nordicwinter-sorrow

Review from The Headbanging Moose

Thu, 09 Sep 2021 18:51:06 +0100

From: The Headbanging Moose

Published: September 6, 2021

After a lengthy hiatus, Quebec, Canada-based Atmospheric Depressive Black Metal one-man horde Nordicwinter came back in a big way in 2020, releasing two new full-length albums (Requiem and Desolation) and showing no sign of slowing down as the project hits us once again with a new full-length album, entitled Sorrow, released amidst the dead of winter. Produced and engineered by the Nordicwinter’s mastermind Evillair (aka Yves Allaire, who’s also responsible for all vocals, all instruments, drum programming, production, engineering, songwriting and lyrics), recorded, mixed an mastered at Dirgevows Studios, and featuring a somber cover image by Melissa Parker, Sorrow examines the darker side of the human condition through somber and melancholic music sticking at a mostly mid-tempo pace, being therefore highly recommended for fans of the music by bands the likes of Xasthur, Austere, NONE and Nocturnal Depression.

And Evillair begins his atmospheric and melancholic journey with Somber Winds of Despair (Part I), showcasing enfolding guitars and a dark vibe, exploding into top-of-the-line Atmospheric Black Metal with the anguished roars by our one-man army penetrating deep inside your soul; whereas beauty and melancholy flow from Evillair’s words (“I see your cold corpse / Laying upon the crimson leaves / I hear the lost song / Whispered by the dismal breeze”) in Sullen Echoes, while the music offers our ears a sinister fusion of Blackened Doom and Atmospheric Black Metal. Then more of his Stygian sounds invade our ears in In This Darkness…, where his incendiary, classic Black Metal riffs will burn your skin mercilessly in paradox with the song’s bitterly cold background, not to mention his gnarls get more and more demonic as the music progresses.

This Mournful Dirge brings to our ears another round of his dark poetry (“In dismal veils of snow / I fade into this tomb / As fading memories / Whisper eternal gloom”) amidst a somber atmosphere in a great display of Depressive Black Metal, followed by Dying Winters, where a beyond embracing start will drag you into the cold lands ruled by Nordicwinter and with Evillair doing a great job with both his growls and riffs, all spiced up by the programmed drums (which sound truly organic, by the way). And what kicked off such intense album is completed with Somber Winds of Despair (Part II), again showcasing sharp but at the same time delicate guitars, venomous, introspective vocals, and a sense of hopelessness permeating the air until the very last second. In other words, a simply stunning creation by Evillair and his Nordicwinter, ending in a more than hypnotizing way and flowing into Enshrined by Solitude, a funereal, depressive outro that will darken your thoughts as the storm gets closer and closer.

You can easily join Evillair and his Nordicwinter by streaming Sorrow in its entirety on YouTube and on Spotify, savoring every second of its over 50 minutes of solitude and introspectiveness, but don’t forget to also follow the project on Facebook and on Instagram for news and other nice-to-know details about this lone wolf of the Great White North, and above all that, to purchase a copy of the album from the project’s own BandCamp page, from the Hypnotic Dirge Records’ BandCamp page or webstore (as a regular CD or as a very special bundle), from Apple Music or from Amazon. In a nutshell, Evillair more than succeeded in providing us his view of the darker side of the human condition through his music, leaving us eager for more of his stunning Black Metal in a not-so-distant future.

Rating: 3.5/5

Reviewed by: Gustavo Scuderi

Review from Metal Temple

Fri, 07 May 2021 22:22:36 +0100

From: Metal Temple

Published: May 6, 2021

Original Link

NORDICWINTER is a depressive/atmospheric black metal band from Canada. They formed in 2006; their latest album "Sorrow" is their fourth full length album. Actually, I shouldn't use "their" because it is a one man project from Evillair. I'm going to start with the most important part: I enjoy the hell out of this album. It ticks off all the boxes for what I look for among the best of atmo and depressive music. I also love doom and this album definitely has that slow, down trodden feel of the most sorrowful of doom.

When it comes to anything that is both atmo and blackened, I am more concerned with overall feel and scope than actual riffs and conventional song structure. "Sorrow" nails this down as well; it is an emotional album of huge depth. The guitars on "Sorrow" are definitely not flashy or built upon showmanship. It is there to be a part of the bigger picture and provide a huge blanket of heaviness. It certainly excels at those desirable elements.

The vocals find that sweet spot between having lots of force and being one with the instruments. In this style, many bands have the vocals too up front or far away in the production mix—-this album nails it right on the dime with vocal placement. The drums are programmed and that is okay because it isn't a drum focused album—-which is good because with atmospheric music I dont need a barrage of drums. With that being said, the performance is well done and serves purpose.

The opening track, "Somber Winds of Despair (Part I)” starts with keys and clean guitar before a scream pierces the cold wall of sound and the distortion kicks in. This is a musical landscape that is oppressive yet grandiose. The subtleties of the music just swarm together, giving an odd sort of warmth to this otherwise bleak musical journey. The guitars differentiate just enough to help push the song along, the notes grasping the other elements in icy tendrils. The middle part is beautiful depressed with its lush keys, both clean and symphonic.

"In This Darkness" hits harder, an almost violent reaction in the song's opening moments. The drums roll about among the blackened screams and the bass is an earthquake. Just as the chaos reaches its peak around the four minute mark, an organic and flowing melodic passage hits before it comes together once again as blackened fury. The last minute and a half has the guitars hitting hard as they fade out into more clean keys. Stunning.

The second part of "Somber Winds of Despair" is the culmination of the albums overall progression and one of the more melodic tracks. The vocals make the song seem like its expanding outward, growing and thriving as more and more layers are added. From the four minute mark all the way to the end, the song becomes the musical equivalent of an artist painting the richest landscape imaginable. Light, clean keys sprinkle over the sounds of thunder that the guitars grab a hold of the sky and pull it down, all the things inside that formed gray skies just dropping upon the land below in a pretty but moody display of natural power.

NORDICWINTER's "Sorrow" is how something so sad and alone can also represent beauty and the silver lining inside sorrow. Don't sleep on this example of depressive atmo black metal done right.

Rating: 9/10

Reviewed by: Justin "Witty City" Wittenmeier

Review from Veil of Sound

Fri, 07 May 2021 22:20:09 +0100

From: Veil of Sound

Published: May 4, 2021

Original Link

This is an impressively crafted atmospheric black metal album by the Canadian Nordicwinter. It is the third installation of a trilogy that started with Requiemin April last year, was followed by Desolation in June the same year and this, Sorrowin March this year. Honestly, it might not be fair only to focus on the last album in the trilogy as they all are connected.

Through preparing this review, I am fortunate to have become better acquainted the works of the multitalented musician behind this one-person band, Yves Allaire. He releases albums using the pseudonym evillair. He used this pseudonym when he released the 2007 album Threnody under Nordicwinter´s band name. Over the next years he used this pseudonym on albums with different metal styles, black, doom and death metal and under other band names. Now it seems that depressive atmospheric black metal releases are reserved for Nordicwinter. 13 years after the Threnody release, he fittingly began to use the band name Nordicwinter again for the next three releases. At length, he caught the attention of Hypnotic Dirge Records, who re-released and continues to release his music.

The sound on this record finds its roots in early Norwegian black metal, but the artist has developed it into his own characteristic style. The two previous releases in this trilogy are more classic black metal than this last one - these albums the use of blast beats is more prominent, and make a more intense listening. Although the albums have long tracks, same instruments, this last one in the trilogy is a more reflective album clearly based on one catching melody who flows through the album and is expressed in different ways. And this melody will stay with you for some time. Had this been a classical work, it would probably be titled “Variations on a theme by …”

The album is framed by two tracks, ”Somber Winds of Despair part I and II”. Two very powerful and engaging tracks. The first one starts out with clean guitar and synths, before the listener is lifted into the atmospheric black metal soundscapes. The heavily saturated guitars together with the rhythm section, the synths and the desperate, screaming vocals lead us to the melody that will follow us through the album’s major themes – regret, remorse, and longing. It is as if the music was inspired by consolation after an anxiety attack, reflecting on the darkness inside you - reflecting on what keeps you sane.

The two parts share a similar structure, in which the first section of each track evokes strong, heavy winds blowing through the despair of the music until it quiets down into a section where only a sole piano is playing in a mellow, thoughtful way, followed by the third section of the track, in which the guitars are reunited with the synths and the screams. In Part I the guitars drive the melody in full force, while in Part II a solo guitar plays the haunting theme of the album, soaring over the dense atmospheric black metal.

The tracks in between these two main parts varies in the use of the instrument the artist has at his disposal. Using both acoustic and electric guitars, filling with the piano and synths, in different modes and the bass and drums in slow and fast rhythm, the music takes us on a musical journey through the theme that opens and closes the album. On track two, ”Sullen echoes”, the sadly strummed acoustic guitar is joined out of nowhere by by synths in low notes, it sounds as if a big orchestra joins in. The track slowly rises up towards the theme of the album and is soon met by the heavy guitars and desperate vocals. This track flows slower for some time, builds up with blasting drums before it ends as quickly as it began. Then, suddenly, follows ”In This Darkness…”. Suddenly because it begins without introduction and is faster than the other tracks. It slows down into a contemplative section using synths in choir mode, piano and acoustic guitar before it picks up speed again and leads us to the mellow piano outro.

The next track, ”The Mournful Dirge” starts with thunder setting the darkness of the track, followed by clean guitar played over the melancholic synths. It might be more contemplative than the others, implying all the despair, loneliness and sorrow this album is built on. It is followed by ”Dying Winters”,which might be the most intense track on the album as the melody here is played with more arpeggio style than the other tracks and accompanied by the blasting drums.

Following ”Somber Winds part II”, ”Enshrined by Solitude” quietly closes the album, much in the same way as the previous albums end in this trilogy. There are no heavy guitars, only acoustic guitar, piano, synths in choir mode accompanied by thunder and lightning to underline the dark loneliness - the solitude that embraces this impressive album.

This album needs to grow on you and when it does, you will discover that there is an almost unfathomable depth in the music. Together the three albums are a real tour de force. The genre this album is classified in is depressive black metal or even depressive suicidal black metal, but this is an album that defies those genres, it is an album to be inspired by, to come back to again and again and become emotionally lifted by.

Reviewed by: Knut

Review from Infernal Masquerade

Thu, 01 Apr 2021 20:37:43 +0100

From: Infernal Masquerade Webzine

Published: March 31, 2021

Original Link

Canada continues to impress us with their constantly growing Black Metal scene, today we have one-man outfit Nordicwinter with “Sorrow”. Being the band’s fourth full-length release, this release unravels nearly one hour of highly melancholic Atmospheric BM, filled with mournful and doomy passages. If you like heavily emotional music that combines both lush atmospheric arrangements and savage onslaughts of harshness, you are in the right place.

The album sets a very hypnotic and tempered mood with the start of “Somber Winds Of Despair (Part I)”. As this song progresses we are treated to wonderful harsh shrieks paired with melancholic guitars and a very restrained tempo. We particularly enjoy the overly dramatic atmospheric keyboards that nicely envelop the slow and painful distorted riffs. Creating a very dense and yet lush atmosphere, tracks like “Sullen Echoes” and “This Mournful Dirge” are very immersive, as we foundouselves getting lost in their magical misery-inducing atmosphere.

There is also plenty of brutality in this release, and one of the best examples is the pummeling “In This Darkness…” and its aggressive BM onslaughts. Being huge fans of Doom Metal releases, we enjoy the sweeping doomy riffs of pieces like “Dying Winters” and “Somber Winds Of Despair (Part II)” as they create a nice contrast to the harsh screams and more traditional BM elements of the band’s music.

After an atmospheric instrumental closer, we find ourselves wanting to play “Sorrow” over and over again, to discover more of its intricacies and hidden details. If you like craft music that is both melancholic and punishing, Nordicwinter is one of those bands that falls right in that category. Be prepared to be fully immersed into the band’s misery inducing vibe with this excellent release.

Rating: 93/100

Review from Brothers in Raw

Tue, 30 Mar 2021 20:27:17 +0100

From: Brothers in Raw

Published: March 29, 2021

Original Link

Het Canadese éénmansproject Nordicwinter is met Sorrow toe aan een vierde volwaardige release. Desondanks trap ik met veel misplaatst drama een open deur in als ik stel dat het project weinig bekendheid geniet. Ik spendeer behoorlijk wat grijze avonden op een jaar grasduinend doorheen al het goede en minder goede dat op Bandcamp te vinden is, maar op Nordicwinter was ik nog niet gebotst. Het duurde tot Hypnotic Dirge Records in 2020 aankondigde dat het de derde release, Desolation, opnieuw zou uitbrengen. Dat gebeurde begin 2021. Nauwelijks enkele maanden na die reissue is de opvolger Sorrow al een feit wat betekent dat dit in totaal al de derde langspeler van Nordicwinter in een jaar tijd is. In april 2020 verscheen immers al Requiem. En dan beweren mensen dat Covid-19 ons enkel kommer en kwel bezorgt!

Nordicwinter valt op zich makkelijk in een hoekje te plaatsen: atmosferisch/depressieve black metal. Wie daarmee denkt dat het om een project van dertien (of meer) in een dozijn gaat, slaat de bal toch enigszins mis. Waar de meeste bands, zeker uit Canada, teren op snelheid en tremeloriffs brengt Nordicwinter eerder een doomy variant. Het tempo gaat hoogstens eens omhoog tot het mid-tempo bereikt, maar echt snel wordt het nooit. De troefkaart van Sorrow is de sfeer. De zeven songs barsten er bijna van. Die sfeer is niet geheel onverwacht melancholisch en weinig vrolijk, maar heeft een ontegensprekelijke warmte in zich alsof het begrip wil uitdragen voor het inherente karakter van rouw en leed aan het mens zijn. De (mooie) gitaarsound is ruw en kil genoeg om deze emoties te vatten als ware het een eerbetoon. Ik denk bij het beluisteren van Sorrow regelmatig eens aan de mooie melodische passages van bijvoorbeeld Swallow The Sun, Katatonia of (oude) Anathema. Ook de ondersteunende toetsen voegen een extra, haast episch element toe. De verschillende lagen verweven zich in en door elkaar heen tot zeer genietbare harmonieën. Nordicwinter propt ook niet duizend-en-één ideeën in songs, maar laat elk idee rijpen tot het volgroeid is. Voor sommige luisteraars zal dat aspect voor een wat “trage” ervaring zorgen. Tant pis. Wie voor Sorrow, en bij uitbreiding ook de eveneens aanbevolen voorganger Desolation, gaat zitten wordt wel degelijk meegesleept op de al bij al vrij toegankelijke black metal en dat is vooral dankzij de melodische, harmonieuze passages. De shriek die Yves Allaire aka Evillaire hanteert kenmerkt zich bovendien door een etherisch gehalte dat perfect bij zijn melancholische songs past.

Nordicwinter kleurt voldoende buiten de doorgaans strikt gehanteerde lijntjes om eigenheid te hebben en gedurende de volle 53 minuten dat Sorrow duurt te blijven boeien. Wie na het beluisteren van deze vierde plaat nog trek heeft, kan niet enkel terecht bij de drie vorige albums van zijn belangrijkste muzikale bezigheid. Yves Allaire heeft met Sinistral Doom nog een - jawel - doom metal project lopen en leeft zich verder ook uit in dark ambient middels Umbrarum Tenebrea. Woord op het net leert ons dat Yves nog een paar verrassingen in petto heeft in 2021 als het Nordicwinter aangaat. Een mens wordt zowaar vrolijk van zoveel luisterwaardige tristesse!

Reviewed by: Kurth de Clercq

Review from Edmund Sackbauer

Tue, 30 Mar 2021 20:24:01 +0100

From: Metal-Archives Review

Published: March 29, 2021

Original Link

Nordicwinter is another great project from the Québec area. However, if you came into this expecting the trademark sound from this region you might end up being surprised. While a lot of the more well known bands from over there rely on fast tremolo runs and catchy lead melodies Nordicwinter is a different beast. Mournful harmonies and epic soundscapes are paired with deep emotions and a certain level of melancholy. To a certain degree Nordicwinter could be classified as DSBM, but there is also a more positive vibe presented by the beautiful instrumentation. “Sorrow” is just captivating piece of music and probably the best material Evillair has created so far.

An acoustic intro starts the journey, seamlessly leading to the first of many crawling grooves with heavy-hearted harmonies hovering over the stoic main chords and the subtle rhythm section. Piano sequences and symphonic elements make sure that the atmosphere is immense over the whole playing time. The music convinces with impeccable songwriting and masterful balance of melody and subtle aggression. The tempo is kept pretty slow most of the time, but can surge up at a whim in a few moments, with stellar harmonies and torturous screams providing assistance. There are acoustic and ambient passages sprinkled over the whole album, highlighting the strongly melancholic nature of it.

Psychedelic and atmospheric avenues are frequently explored, and each track and interlude is constructed with thought, imagination, and skill. The whole album is embedded in a hypnotic aura, making it easy to lose yourself within the music without noticing, and lose track of time, while listening to it. This album is for fans of immersive music who are seeking more than just a bunch of single tracks bundled together. Some of the key sequences are so powerful that you will find yourself humming the melodies even when not listening to the album. Evillair has risen above the sea of mediocrity and produced another unique gem for the conscious music listeners out there seeking music that is authentically sinister.

Evillair is a masterful creator of songs and memorable moments, and “Sorrow” brutalizes and mystifies with a compelling tale of darkness and despair, but with some glimmers of hope as well. He paints vivid pictures with materials consisting of elements from old and new black metal, with strong melodic, atmospheric as well as the mentioned DSBM influences apparent in the end result too. A lot of emphasis has been put on creating a deep and somehow creepy atmosphere, with most of the guitar playing sending waves of loneliness and despair. The production is once again perfectly fitting, raw and pure but somehow diversified at the same time. Maybe this time of the year is not 100 % fitting as the days have become longer, the temperature has started to rise and the sun is dominating more often, but I urge you to not sleep on this album and make sure to get a copy while available. Darker and colder days will again be upon us soon enough, and then you will be happy to have the perfect soundtrack.

Reviewed by: Edmund Sackbauer

Review from Angry Metal Guy

Tue, 30 Mar 2021 20:18:46 +0100

From: Angry Metal Guy

Published: March 29, 2021

Original Link

The erudite doctor known about these parts as Doom_et_Al recently wrote: “We can ramble on all day about clever technical flourishes, dissonant chords, and foreboding atmospheres, but when all is said and done, we metalheads respect the almighty riff.” Frankly, it’s pretty hard to argue with him but it does present a problem for those of us – including Dr Doom and myself – who are atmoblack fans, since this subgenre is not noted for being stacked with riffs. Typically, as the name suggests, it’s all about conjuring the atmosphere, often at the expense of those delicious riffs we all rate so highly. Those that do atmoblack well, manage to add something beyond a few flourishes to the atmosphere. Whether it’s a rawer edge, elements of melodicism or weavings of post-metal, it matters not, what matters is that it’s incredibly hard to build a compelling album on atmosphere alone. What does the Quebec one-man outfit Nordicwinter bring to the party on Sorrow, its fourth full-length and third since the beginning of 2020?

I don’t know how much the brand Ronseal means to people outside the UK but here, it immediately conjures an advertising slogan: “Does exactly what it says on the tin.” Sometimes, you come across bands that embody this. Nordicwinter is Ronseal. Despite being from Canada, it would appear that its very raison d’être is to deliver in audible form the desolate, lonely wastes of a single Scandinavian season – I’m not going to say it, you know, the one … traditionally between Autumn and Spring. Sorrow takes this to extremes, however, and as its haunted and hopeless depths pummel away, one has to ask whether, coming hot on the heels of 2020’s two albums, Requiem and Desolation (released after a 13-year hiatus, since 2007 debut, Threnody), even more misery is what is needed. Well, Nordicwinter is in no doubt as to the answer to that question, and indeed doubles down on it, introducing a far stronger depressive black metal element into the atmoblack sound that is Sorrow‘s backbone. This is most notable in the shrieked and howled vocals but the overall tone of Sorrow is, well … it does exactly what it says on the cover.

Sorrow‘s moods vary only subtly, shifting between melancholic, morose, mournful and miserable. These somber shades are sometimes brought to life in the stripped back form of acoustic strings and keys (sections of “Sullen Echoes” and “Somber Winds of Despair (Part II)”), at others through mid-paced atmoblack chord work (the ever-so-appropriately-titled “This Mournful Dirge”) and even, on occasion, upping the tempo to a thundering canter (“In this Darkness”), before the album closes with a Sorrowfully dull, DR12 acoustic outro (“Enshrined by Solitude”).1 Overall, Nordicwinter has devised the sonic equivalent of Unreqvited slowly smothering what little joy is to be found in Sunken and Swallow the Sun. The sound is everything that that image implies – heavily distorted guitars combine with synths and those tortured vocals to create a swirling pastiche of despair and depression, behind which drums move between murky blasts (“Sullen Echoes”) and altogether more straightforward doom-like rhythms.

There are two issues with Nordicwinter‘s latest offering, however. First, it’s too one dimensional. There is nothing wrong with an album conveying nothing but desolation – entire sub-genres of metal comprise little else – but you need to find a way to do that, without sounding too one-note, something that Nordicwinter does not quite manage on Sorrow (but did on last year’s Requiem). The exceptions to this are “Dying Winters” and “In this Darkness,” which keep up the misery quotient, while introducing a little more variation into their tortured tones. The second problem for Sorrow is the production and the drums in particular, which are so muddy and so far back in the mix that it’s often hard to discern more than a general pummeling sensation (the back third of “This Mournful Dirge” is a particular offender). This lack of definition in the rhythm section only becomes more draining as Sorrow‘s 53 minutes progress..

A mixed picture then for Sorrow. On the one hand, Nordicwinter accomplishes exactly what you would expect and, likely, want from a record like Sorrow. On the other, it does so in fairly pedestrian fashion, with little standing out from the rolling ocean of dejection and regret. Not much is needed, however, to move Sorrow from a slightly disappointing affair to an altogether more interesting but still unrelentingly bleak one. Just look back to Requiem.

Rating: 2.5/5

Reviewed by: Carcharodon

Review from Hellfire Magazin

Tue, 30 Mar 2021 20:11:37 +0100

From: Hellfire Magazin

Published: March 24, 2021

Original Link

2006 startet „Evillair“ sein Soloprojekt „Nordicwinter“. Das zu rezensierende aktuelle Werk hat drei Full Length Vorgänger. „Threnody“ (2007), „Requiem“ und „Desolation“ (2020). Zwei Longplayer in nur einem Jahr, Chapeau, und noch dazu in einem durch Corona verseuchten Jahr.

Und gleich schon zum Frühlingsanfang ein Masterpiece, was ich absolut nach dem ersten Hör-Durchlauf für mich behaupten kann. Sieben Tracks, die allesamt eine Länge zwischen sieben und zehn Minuten aufbieten, reißen mich in völlige Dunkelheit und zaubern eine magische Atmosphäre, die voll in mein schwarzes Herz trifft. Die eingängigen Vocals sind „drugs for my ears“.

Der Bandname, der sich mit den kahlen Ästen des Cover-Artwork verbindet, bildet ein Portal und gibt somit den Weg frei, der dann in eine schwarze Klangreise durch raue kanadische Wälder führt.

Für mich ist das Album unbeschreiblich, es frisst sich einfach nur in meine schwarze Seele.

Rating: 10/10

Reviewed by: Plattencheck

Review from Wonderbox Metal

Thu, 25 Mar 2021 23:26:46 +0100

From: Wonderbox Metal

Published: March 25, 2021

Original Link

This is the fourth album from Canadian one-man black metal act Nordicwinter.

After enjoying 2020’s Desolation, I was pleased to see another work from this artist so quickly. Sorrow contains 53 minutes of atmospheric/depressive black metal.

No secret – I’m a big fan of this sort of style, especially when it’s done as well as it is here. The well-written music on Sorrow just oozes depth and quality, and the artist behind this band has produced something rewarding here. The new material is longer than it was on the previous album, and the time is well-used to craft expansive, immersive pieces of blackened art.

The music focuses on atmosphere and depth over traditional song structures and catchiness, and in this it excels. I find Nordicwinter’s music effortlessly absorbing and instantly captivating, but it’s over time as you really start to get to know the music that Sorrow‘s quality is truly revealed.

The style is slow and deliberate, never really rising above mid-paced. This allows the songs to develop desolate mood and dark atmosphere incredibly well. Keyboards contribute a great deal to this too, adding an extra layer of texture to the songs that is highly effective. The blackened melodies are compelling, yet subtle, shaping the listener’s awareness and experience without ostentation or showboating. The music is drenched in doom influences too, making for a truly downbeat, compelling journey through the running time.

The vocals are perfectly executed high-pitched screams that seem to both merge with the music and strike out from it. They seems to crackle and play over the surface of the songs like lightning over storm clouds.

Sorrow is an exceptional release for fans of doomy, desolate, atmospheric black metal to get their teeth into. It confirms what I thought about Desolation; here’s an artist to pay very close attention to.

Essential listening for connoisseurs of the style.