Véhémence - Ordalies (2022)

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Nowadays whenever I see anything that looks like this album (crudely illustrated) or is slapped with a "medieval", "epic" or sometimes even an "atmospheric" black metal tag I approach with the same type of caution Nosferatu might have towards a garlic factory. I used to gobble it up, things of this ilk. But now that I'm a decade older and grumpy it just mostly sounds like overproduced wankery with no real resonance—Aural or otherwise.

Véhémence of France completely deflect any suspicions that this album is just another cookie-cutter black metal record parading around as half-baked pseudo-traditional medieval songs infused with the barbarity of black metal. Ordalies for sure leans heavily into that medieval tone, borrowing chants and melodies that seemingly harken back to the crusades, but it's done with such poise that none of it feels contrived or lame, which is where most of the other battalion of metal bands fail when writing this sort of thing.

Right off the rip this record blasts into a barrage of blistering black metal built upon the back of uncompromisingly frigid tremolo riffs which are layered upon a foundation of equally pummelling drums, both galloping, working eagerly in unison as Hyvermor's vocals scratch some primordial itch. His range (along with the group chants) carry with them a powerful weight. A genuinely antiquated atmosphere permeates every track on this album with absolutely clarity and force, which is really where 95% of the other bands fall short for me. One of the reasons I still like and listen to either Myrkgrav, Windir, Bathory or even old Moonsorrow is that they still strike a chord. No wankery, real fucking resonance.

It's completely negligent to talk about this album without mentioning how defiantly catchy it all is. Catchier than syphilis at the greasy truck stop with a strip-club called "Last Dance at Peeler's". When the first stream came out, I replayed it in full a second time once I made my way through the first listen. I never do that. Now of course that's my experience, but if you disagree you're just wrong man, and that's on you.

This is a mandatory album in 2022, don't sleep on it… Go ahead, play it more than the new Deathspell Omega record… I'd understand!

Véhémence - Ordalies (bandcamp)

Lure - Morbid Funeral (2020)

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This was just unearthed on Halloween and I don't think it's too early to call this one of my favourite purely black metal records of the year. Lure consists only of Pierre Perichaud, an accomplished illustrator and tattoo artist within France and evidently knows his way around writing frigid forward-thinking black metal. I know this is technically supposed to be a demo and all, but this is 45-minutes of some of the best black metal you'll hear all year. I want to say the last time I enjoyed a purely black metal release this much was when Akitsa released 'Credo' in 2018… or maybe I'm just being obstuse.

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This is exactly what I'm looking for in black metal today, which might lend itself to the fact that I'm pretty tired with most things passing under the banner of black metal these days. I don't think myself some jaded purist who is stuck in the past of a genre spinning its wheels, it's just that when it comes to something as down-trodden as black metal or death metal I want to hear something straddling the line of paying homage to the intended essence of the genre while simultaneously finding new ground. Lure's 'Morbid Funeral' does exactly that for me with absolute poise. The production is spot on, murky enough to still sound good but it's sure as shit cold, raw and feral sounding. The vocals are another really strong point of what make this record so great, shrill and dismal as they battle through a wall of churning guitar riffs and drum fodder… It feels lame and trite to dig into the details of vocal-work, but really, just listen to the range of emotions being summoned by Pierre here, it sends shivers down your fucking spine.

Only 250 copies of these were pressed and sold out pretty quickly and I'm seriously bummed I missed out on this limited run. If you snagged one, lucky you. If you snagged one and want to trade though, let me know. This album is 'Name your Price' on bandcamp right now, you'd be out of your skull not to shill out a few bucks to support an often thankless gig. Dig in!

Morbid Funeral (bandcamp) 

Heaume Mortal - Solstices (2019)

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Heaume Mortal release a debut record that as from as I have seen has been slapped with the tag of (second wave), and though it delves into this territory the many hands (only 3 pairs total) grab at many genres. Black metal? Sure alright, but there's a whole roundup of sludge abound on here and nuances of doom, death, and maybe even a thin veneer of the darker side of hardcore floating about – Which all makes sense as the guitarist comes from the really great French sludge band Eibon and the singer cut his teeth in the blackened sludge band, Cowards.

There's many ways to cut a watermelon so I'll save the boring details for the refrigerator repair man (not an actual adage) but simply to the point; What we have here on Solstices is a brooding atmosphere swaying to and fro through some really great riffs, really great sounding drums, vocals and all that other stuff that makes noise sound like music.

Heaume Mortal - Solstices (bandcamp)

JC Satàn- Centaur Desire (2018)

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Man, just listen to the song Erika one time. Just once. Through the onset of the fuzz cathedral intro it dips into a psychedelic fetichism lead by a Yellow Submarine THC fuzed pop hook chorus into perfectly recorded drums - You haven't heard toms sound that good since System of A Down released Toxicity - and you're just a fucking want stain if you can't get 6-inches deep into that guitar solo halfway through the song. It has everything. Everything you need and don't need. If you're anything like me, you're just happy to have another thing to overplay. The time has come for each and every one of you to decide, whether you are going to be a part of the problem, or a part of the solution.

Centaur Desire (bandcamp)

Eibon - II (2013)

Throatruiner is a label that has had my attention and respect, for they consistently put out filthy and engaging albums that are normally spread around for free download. Fucking right Matthias!

Eibon's II; sludgy, doom ladened black metal that crawls and festers between two lengthy tracks – The two colossal tracks dip and swell like a raging monsoon, dragging the listener uncomfortably under its blackened waters… Somehow you submerge, 43 minutes later, weakened and dreary, yet breathing and alive.

What a stupid fucking paragraph to describe an album, I'm not deleting it though, I spent at least 13 minutes writing that, occasionally distracted by my incessant tapping on my laptop and scarfing down roasted almonds… Look's like were both going to have to deal with that shit man.

Eibon's II seems to break the trend of free download though, so either pay your dues on the bands bandcamp or visit the scummery of Metalchesh