Blood Seed

Wolvserpent is an ambient doom metal project from Boise, Idaho, this is their full length, Blood Seed, from 2010. A relatively new band, they had just changed their name from Pussygutt to head into a more serious direction, a mutually agreed upon great decision. The atmosphere created by these two members is the equivalent to a heavy funeral dirge infused with glorious and epic overtones that creep into thick and twisted doom segments. A very dark and gloomy album with some Gothic influences to be found, between the two songs featured here the mood can swing from mournful, ethereal, mystic, macabre, haunting and even crushing. As far as new finds of this year are concerned, I'm hoping that Wolvserpent decides to stick with this name and continue to produce more charged tunes such as the rituals found here on Blood Seed.


1. Wolv
2. Serpent

Blood Seed

Pakt

This is Detritivore from Norway, Detritivore is not a black metal band but rather a unique drone doom project with some ambient influences to be heard as well. Beyond the opening track this is an entirely instrumental release and a strong one at that, the first time I experienced this album from front to back I was heavily entranced and found myself adrift in a sea of my own subconscious. The term detritivore, also known as detritus feeders, refers to that of worms and other creatures that consume organic matter and aid in decomposition... quite appropriate. This is the album you've been looking for that you can completely zone out to and lose a good chunk of time without realizing it, as the tracks on this record are very successful at dissolving the consciousness.


1. Postludium
2. Lutring
3. Messe
4. Undergang
5. Pakt
6. Finale

Pakt

El-Ahrairah

El-Ahrairah are a three piece black metal band from Minnesota, I present to you their self titled demo from 2009. Lyrically, El-Ahrairah are inspired by native American folklore but revolve even heavier around the book Watership Down by Richard Adams, which is essentially a political allegory wherein rabbits take on an anthropomorphic role that involves a heavy usage of symbolism to communicate ideas of environmentalism and anti-authoritarian ideals. The actual sound on this demo is perfectly low passed and offers that genuinely comfortable tape sounding quality, the songs themselves are structured in a less orthodox fashion than most black metal on this blog. Noisey, yet fully capable of achieving those majestic tones beneath the fuzz and static.The emotive quality captured here is both provocative as it is utterly passionate.


1. Fauna
2. Flora
3. Llands

El-Ahrairah

Passages Nocturnes

Considered as a side project of Voqkrre, whom I've already posted here on the blog and features two members, Drakonhail is only one of the members, Dunkel. For those already familiar with the French vermin that is Voqkrre, you will surely notice the voice in these recordings, yet will be quite pleased with the variations of riffs featured here in these four tracks. Once you've listened to the entire first song and have finally fallen into the appropriate state of mind, my favorite song kicks in, Le Souffle Distant de la Nuit (The Distant Breath of the Night). This is the kind of stuff that has me coming back to French black metal time and time again, it's the attitude and the intentions of the artist. I can empathize with this sort of black metal, it's a shame I can't find his older material... get this.


1. Dans la Forêt aux Accès Ténébreux
2. Le Souffle Distant de la Nuit
3. Lorsque les Chants de la Nuit Émergent dans la Brume
4. Cold Black Metal Hymn

Passages Nocturnes

Beneath Silent Faces

Maintaining the same depressive nature of the previous post this is Elysian Blaze, another one man black metal band, this time from Australia. Beneath Silent Faces is from 2004 and has since been re-released with extra material such as the last track here, Despair. This is truly one of those albums to put you in the darkest mood and to keep you there for a long, long time. In this way, the songs and emotions crafted here on this demo are very successful in their ability to capture a truly macabre environment. Elysian Blaze has some great material beyond this demo, but there is a genuine unique quality to this one that I am really attracted to, a beautiful sadness.


1. Anvil Chorus
2. Prophecy of Misery
3. A Constellation of Souls
4. The Thorned Tongue of Requiem
5. Beneath Silent Faces
6. Dark are My Nights
7. Despair

Beneath Silent Faces

A Sermon in the Name of Death

Since 1995, Xasthur has been producing black metal here in the United States, based in California but as of recently has decided to call it quits. When it comes to Xasthur I feel as if the introduction isn't necessary, so I will spare the obvious, as it stands I have already chosen an unheard of and rare demo from his discography... hence there being no artwork to gaze upon. A Sermon in the Name of Death was a demo from 2004 featuring three beautiful and trance inducing songs in the vein of gloom and death. Each song on here is incredibly catch and can play over in the mind if it sinks in correctly, but if I had to choose a favorite, it wouldn't be hard and I would immediately go with the closer... The Funeral of Being. Most people haven't heard the song The Funeral of Being, just the album, and I've always cherished this little gem... maybe someone out there will enjoy it as much as I have these past six years or so...


1. A Sermon in the Name of Death
2. Soul Abduction Ceremony
3. The Funeral of Being

A Sermon in the Name of Death

Cold Ways

On behalf of the entity known as Malefic Mist, I present to you a split with Apathia, titled Cold Ways. Released in August of 2009, and limited to 333 tape copies. I don't care so much for the second side, but the first side of this split rules, hence where this review is going. A sir Mors Taetra from Italy is the sole individual behind this project, focusing on lyrical themes such as fog, winter, necrophilia, and depression, with a sound to match. The quality of this tape is fucking superb, as it obtains all of those warping and textural but subtle nuances that create the overall magic we have come to love when it comes to atmospheric demos such as this. A melodic but repetitive black metal demo that is as full of despair as it is necrotic anguish... A must.

Malefic Mist
1. Funebre Notte Di Ghiaccio
2. Lupi Nella Nebbia
3. Richiamo Di Nebbia Invernale
4. Inverno Di Zyklon-B
Apathia
5. Lost Memories
6. Daylight
7. Lifeless
8. Sepulcrum
9. Daylight (Live)

Cold Ways