spaciousness to the mix and composition also allows the bass to have a stronger supporting role, a shadow thundering beneath the more ethereal guitars.

Nox does what he always does, one of the most formidably vile of the Swedish BM front-men, but again the scope of this album allows for his rasps to cascade about the atmosphere and create a lasting, resonant impact. The lyrics have been pretty top notch since the third album, but here they take on a more introspective feel, dark and ponderous but not as cliched or Satanic and anti-human as they were in the formative years. White Noise and Black Metal is a heater, and though it took some years to properly dig in, I'd now award it the silver metal, standing on the abyssal podium to the right of Fuck the Universe, with Terror Propaganda in the bronze. Great Swedish black metal that scratches the itch of their earlier work while giving you a lot more to think about.

Verdict: Win [8.5/10]

https://www.facebook.com/craftblackmetal

Craft - Void (2011)

Void is an album that had sort of the opposite affect on me as its predecessor Fuck the Universe. Here is one that I quite liked upon its release, but have gradually grown a little bored of throughout the years. It sort of mirrors that Darkthrone era from 1996-2006 in its bleakness, only I happen to find all of those records more memorable. Actually, I don't want to complete drag this one through the dirt, because there's a lot going on here that I do like aesthetically, more going on in fact than what's on those Norwegian records, and in the right setting I'll still spin it, but often I'll pick and choose particular tracks rather than crave the experience as a whole. I can promise that it is as grim and apocalyptic as anything else they've ever put out, so...no worries there.

This is dense, slow, and atmospheric, with a selection of those simple Hellhammer/Celtic Frost derived grooves being sliced through by the tremolo picking parts. I'm glad for that exchange, actually, because it makes tunes like "Come Resonance of Doom" or "The Ground Surrenders" somewhat listenable. It isn't until "Succumb to Sin" where those leaden, thick rhythm guitar riffs really pull their own weight with an actually amazing riff, and that's my favorite track on the album with ease. A lot of the other patterns here just feel a little stale and leaning upon the atmospherics to get by. Another highlight are the eerie melodies in "Bring on the Clouds", but the latter half of Void is dominated by these longer songs in which I don't feel entirely fulfilled, they impress me in parts but can become a burden in their entirety. There is one track there, "I Want to Commit Murder" which has some faster riffing to break it up, but that one doesn't have a lot of payoff even when it slows back down with its thuggish bridge riff.

The vocals and consistency of mood here do a lot to keep it coherent; the former as resonant and evil as ever, though they do feel somewhat monotonous along the gray din of the songwriting. Yeah, this is an album you 'hear' by looking at the cover, and vice versa. It's certainly playing within the confines of Craft's tookbox, and suckers for its influences, or the slower, rawer side of black metal or black & roll will find that it stays pretty truthful to the aesthetics, but it hasn't aged for me as well as the albums on either side of it, and these days it's the last in their discography that I'm likely to revisit, though I'd throw "Succumb to Sin" on a condensed compilation of tunes if I were introducing someone to their music. It's competent, it's Craft, it's certainly not bad or even mediocre, the lyrics maintain the upgrade they got with Fuck the Universe; but it's down the trenches for now.

Verdict: Win [7.25/10] (Old, deformed and barren)

https://www.facebook.com/craftblackmetal

Craft - Fuck the Universe (2005)

If you asked me to choose a favorite Swedish black metal for all time, I can't promise that this record would win the honors, but I'd absolutely be taking it down off the shelf to compare and contrast it against the other picks. Fuck the Universe elevated the band's nihilistic ravings to an entirely new level, as the Chaos symbol and title imply, we've gone beyond crushing mere humanity and/or Christianity to everything in all of existence, and I think that sentiment is reflected well by Craft's increased devotion to songwriting. I never really buzzed about this one enough back in the day or on my earlier lists; it was something I enjoyed upon first exposure, but has aged really well with time, and obviously grown on me more than anything else they've released. What's more, it does further distance itself from its more overt influences.

Yes, Hellhammer/Celtic Frost and Darkthrone still account for the DNA of the sound here, but it's been innovated upon, with a more layered and nuanced approach. Mood and melancholy are measured off against the grimness of the vocals and genre conventions, and the songs always give themselves enough time to express their ideas while absorbing the listener fully; we hear this in the 7+ minute "Thorns in the Planet's Side" with its spacious, doomy atmosphere, or the churning finale "Principium Anguis' with all its thundering fills and soul-crushing riffs. But another element that I really enjoyed here is that they started to incorporate a little bit of a black/thrash vibe ("Fuck the Universe") which reminded me of the direction Aura Noir had started to head in, or "Xenophobia" which has these similarly thrashy pulses and grooves which capitalize on the surging evil verse riffs. They explore far more material here than on the prior records, the 51+ minutes offering you a lot of range while also honoring all of what they brought to the table from 2000-2002.

Vocals still sound as nasty as ever, but they've got a lot more to compete with musically, which is where Craft have truly developed here. I think the drums and bass lines stand out more here too, there's just a more organic vibe to the entire recording that reminds me a lot of some of the black & roll stuff put out by a Satyricon or Sarke. It's robust and clean, but all of that sinister attitude from the band's riffing and singing is fully intact. Fairly refreshing when you consider that a lot of the 'necro' black metal bands shy away from such production improvements in order to retain the icy rawness. There's nothing wrong with that, mind you, but I don't feel as if it would achieve what Fuck the Universe does with this sort of atmosphere. A phenomenal album, the first off my shelf when I am in the mood for this band, with a good amount of content and plenty enough ideas to fill that time. Craft at their finest, with at least 4-5 songs ("Fuck the Universe", "Terni Exustae - Queen Reaper", "Xenophobia", etc.) that would make my highlight reel of their whole career. Also: better lyrics than the first two albums by far.

Verdict: Epic Win [9.5/10]

https://www.facebook.com/craftblackmetal

Craft - Terror Propaganda (2002)

Terror Propaganda is another of the early Craft records which has so many similarities to the earlier post-Soulside Journey Darkthrone material, back when those Norsemen were first exploring black metal, that it's not hard to understand why some were calling it a knockoff. But when you dig beneath just the surface impressions I think there's plenty going on here to enjoy...are they paying tribute to their more established peers? Absolutely. The black/white cover with the pose (but hey no fire breathing!). The entirely colorless, nihilistic lyrics and pure malevolence created through the riff progressions and vocals. The first song here is even titled "Ablaze". But it's a damn GOOD tribute, is the thing, and never tries to hide it, and in exploring this sound, once again develops a few ideas of its own that make it eminently re-listenable.

They did drop a bit of that Hellhammer influence here, especially in the guitar tone. Some of the slower, oozier riffs have disappeared, although not entirely, and you'll recognize it in songs like "Reaktor 4". In fact, much of the material here is still mid-pace cruise mode, but that's also where they come up with a lot of their darker guitar patterns ("The Silence Thereafter"). The tremolo picking guitars have evolved from the debut, and more confidently take the lead on some of the tunes, but they've also got some layers of atmospherics or melodies that will appear at the edge of perception to elevate the material. Some would say that the Hellhammer bits have transformed into the 'black & roll' school of riffing, and that's true, but once again one of my favorite parts of the recording, for example in "Hidden Under the Skin" these bad ass guitars balance out nicely against the more wistful melancholy of the licks in the mid-paced blasting sequence. And "False Orders Begone" is an amazing use of that Hellhammer vibe into something that feels fresh with Mikael's nasty vocals slathered all over it.

They still use some of the crazy screams here, and they feel more bloody and fresh-killed than on the debut, adding more depth to the heights. I would say that the overall structure of the album is slower, but they never become boring, always exploring some ideas to flesh out the compositions which are usually only 3-5 minutes to begin with. The drums are tinny and efficient as was popular for this necro niche of black metal, but I didn't notice a lot of bass presence throughout, it's certainly taking more of a back seat than Total Soul Rape, but not absent. We've still not hit the peak of the Craft yet, and this one isn't quite so diabolically fun as the debut, but I'd say musically it's one I place just a stride beyond that. It's a little colder, more atmospheric, and numbing, but still has tasteful evil melodic licks and dark, powerful grooves.

Verdict: Win [8.25/10] (We are messengers)

https://www.facebook.com/craftblackmetal

Sarke - Endo Feight (2024)

Sarke has always had those weird, interesting album titles, but Endo Feight ("End of Eight") is either the best-planned, or most purely prophetic of them, since this would prove the last of their studio efforts and it might have been set up that way before it was even recorded. Fear not, though, this album is an absolute banger, a celebration of all that had come before it, with a few hooks of its own but largely serving to solidify their consistent track record. The lineup is still the four 'classic' guys that had been with the band the most: Nocturno Culto on the vocals, Sarke on the bass, also returning to his traditional drum role from his other bands; Steinar on the guitars and Anders on the keys.

Everything is on the table here, the structured and simplified black/thrash which is more drawn from that old Swiss school than so many of the other bands in the style which mimic your Venoms, Slayers or early German thrash records. The proggy influences here aren't always worn on the sleeves so much as they are packed into the meatier riffing progressions, but you also get a lot of those amazing synths and pianos, showing the same restraint Anders always does. These create the dramatic atmospheres the guitars themselves wouldn't be capable of in their current configurations, without ever stepping on anyone. There are some choppy tunes here with a lot of chugging, like "Death Construction", or darker, bluesy grooves as in the closer "Macabre Embrace", and they even toss us an almost pure trad black metal track with "In Total Allegiance" which only adds to the sort of ouroboros vibe of keeping their endgame consistent with their opening salvo, or in this case, their roots.

Nocturno sounds amazing, and I will truly miss his voice in this project, even though I can still experience his work in Darkthrone. But that's the weird thing about Endo Feight. I usually feel some loss when a band I love dissolves. In this case, I feel like Sarke, NC and company really explored this dimension they wanted to splice up between black, thrash, doom, 70s rock, prog, and so forth. Nothing more is owed. Or needed. The closing tolls of "Macabre Embrace" say it all. They gave us EIGHT albums that I've ranked from merely 'very good' to superb, and other than a small handful of tracks which one might relegate to the 'just okay' category, I could listen to any of these in its entirety without needing to skip anything. That's pretty high praise, and the fact that these albums are stamped with a timelessness through their blend of styles and top notch production ensures they are nothing I will ever leave behind. I salute you, gentlemen, one of the best and most consistent bands most people hand and will have never heard of. Success in all your other projects, and thank you for this amazing slew of music that I can never repay in more than praise.

Verdict: Win [8.75/10] (Resting in the damp ground)

https://sarkeband.bandcamp.com/

Sarke - Allsighr (2021)

Allsighr is the first Sarke album where I detect a hint of color to the cover choice. Maybe it's just my imagination that there's a bit of blue painted in there with the blacks and grays and whites, maybe even a little brown, but it makes a little bit of aesthetic since as the band seems to have become so confident and proficient in its sound that it's almost like they are emerging from some larval stage. I don't think one is as expansive to their sound as Gastwerso, but its clearly one of their best-rounded, memorable efforts that takes all which has come before as a toolset to write some entirely kickass material which, for me, almost rivals Viige Urgh.

Yes, the whole enchilada of the Norwegians' sonic package is brought to bear upon their fanbase, and anyone else who has the pleasure of encountering their incredibly underrated catalog of music. The first clip of "Bleak Reflections" will have you thinking they've embraced their more traditional black metal roots, but that is merely a ruse, as they will soon dial it back into the mix of minimalistic thrash aesthetics, black & roll stylings, a little progressive rock in the use of several of the synths and song structures, and that doom vibe which has never taken over their style completely but deserves mention in the conversation. The tunes here are very well composed, balanced, always possessive of the band's unique mystique ("Funeral Fire", "Through the Thorns"), and never shying away from trying a riffing pattern they haven't hit upon before. Cato Bekkevold (ex-Enslaved) does the drums here and they sound as crisp and professional as any of his forebears.

Allsighr is pretty amazing. The production is clean and effective, every note hitting exactly where it needs to on your aural palate, and every instrument and vocal mixed with lethal clarity. The album thrives in both its harsher, grooving moments and the calms, of which there are a number in the intros/segues as well as the ambient/piano piece "Sleep in Fear". It's extremely accessible, which is another reason I'm shocked that this band never got much huger than they did. Perhaps it's just not 'extreme' enough if we're talking about the black metal genre as a whole. It's not going to spin heads off necks, it isn't blasting at a million miles an hour, the vocals are cutting but never overbearing, the symphonic ingredients are a minor embellishment and not a Wagnerian tour de force. But this is SONGCRAFT, by experts, who catch vibes from the aether and ride them to dark, pleasurable heights.

Verdict: Epic Win [9/10] (Obsessed with what's below)

https://sarkeband.bandcamp.com/

Sarke - Gastwerso (2019)

Gastwerso capitalizes on the success of Viige Urh with a few minor tweaks, but I was really satisfied that they continued with this brighter, more kinetic-sounding production style, just as clean as most of the prior albums, but here the guitar riffs sound a little more sharp and cutting. Part of this is the emphasis on some heavier material, for instance the tremolo black metal riff explosion in the middle of awesome opener "Ghost War". There's also a little more mystique to this album, perhaps a more Eastern influence to the melodies in the synthesizers that make it all a bit more exotic and evil. I don't know that this one can match its predecessor blow for blow, but it's another excellent addition to Sarke's catalog.

Again, they've got an awesome combination of opening tracks to grab you, but where the album starts to get real interesting is "Mausoleum". They've used synths plenty through the discography, and always tastefully so, adding more than subtracting, but "Mausoleum" is the first case for me where they feel as if they're really attempting an arrangement. This one feels truly symphonic, the synths scintillating, the guitars and drums working in tandem to support it, and the little wailing melodies create such a stark contrast against NC's voice and the lyrics, which have this sad simplicity and finality to them befitting the title. What a cool track, and something new in the Sarke canon. This isn't entirely representative of the album, but they've got some other experiments here like the sultry acoustics and ambiance of "The Endless Wait" and the Goth-y/sympho step of "In the Flames", which admittedly is a little goofy with the placement of the verse lyrics and such, but in a good way.

Don't worry though, if you want more of the simpler black/thrash with the keys, there are plenty of those tunes here, like "Echoes from the Ancient Crucifix" or "Rebellious Bastard", two more easy highlights for me, and the latter even devolves into an almost Western vibe. I guess Gastwerso would overall win the award for the most 'prog' album in their catalogue to its day, the one most interested in expanded the band's portfolio to avoid the redundancy that might be created by the typical black & white cover images and overall minimalism. But that's not a bad thing, because it's largely fucking awesome; not every left turn here works equally, but overall the satisfaction level is quite high and it's another I often head back to.

Verdict: Win [8.5/10] (Blocking all the sight)

https://sarkeband.bandcamp.com/

Sarke - Viige Urh (2017)

If I had any reservations or mixed memories of the third or fourth albums, there could be no such confusion with Viige Urh, a record I fell in love with immediately, frontloading some of the catchiest material of the band's entire career. Straight from the opening title track, it brought me right back to what I enjoyed about the debut Vorunah, only performed here with a little more zest and energy. Simple, memorable black/thrash, obviously derived from that Hellhammer school of through, or Darkthrone, NC's main band, but given added breadth and atmosphere due to the tasteful use of synthesizers to make a more dramatic chorus and also help contrast against NC's gritty vocal style, a beauty to the beast.

"Viige Urh" and "Dagger Entombed" are probably the best opening one-two punch combo for me in their whole catalogue, the former for its vital thrashing pulse, and the latter for that amazing flow of grooves and dour-sounding synth tones that almost catapult you back to some Medieval era. But this record has so much more in store for you, like the charging "Age of Sail" with that sweet opening lead guitar, "Upir" with its lopsided, lumbering groove, or the slow-rolling atmospheric doom of "Punishment to Confessions". While there is variety here, I feel that Viige Urh is one of their most unified records in execution; the songs just sort of flow together the best, not that they don't on the older efforts but here they feel more purposely planned for maximum resonance with the listener. Yes, they're pulling in some light prog rock influences among the styles they already dabbled in, but everything else is straight from the Sarke playbook that you'd recognize from the first four.

Viige Urh absolutely stomps, with a more vibrant production than its predecessor and a selection of songs that never let up in quality through the entire playtime. Where, say I could point out a few on Aruagint that wouldn't make a career playlist, I'd probably have to include this entire album. This is the first I grab when introducing someone new to the band, and it has a high rate of success, taking what's so vital about the first two and improving upon that hybrid style. Nocturno's voice is the icing on the cake, but the music itself here is strong enough that I can occasionally put that to the sideline. Amazing stuff that holds up as strongly today as the first time I listened.

Verdict: Win [9.25/10]

https://sarkeband.bandcamp.com/

Sarke - Bogefod (2016)

When I was deciding to complete my reviews for the Sarke discography, a band I've long loved but never openly appreciated enough, I had a false memory that Bogefod was the worst of their albums, and thus it's the one I have the least experience listening to. I think I had it confused with one of the Khold albums or something, or maybe Araguint (which is also good), because it turns out total bullshit, the product of a mind cobwebbed with too much information. Bogefod is great, a record that sticks with its predecessors in style, but benefits from some fresh energy with the addition of the Kråbøl brothers Terje and Stian on the drums and guitar respectively. You might know them from other bands like Tulus, Khold, Gjendod and their namesake Kråbøl, all of whom you probably also enjoy (or would enjoy) if you like Sarke.

Bogefod isn't a far cry from the albums before it, no, but it's a little bit more vicious due to a mix that's a little more saturated, and this applies both to the more incendiary black/thrash material like "Taken" or the mood-setting, slower songs where the synthesizer plays a more dramatic, rainy role as in "Barrow of Torolv". There are great, soothing acoustic segues, a stab at some almost opera-like ethereal fare ("Dawnin") with folk singer Beate Amundsen, and a whole lotta great riffs slathered in Nocturno Culto's not so soothing bark, which to me is like having toast in the morning after listening to 35 years of his music. It balances the Hellhammer/Celtic Frost influences that have always informed this band's style with a few moments of more dissonant black metal, doom, thrash, folk, ambiance and while it's once again not quite the measure of the first two albums, it's very damn close.

In fact, this came out the same year as Arctic Thunder, my least favorite Darkthrone record (although not bad, per se), and I like this one much more. It's a bit more consistently catchy than Aruagint, has the slightly more acidic production and, when it wants to, sounds a little more 'dangerous'. It's things like this that are the reason I'm happy to go back through and cover discographies from bands I think deserve talking about, because occasionally you'll 'rediscover' something that you were either sleeping on, wrong about or just couldn't quite remember, and you'll be the richer for it. Bogefod is, like every Sarke album, worth a listen if not outright ownership, one of the black & roll royalty bands that should appeal if you like any other band I mentioned here in this review, mid-era Satyricon, or Slegest.

Verdict: Win [8.25/10] (He will not let death contain his madness)

https://sarkeband.bandcamp.com/

Sarke - Aruagint (2013)

The first two Sarke records gave me something that I never knew I needed but subconsciously probably always wanted: hearing Nocturno Culto's ghastly and gritty timbre in a context beyond Darkthrone. Now, Darkthrone is one of my favorite bands ever to exist in this plane of existence (there are others, and they hold up pretty well there too), and you could honestly be forgiven for hearing Aruagint or any of this project's other offerings and mistaking them for new works by that other band, who shifts styles around sometimes for consistent reinvention. I think Sarke has a much more accessible sound in general, a hybrid of black and doom and some simpler thrash metal with a super clean and almost minimalist production.

No, the atmosphere here doesn't come through the album's mix, as it does often with NC's mainstay. It's purely through the riffs, though they do add some synth or horn sounds. Sarke enables you to focus directly on the simpler, catchy guitar patterns and that voice, which is amazing at this slower pace. NC excels with some sustain to his growls, you can really feel them out and occasionally they get a little more gruesome, but if you're a fan of his from Darkthrone, then you're going to love records like this one just to have more. The lyrics are also really cool, with a simple but poignant poetry to them much like that other band, and written largely by Thomas 'Sarke' Berglie, the drummer for Khold and Tulus who is the heart and namesake of this project. His bass is quite memorable here, not for the lines so much but for the spongey tone you can hear buzzing alongside the bottom end, like a catfish feeding from the floor of your aquarium.

This is also one of two Sarke albums that Asgeir Mickelson performs on, and he makes it all sound so easy, with a steady, grooving rock style that's a bit simpler than what you've heard him pummel out on Borknagar or Spiral Architect. Everything here is cleanly written and executed, though there are couple super simple black & roll tracks like "Strange Pungent Odyssey" or "Jaunt of the Obsessed" which aren't among the catchiest they've put out. So this album doesn't quite achieve what Vorunah or Oldarhian did for me, but there are some heaters here like "Walls of Ru", "Salvation" (that bass!), the eerie yet warm "Skeleton Sand" and memorably, grooving "Icon Usurper" to compensate and keep this pretty essential if you enjoyed the first two, or Berglie's other bands that I mentioned above. Good riffs, mostly good songs, Nocturno Culto. You had me right there.

Verdict: Win [8/10] (Dragging shattered remains)

https://sarkeband.bandcamp.com/

Windir - Likferd (2003)

The fourth and final Windir record is the darkest. Not simply because I associate it with the untimely passing of its main protagonist Valfar in the year following its released (in a fucking blizzard of all things), but because it's got this more suffocating extremity about it. As I mentioned with 1184, rather than going more accessible with the winning formula of melodic clarity and folkish multi-instrumentation, Valfar and his shipmates moved off into a more aggressive direction, seeking to embrace the black metal fundamentals rather than shun them. Likferd goes even harder than the last album, and with the increasingly savage vocals and sheer velocity of the riffs and drumming.

That's not to say you don't get some variation, some brilliant moments of pause like the dark synthscape that punctuates "Resurrection of the Wild" or the bass-driven grooves of "Blodssvik" which sounds more like a Gothic rock song until those familiar melodies surge forward. But overall, Likferd is content to hammer away at your corporal body and then let the melodies and awesome male choir vocals carry you off into Valhalla. Despite the kinetic, melodic glaze found in tracks like "Martyrium" or "On the Mountain of Goats", they thrive off the strength of the riffing and sheer force. And there is riffing aplenty, with Valfar trying a whole array of new patterns that pull from thrash or melodic death metal but then plant them directly into the Viking furor. There are windows of proggy sounds and structures also placed throughout the 48 minute visceral structure of this experience, and one wonders if they had continued they might have pursued paths more akin to how Enslaved was already evolving at that very moment.

The mix still isn't my favorite, it's very steady but also kind of got a murk to it despite all the melodic strivings. That said, I think the drums sound a lot better than the last record, or at least the kicks and snares aren't distracting me throughout the experience as much, so I can better appreciate everything else that's happening. A worthwhile swansong for Windir. It's absolute rubbish that we lost such an obviously talented and visionary musician as Terje Bakken at such a young age, as many others have said before me. I can't imagine he would have disappointed us if we'd gotten 20+ more years of music from his atavist mind. I don't approach this one as often as Arntor or 1184, but it's rich enough with ideas both familiar and new that it's just a hair's breadth behind them in quality.

Verdict: Win [8.75/10]

Windir - 1184 (2001)

1184 seems like it's the first Windir album which is considered more of a 'band' effort. Valfar is still the chieftain of this clan, performing some of all the instruments (even some drum beats), but the rest of the roster has been fleshed out. Strangely, it doesn't seem like a step beyond the previous record Arntor, but a more mechanical experience churning out a similar product from the same ingredients. A large part of this is the programming, the kick drums here feel way too forceful and robotic and it's a tangible distraction from everything else, if not a deal breaker. I do like that Windir doubled down a bit on the black metal component, this is clearly trying to be more intense than the albums before it while still maintaining the amazing melodic scope Valfar created there.

And to that extent, 1184 delivers in spades. The instruments are much more level here in the mix, and it does feel more processed, so the melodies don't poke through like the glistening spikes of ice they once did. However, they are LEGION, and not a track throughout this experience lacks a rich bevy of riffs that will have you coming back to them. Nothing is skippable, but they're all delivered in this harder hitting, steadier experience which doesn't go for the dynamics as they did on Arntor. I will say, though, the heavier riffs are fucking rad on this, like "Dance of Mortal Lust" with its thrashing complexity, or "Destroy" which ups the hammers straight to your mullet. "Heidra" with its unforgettable intro melody, evil and twisting and treated with some of the best bass-line support in their catalogue. "The Spiritlord" has a bit of that simpler, mid-paced black metal groove that they don't often mete out, and I love the proggy bits that close "Black New Age", so there is a good variation between individual tracks, but most are singularly committed to their individual intensity.

In fact, the last six songs on this album totally crush the first two, they are all brilliant, and because the music is superior you can forgive the mechanistic drumming a little more. The vocals sound really great here, in this case I will say that 1184 is superior to either of the earlier albums. His rasp is more full-bodied and nasty. The keys and accordion are interwoven more directly into the music so it has more of an overall 'orchestrated' feel, you constantly pay attention to hear all the details as they bounce off one another. I don't like the production as much as Arntor, but apart from the drumming it definitely seers itself directly into your skull. I think on the strength of those last six tracks, this is probably the equal of Arntor, but if the drums had been less distracting and the production had felt more natural, it would rank among my favorite Norwegian black metal albums. It's up there, but not on the top shelf.

Verdict: Epic Win [9/10]

Windir - Arntor (1999)

As soon as you hear the interchange between the accordion and the synths of "Byrjing" that herald Arntor, you know there's been a little sea change in the years since the Windir debut. As I mentioned on that review, it takes a bit of finesse to pull this stuff off without coming across as goofy self-parody, something that plagues a lot of folk metal oriented acts (even Finntroll, a band I happen to love). Valfar used his music to honor his ancestry, the heritage of his region, and took a lot of responsibility in doing so. The synths were actually pretty good on the debut, so I'm not surprised how well they're used throughout Arntor, but it's the rest of this production that has stepped everything up over its predecessor. I would be remiss to point out that this also largely a solo venture: he has numerous contributors for vocals, lead guitars, and the same drummer and clean vocalist (Steingrim and Steinarson) from the debut, but Valfar is in command.

Arntor is immediately a more developed, textured affair than the debut, with numerous improvements. The guitar melodies are still extremely excellent, some of the best ever from the Norwegian scene, and they have such a grasp of antiquity that the sound of them feels like you're in some epic poem or watching some documentary about Viking or Scandinavian culture. The bass lines are highly improved, with a good supporting groove that adds yet more character to the compositions. The vocals are still the same rasp, but they've been blended into the riffs so much better here that they sound excellent and never obnoxious. There are still clean vocals implemented, with some festive whoops and shouts, but it always feels timely and thematic to the whole. The male choir vocals on "Kong Hydnes haug" and elsewhere are superior to those of the debut, delivered with a more brazen confidence, and I also think the mix of the drums for Arntor is better, you can feel the kicks so much more, they're using some more warlike march rhythms and such and get a festive rock groove to them when the music moves at a more moderate pace.

There are a few of the dour clean vocal lines in tunes like "Kampen" which remind me more of an Otyg or early Vintersorg delivery, taken seriously but still a little dweeby along with that simple verse rhythm, so that's not my favorite stuff, but with the exception of that one track this is a godlike effort. Songs like "Saknet",  "Arntor, ein windir" and the epic Viking trance-inducing "Svartesmeden og Lundamyrstrollet" are among my favorite in their entire catalogue. I was never 'late' to the Windir party, they are a band I heard as soon as many other folks did, and initially liked, but in the last decade a lot of their albums have been growing on me with each new wintry season. Maybe that's tacky, and I'm an old fool, but this is when I really like to experience Valfar's music, and we've had a good coating of snow here in the New England area lately and it's just bringing out all the feels. Killer disc.

Verdict: Epic Win [9/10]

Windir - Sóknardalr (1997)

Windir is most often celebrated for their later albums, but I have to say. after exploring back through their discography this winter, that they had a fairly developed, advanced sound going back to their Sóknardalr debut in 1997. There are still a few parts of the performance and production that seem amateurish, to be sure, but the sense of melody was already advanced, folk-like rhythms aplenty, and the use of cleaner vocals to offset the genre rasping were also a good choice, although I think they lack a little of the confidence they would develop. Atmospherically, though, if you just want to immerse yourself in some formative Viking black metal through your speakers of headphones, this debut is a trip if you manage your expectations. Not as blistering or savage as the early Enslaved stuff, but also not as goofy as something like Otyg.

You're essentially getting that full Windir package, just not as refined as 1184. They have the ability to use those predictable but pretty sorts of guitar melodies without sounding foolish, unlike a lot of the emergent 'folk metal' bands which sound more like they're ready to take stage at a Renaissance Faire and make jokes of what was crafted from some more serious cultural influences. A lot of this stuff here was also drafted up from the band's demos, which I remember making a stir in the underground during that mid-90s era. And let's not forget, the Norwegians were pretty young when they started off, I know at least Valfar was in his teens when this came out, and to that end, it's impressive, especially as he's performing everything but the drums and some clean vocals! The first song "Sognariket sine krigarer" is a little rough, but it does at least capture the spread of aesthetics that the band would be using throughout its existence. After that, though, some of the songs are a lot better, more matured and developed, like "Det som ver Haukareid" with its slower flow and great interplay of riffs and organs, backing vocals and rasps that feel a little more adherent to the music where they started off the album sticking out a little like a sore thumb.

And these are the same snarly, raspy vocals that appear on all the other albums, but there they get a better mix that embeds them into the instruments where a few points here they just go overboard. Not a deal breaker, of course, when you've got catchy tunes like "Mørket sin fyrste" with its anthemic charge, or "I ei krystallnatt", or "Røvhaugane" which are other favorites on this disc. The melodic sensibility here is just about as good as it was with Finland's Amorphis on their brilliant mid-90s run, even though it's arriving through a different sub-genre. Windir was far more focused on this aspect than others in their scene, who would flirt with the melodies and harmonies but engage in a lot more dissonant chords or post-Hellhammer grooves. For Valfar, this was the modus operandi, not just the end goal. There are catchier earworm guitar licks in some of the verses than some of his peers could muster at the climaxes of all their efforts. So all in all, this was a pretty good debut. The mix is a bit more raw than the later albums which are a lot more layered, but it still sounds crisp and clear to me. This was also the most interesting record to revisit since it hasn't stayed in my rotation through the decades.

Verdict: Win [8/10]

Vígljós - Tome II: Ignis Sacer (2025)

Black metal has long since escaped from or expanded upon the thematic confines of Satanism and nihilism to embrace so lyrical ideas you might not expect, stemming from the mass migration towards nature themes which was present almost from its beginnings. Whether it's fictional, historical, personal or naturalist, there's an enormous range of topics out there from Tolkien to mining, sewage systems to the biographies of European dignitaries. So it's fascinating if not surprising that we've got a band revolved around classic apiculture (beekeeping), complete with some of the most unique stage costumes we've seen in awhile; not just more black masks over leather jackets, or religious vestments, this is more on the level of distinction achieved by a Grima or Portal.

Musically, they are a little more orthodox, raw and seething black metal slathered in higher pitched screaming that mirrors the more suicidal DSBM of years past, circa Silencer or Burzum but I'd have to argue that these are even more unhinged and wilder whenever they're not focused into a more traditional snarl. The riffing is rustic and airy. Sometimes a little more dissonant and frenzied like the buzzing of a plethora of their favorite flying insects, but usually it has a more spacious, countryside/mountainside appeal which the vocals then spew all over. The drumming is tinny and laid back for the most part, but that actually suits the compositions quite well, because the guitars do most of the hive-lifting. Often they will bust out into their own version of some old black metal groove ("Delusions of Grandeur") and I really like these riffs, they put their own atmospheric spin on things and I think it's that theme of these Medieval beekeepers and what world they should be surrounded in during their travails that informs the choices.

So we've got appeal here to anyone enjoying the modern masked Euro black metal bands from Gaerea to Mgla to Batuskha, depressive atmospheric BM like Austere from Australia, which used to give me a similar feel on their older material. The use of Mellotron here creates a little bit of dungeon synth theme on intros or threaded against the harsher black metal progressions, so I could also recommend this to anyone who likes it when bands blend all that together (Elffor), or the pastoral stuff (Grift, Saiva), the Medieval black metal that is so prominent out of France (Aorhlac, etc). It's a good listen, harsh enough for purists but also spacious and captivating and atmospheric, they don't just survive on their gimmick alone but back it up with music that feels appropriately thematic and cognizant of its genre, melodically detailed and rewarding across numerous listens. The vocals might be a hurdle for some, but again it's a choice that contributes to the transportation they offer to a world where men cultivate honey in thick robes and Medieval masks of wicker and straw.

Verdict: Win [8.25/10]

https://vigljos.bandcamp.com/

Les Bâtards du Roi - Les chemins de l'exil (2025)

This is another of the newer masked European black metal bands, only they use what look like some sort of templar-meets-executioner attire with dirty sacks covering their faces. From the looks of the sophomore album's cover, I expected this to be really raw, Medieval and rustic in execution, but in reality it's much more accessible, with a cleaner mix of the instruments and an extremely good sense of melody. I listened back to their s/t debut album from the previous year, and these building blocks were already present, but Les chemins de l'exil strikes a much better balance between the drums, vocals and guitars, where it had seemed a little off prior. Should this description seem too tidy for a band with the moniker of Les Bâtards du Roi, fear not, because they keep things savage enough with the vocals and some of the more stormy riffs as you'll find in "Chevalier au corbeau", etc.

That said, they really thrive on the classic sense of melody that is not uncommon in this scene. Bands like Griffon, Aorhlac and Véhémence thrive with this aesthetic, but while Les chemins d'exil isn't quite as ear-bleedingly graceful and catchy as that last comparison, it's got an almost anthemic quality that will attach itself to you. There is also plenty of variety, with some excellent acoustics here, usually used for intros but so good that I almost didn't want them to end in some places. In addition to the traditional black metal snarl, there are some cleaner vocals, often used over the aforementioned acoustics, but also as these melodic choirs that will erupt against a surging rhythm. The drums have a great, full feel to them which lends passion and propulsion to the faster parts, but also a lot of meat to the slower, airier sections where you'll be able to pick up on a lot more of the fills. I also enjoyed the rhythm guitar tone, it's got a springy and natural feel to the distortion which puts some punch into every melody, but also works well with such a clean studio mix.

I've said countless times that the French scene is severely underrated, with dozens of bands performing at a high level of proficiency and composition. Yes, some of the more famous, dissonant outliers like Blut Aus Nord have been enormous, deservedly so, but I find a lot of these second or third tier acts' efforts to explore history and nature through the black metal medium to be highly appealing. If you like any of the acts I named earlier, or Belenos, or the last couple Seth records, get your credit card ready because I think you're also going to be impressed with what's on this disc.

Verdict: Win [8/10]

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61564480907615

Galibot - Euch’Mau Noir bis (2026)

Surprisingly, Galibot is not my first encounter with mining-themed black metal, as the Germans in Dauþuz have been exploring the niche for years, albeit from a more Medieval and folkloric perspective. This younger French act has a slightly more modern vibe about them, with a lyrical focus bent more on 20th century industrial era mining, which was prominent in Northern France until well into the 60s. I admit that's a fascinating subject to deal with, and as much as I love the wintry, naturalistic, Viking and Satanic schools of black metal, the older me is definitely paying attention to wherever else this beloved music might journey conceptually. The question is, how does Euch'Mau Noir bis translate this theme into its music, and does it succeed?

This is a remaster/remix of an album a couple years old with another track tacked on so it's still pretty early on in the band's development, which formed around three years prior. It's about as straightforward as melodic black metal can get, and apart from a few sound effects, the machine-like efficiency of the drums and overall performances, and the desperation that this niche create through its surging rhythms, rasped vocals and melodies wrought with sadness...I didn't connect the music much in my imagination with the subject. It's there in the din of the cover photography and lyrics...perhaps in the narrative interlude track, but the sense of melody and urgency created through the battering percussion and ceaseless atmosphere of the riffing has an extremely orthodox black metal feel. There are some female vocals, some slight flourishes of other eccentricities or atmospherics, I think the band I was most reminded of here was Switzerland's Borgne, who have a comparable, mechanical feel to the black metal process, although theirs is more tinted by the industrial music fundamentals.

The drums here definitely feel like a relentless machinery, whether it's the intense fills or the precision blasts and kicks, but often they feel a little too flawlessly monotonous and over the top, where some more dynamic balance would have served the album as a whole. The rhythm guitars are vicious and powerful, but I always got the impression they were only about two-thirds of the way into memorable hooks when they rinse and/or repeat. Vocals are well mixed and full-bodied for the genre, trad rasping but with a slightly suicidal edge to them, but they often follow the course of the riffing without leaving much of an impression. Galibot has a powerful, competent sound to it, but it needs a few more peaks and valleys to chisel out the experience into something more soul-crushingly effective, and perhaps some more ambience, samples and other instrumentation to deliver the rich theming.

Verdict: Indifference [6.75/10]

https://galibot.bandcamp.com/album/euchmau-noir-bis-les-nords

Archvile King - Aux heures désespérées (2026)

Archvile King's debut saw the immediate rise of a new force in French black metal, perhaps lacking in the dissonant nuance of that scenes most popular artists like Blut Aus Nord of The Great Old Ones, but just a riff driven, scathing record with a bit of a black/thrash influence. When you gaze upon its successor, Aux heures désespérées, you immediately get the impression that they've gone rank and file with the other French bands performing in the Medieval theme, and where that was also true of the debut to an extent, it's even more here. In fact, this album does drop a little of that thrashier nastiness for something more atmospheric and antiquated sounding, but make no mistake, the sole guy responsible here, 'Baurus', is still writing excellent black metal, and the fact that he is performing ALL the instruments makes it even more impressive.

The lush synth/orchestration that he weaves through the album is excellent, usually for intros so that the bodies of the songs have a more traditional BM structure, but they're all great at giving a little bit of a tasty dungeon synth element to the proceedings. As for the heavier stuff, it's majestic and surging, not as overly melodic as other bands in this niche, but enough that the riffs will seer themselves into your memory and leave you with that fulfillment that a very balanced black metal attack can give. Certainly, there are some riffing and blasting passages throughout that are purely savage and feel like they came out of the din of the early to mid-90s, but even these are contrasted off against more graceful, slower rhythms to great effect. Baurus' vocals are nothing unusual for the genre, some rasps with an added layer of guttural, but always a blend of glorious and creepy. The instruments are all mixed really well, with audible bass lines that enforce the majesty and morose intensity constructed by the melodies. The beats are mixed very well, they largely just do their job but the guitars and atmosphere are strong enough that no more is necessary.

Yes, a lot of this is old hat, you won't find a bag of new tricks in Archvile King's composition, although the precise way it all forms together doesn't always emulate any other bands in particular. This is totally for fans of the 90s black metal, were it was going from the necro creep of earliest second incarnations to the more expansive, semi-symphonic rush of records like In the Nightside Eclipse, Nemesis Divina and Stormblast. If you also like some of this bands' countrymen, Aorlhac or Seth or Darkenhöld then this is one of easiest recommendations I can make you, because Baurus has that same sense of proficiency in both performance across all his instruments, production, and knowledge of genre to create a 47 minute escape into the past, without any breaks of disappointment in the consistency. An awesome talent with a high level of potential, and already two very underrated records (and a good split) under his belt.

Verdict: Win [8.7/10]

https://archvileking.bandcamp.com/

Skyforger - Teikas (2025)

The last Skyforger record I covered was Kurbads back in 2010, and while that was a pretty damn good one, there were points where I felt the band was in danger of lapsing into some of the sillier folk metal tropes that a couple other bands have ridden to fame upon. That said, they definitely reversed course with the excellent Senprūsija in 2015, an absolute riff-fest which deftly combined the Latvians' black metal roots with some more accessible thrash and heavy metal moments what proved the most I'd enjoyed them since their late 1998-2000 era. I am telling you that because Teikas is an even better record than that one, possesses all the chops needed for greater recognition, an awesome cover, flawless production and a level of consistency you don't hear quite so often these days.

To a newcomer, I'd describe this as a Slavic alternative to Amon Amarth, with the same pagan and historical focus on lyrical matter, and about the same career length, only vested more in a black metal foundation rather than the death metal, and in the case of Teikas, better than nearly anything those Swedes have released in nearly two decades. However, the embedded sense of melodicism and extremity, the high productions standards, tight as fuck musicianship will no doubt appeal to fans of that more 'big budget' style of melodic death or black metal. Peter's vocals are incredible on this one, raving and barking in his native tongue with just the right level of effects to sound distinct from pretty much any other black metal band I can think of (maybe a Latvian Martin Walkyier?). Each lyrical line has so much impact that they actually compete in catchiness with the unending onslaught of memorable, melodic riffs that are hammered out across tunes like "Spēlmanis", "Zilaiskalns", and "Mājas kungs". There is a ton of versatility, from slower, churning rhythms, to the dissonance you expect of black metal, to the aforementioned storm of melodic tremolo picking.

Teivas sounds huge, but with every instrument audible, an appreciable level of crunch on the slower rhythm guitars, nice acoustics and ambiance on some segments which never wear out their welcome. It doesn't fully abandon the folkish, simpler stuff they were exploring a few albums before, but it's just so much more serious and refined and hard-hitting. Even the little folk instrumental with the harp and pipes is just catchy as all get out. It's honestly hard to imagine anyone into modern, dynamic black, death or thrash metal that doesn't mind the lyrics in another language not latching onto this material immediately, because it's immediate, bombastic and fulfilling, whether they're thrashing along with some clubbed pace or exploring a darker corner of their songwriting. Perhaps it's not as novel to hear this in 2025 as it was to hear Kauja pie saules in 1998, but this might actually be their most 'fun' album to date, accessible without sacrificing aggression, memorable through and through.

Verdict: Epic Win [9/10]

https://skyforger.lv/lv/

Deströyer 666 - Bitter Scorn EP (2023)

Bitter Scorn is little more than a bite-sized after mint to the phenomenal Never Surrender record, Deströyer 666 riding high on another success, and I have to admit it delivers. Partly on the strength of the cover song; K.K. Warslut and friends do not mess around when they decide to include something like this, and whilst Dio's "I Speed at Night" is a much different pick than something like "Prometheus" from the Terror Abraxas EP, it's another awesome execution which fully translates the driving, simplistic heavy metal number into their more volatile, armored and aggressive style, which feels flush with the increased elements of speed and thrash metal that have dominated their last two albums, but have always been in the DNA to some degree.

The new original, the title track, is also pretty good, with a great chorus and a vocal break that reminds me of something Venom would have done in their heyday. Like a lot of their recent material, it's largely built upon a speed/heavy metal structure but then injected with some of the blackened thrash elements, and yet they just don't sound a lot like the myriad of other bands doing their style. Perhaps because they've built up such a unique foundation from which to approach it, or the way they produce the guitars, Deströyer 666 has been fairly original for some time. Now, this is a 7", it's limited, collectible, and there are those restraints, most people will have to check out the Dio cover (at least) online, but it's worth hearing, and "Bitter Scorn" itself I think is available on one of the deluxe editions of Never Surrender, where it's probably a better fit. So as an individual PRODUCT, this has limited appeal beyond collectors, but the tunes will please those into the last decade of Deströyer 666.

Verdict: Indifference [6/10]

https://www.destroyer666.uk/