It is time, once again, to wax lyrical about how creative the underground metal scene is. This year has seen a surge in artists presenting their full vision for the first time, perhaps an effect of being shut indoors for much of the last 18 months and having the means and time available in which to hone their craft and realise their ideas. Only Death Is Real is celebrating that drive and determination with notes on raw black metal, bleak doom and synthesised sounds for this twelfth edition of the column.
Crucifixion Bell - Eternal Grip of the Nocturnal Empire (Self-Released/Crown and Throne Ltd.)
Crucifixion Bell is the work of the one known as The Astral Serpent, an entity who cloaks themselves in darkness and mystery and lets their music speak for them. Eternal Grip of the Nocturnal Empire is their fourth release in six months and since the opening clarion call of December 2020’s demo of The Sorcerer of Nazareth, Crucifixion Bell has been honing their craft of creating black metal that is underpinned by the aesthetics of the raw underground. Stark and highly contrasted black and white images of the artist are surrounded by intricate borders on that first demo while the songs move between furious screams and synthesised structures that bring an added layer of atmosphere. This full-length debut continues those themes in a more elevated state as the album aims for the throat right from the start.
“Awakening Spell of the Nameless” offers curious feedback that is wrapped in static electricity as eerie choral movements cloak the incantations that roil below in terror. “Eternal Grip of the Nocturnal Empire I: Scent of the Blood Altar” pulls its heady core from this introduction before barrelling ahead on suffering screams and overwhelming layers of guitar and noise. It’s difficult to make out exactly what is going on but once you find that groove in the bass and the melody in the shrieks, you are pulled into the darkness.
“Eternal Grip of the Nocturnal Empire II: Prehistoric Nightmare” is a similarly dynamic piece that runs at a full and breathless speed -- vocals are cleverly hidden in the mix, just enough to draw your attention to the cadence yet holding something back in order to push for the mystery that The Astral Serpent has created for themselves. That darkness seeps into the off-kilter vibrations of “Eclipsed Moon of the Eternal Feast” and alter on, "Fields of Everlasting Night" as they draw from noise/power electronics to lay the foundations for a truly macabre ritual.
Eternal Grip of the Nocturnal Empire is a powerful journey into understanding the darkest energies that surround us, drain us and move us. Crucifixion Bell is the narrator of this voyage to the underworld and as “Algol in Flames” pulses in the dying light of the record, it becomes clear that The Astral Serpent means every single tortured scream and word.
FFO: Lamp Of Murmuur, Ebony Pendant, dai-ichi
Nameless Mist - Nameless Mist (Self-Released/Fólkvangr Records)
Artists have been using H.P. Lovecraft as inspiration for years upon years with many bands (particularly in the realm of black metal) taking from his universe in order to make sense of our own or by using his stories as a basis for highly conceptual records. The links to Lovecraft in Nameless Mist’s music is clear in the name they have chosen plus the lyrical themes that centre around a transformation as a “journey through death to reach a greater form among the old gods beyond the veil of this universe.” Nameless Mist is a one-person project led by Lauren “Robin” Straily who has been recording and releasing music centred around experimental and ambient drone for a good while. This, though, seems to be their first foray into the world of black metal and it is majestic.
It is cold and it is dark and the depressive tag seems fitting considering its swirling despair that is fed through Lauren’s vocals that evoke a true sense of unease and discomfort. Screams are heightened with pure emotion as a force to drive the album through the darkness that the narrator is enduring while guitars push through repetitive sections to engage in a heady sense of hypnotic rhythm. The beautifully present bass lines add structure to the songs and ground them to a world we know as the fantastical elements churn in opposing direction. It’s dramatic and intriguing from the outset as “Despair Calling” ushers in the album on cycling riffs that build towards a zenith before crashing around tense howls and bittersweet melodies as the song progresses.
Second wave black metal worship is present in the ice of the riffs and the overall atmosphere it produces with guitars that follow similar patterns throughout the songs to induce that trance-like state that is sought in order to reach higher levels of consciousness and thought. Nameless Mist use this technique well, especially during “Embryonic,” which brings a tingling sensation of being mesmerised, your mind latching on to those circular riffs to stay attached to the world as the vocals veer on the edge of sanity in their search for the truth. The bombastic stomp of “Ritual of Disembowelment” is rendered in bass tones that are pushed forward and create a series of entrancing motions through Lauren’s use of rhythm. Their vocals here are entwined with the subtle melodies of the song, giving rise to curious harmonies and moments of unexpected beauty channelled through pain.
Nameless Mist is a tale of change and, as it moves through “Unearthed” towards the bittersweet acoustic inflections of “Ritual of Bereavement” and the climax of “The Final Curse,” we can hear that the artist is one who uses their music to explore and experiment. The differing tones from one song to the next are worlds apart from one another, yet Nameless Mist can link them in a way that is cohesive and feels like a true reflection of themselves. “The Final Curse” is a portrait of anguish as Lauren’s vocals rip through the fabric of the song to become an entity of their own, taking on life and all its struggles in a voice that is balancing on the very edge of the abyss, vying for control in a universe that has stripped away any semblance of autonomy. It is a powerful, crushing end to an album that is as much a voyage of discovery as it is one of coming to terms with death.
FFO: The Great Old Ones, Darkthrone, ColdWorld
Natürgeist - Reinvigorated Terror (Self-Released/Electric Assault Records)
Natürgeist’s Reinvigorated Terror is two tracks of utter fury that writhe with disgust, filled with noisy black metal that pushes the boundaries and a cover that is a talking point in itself. Led by Blood Incantation’s Morris Kolontyrsky, Natürgeist is the sound of an artist making a space for themselves in the underground and, on this release alone, has certainly made an impact. The raw, uncompromising black metal on display here is ravaged with an unfiltered view on the genre as Kolontyrsky embodies the spectre of the cover, fully emerging in the darkness, stark naked and showing themselves to be the purest expression of the sounds within. Black metal has long been regarded as a vessel to communicate with the spiritual unknown and with Reinvigorated Terror, Natürgeist is transporting us to a wholly different plane.
“Catatonic Stupor” allows no room for breath as it begins in an all-out rage, the guitars feeding back immediately into pulsating riffs as drums spin from blasts to fills. Sudden shifts in pace are used to disorientating effect as slower passages melt into furious screams and high-pitched squeals from the guitars. It’s all consuming in its structuring of sound -- instruments merge with one another to create off-kilter rhythms while Kolontyrsky’s hoarse cries push the song into agonising places. Curious melodies permeate the latter stages of the song as it builds in intensity before culminating in a rich gong strike and moving on to the unbelievable ferocity of “Purgatorial Transmission of Acts Beyond Reason.” This second track is somehow even more chaotic than the first as synth lines echo behind walls of guitar and a voice that reaches further into madness. Dissonance makes room for all manner of eerie atmospheres which are captivating in their horror and unbalanced tones and when the soaring solo hits and marks a shift in the song in the last two minutes, it comes with a sense of questioning — what will happen next? Natürgeist is an artist that revels in these moments of anxiety and when the song ends on cosmic modulations, the answer becomes even more unclear.
FFO: Black Curse, Lamp Of Murmuur, Black Cilice,
Rise to the Sky - Let Me Drown With You (Self-Released/GS Productions)
Creating atmospheres of gloom and death is, for Rise to the Sky, a necessity for the soul. A way to organise thoughts and feelings, meditate on life and to understand the passing of those that are loved. Let Me Drown With You was released after the passing of sole member Sergio G.’s father, and so hearing the record with this knowledge gives it more colour and meaning. It brings a reality that many of us are yet to experience, but likely will in our own lifetime. Rise to the Sky threads waves of emotion through their dark doom, the funereal aspect being brought to the fore in Sergio’s deep and guttural voice, weighed down with grief in its slow movements through songs that reach for the heart and cut it profoundly. Rise to the Sky uses their music to process these memories and has done since the band’s inception only two years ago, and as the project has progressed so has their ability to clearly realise the vision of its author.
“Dream the Pain Is Gone” echoes with soaring guitar melodies that climb to the heavens in their sorrow, building in glorious layers as the song progresses while Sergio’s voice (never overused) brings a sense of thundering pain in its desperate pleas for one last moment of peace. The first half of the album is subtitled Chapter I: Life, Dreams, and Passion and it seems that it is the initial stages of loss that are represented here, the desire to be with the once lost, to take on their death for your own and to be as one with them as they return to the earth. It’s almost in denial of the situation as though the narrator cannot fathom such a moment and feels the need to offer themselves in supplication to death.
The majesty of “Liebestod” is tempered by its heart wrenching lyrical themes. The song builds itself around graceful, synthesised lines of sound that feed into the instrumental and bittersweet melodies of “Passion” which serves to mark the turning point of the record. It changes into a tone of understanding, albeit still clouded in misery, but there has been a shift into the acceptance of loss and that the cycle of life cannot be tricked -- an exchange of one life for another is only delaying the inevitable. Chapter II: Death, Grief, and Transformation brings with it a recognition that is coloured by knowledge and experience, which is keenly felt through the abyss dredging vocals of Sergio and the lamentations on offer here.
“Turn Us Into Stone” begins this transformation as guitars illuminate the encroaching clouds with glimmers of hope while the orchestral synths of “Leaving This World” adds dramatic tension to a slow, mournful procession that subtly reveals light in its reaching solos. It’s in these brief moments of hope that we hear Rise to the Sky taking a breath, seeing the clouds part and feeling the sun once again, learning that darkness may be all consuming at times but there is a slither of respite on the horizon should you choose to seek it. This journey is one of utter despair and one that can seem never-ending in its darkness yet there is hope to be found if you allow yourself to come to the realisation that death is not the end. The cycle of life is eternal.
FFO: Mournful Congregation, Skepticism, Shape of Despair
