Hulder: Embraced by Darkness Mysts (2019)

Hulder is one-woman black metal band that is the project of former Bleeder vocalist/guitarist The Inquisitor.  The Inquisitor, despite being based out of the metal hotbed of Portland, Oregon, is originally from Belgium and calls on Belgian folklore as an influence for the lyrical subject matter.

This is a very short, two-song EP, Hulder's second release in 2019.  I was a little surprised given the album cover that this release does not have much, if any, folk influences.  There are some short moments, such as acoustic introductions and chiming bells that have some very minor influence, but by and large, this is a straightforward black metal release that seems to draw on influences from second wave Norwegian black metal bands like Mayhem, along with some LLN influence as well.  The riffs here are cold and raw, and are the primary highlight here.

I picked this up as a short introduction to a band I was not familiar with and came out impressed.  I will be checking out more from Hulder.