No, I am not going to try to pronounce any of that. This is the second release by Dutch symphonic black metallers Carach Angren that I have checked out. I quite liked their 2017 release, so I thought it would be worth checking out another one. Unfortunately, this one does not do a lot for me. For one thing, most of the actual black metal elements are gone, replaced with the kind of spooky atmosphere and basic riffs that I am sure the Hot Topic mallcore kiddies eat up alongside their Lorna Shore and Sleep Token albums. I do like the concept of the album and it does definitely have some catchy songs on it, particularly during the clean vocal parts. It works quite well for the upcoming Halloween season, but if you are looking for some good symphonic black metal, best look elsewhere.
Eternal Champion came highly recommended to me by a former law school colleague, who used to have his own metal blog. Based on his recommendation I checked them out and was thoroughly impressed by them. The band is unapologetic in its cheesiness, but feature some absolutely infectious songs, such as the ripping "War at the Edge of the End" and "Worms of the Earth". Much of the release is mid-paced, highly melodic traditional metal in the vein of Manilla Road and featuring lyrics about swords and sorcerors and other high fantasy topics. Like I said, it's cheesy as hell, but it's also a blast to listen to because of that. Don't take it seriously and have a good time.
Toxik Death is a Norwegian blackened thrash metal band on their second album. Norway is not really known for thrash metal, but this band fits in well with their countrymen in Aura Noir and Deathhammer. The music is fast and furious, packing a lot of frenzied riffs, pounding drums and shrieking vocals. The band does an excellent job of crafting this juggernaut of a release that comes in, lays waste to everything around, then doesn't overstay its welcome and leaves. It's like a tornado, crushing everything and then just as quickly as it arrives, it's over. The only real criticism I have is that once the album is over, it doesn't sink in real well. It's a hell of a lot of fun when it's playing, but then it ends and is not as easily remembered.
This is the second album I have checked out by this German band who I recall kind of confused me last time. They dress like a folk metal band and were at one point listed as a folk metal band, but they are decidedly not folk metal. At least not exclusively. I would say some of the melodies come across as folk-inflected, and there are some lead guitar lines that strike a similar chord, but this is by and large more of a melodeath album with some traditional metal influences. Whatever it is, the music is somewhat uplifting and it really sounds like the band is having fun playing it, and despite the lyrics being in German, it's catchy as hell. This is a really fun release.
I am not the biggest post-black metal fan. That is probably obvious given my comments about Deafheaven, Liturgy and the like. But there are bands I like, and Vvilderness is one of them. The music sounds so organic, which makes sense given the subject matter. There's an ebb and flow to the music which makes it easy to just sit back and let it take you away. Vvilderness has some harsher moments in this release that were mostly absent from the last one, but those moments are short-lived and then the heart-aching melodic moments kick in. I have not decided if I prefer this album to the last one or not. At first I did not, but I think Vvilderness has taken a step forward in song-writing on this one, so it has grown on me.
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