Wodensthrone - Loss (2009)

For years, the British black metal scene seemed to exist in the shadows of its European neighbors. While countries like France and Germany built influential scenes with a distinct identity, the UK struggled to maintain the same momentum. However, over the last decade, a wave of new and reinvigorated bands has redefined the region’s output. Winterfylleth, Fen, and Altar of Plagues have pushed the envelope, but beneath them, a new class of underground contenders has emerged, including the likes of Askival, Skaldic Curse, and the subject of this text - Wodensthrone.

With their debut album Loss, Wodensthrone make a striking entrance into this growing movement, crafting a sound that is both epic and deeply rooted in themes of nature, mythology, and Anglo-Saxon heritage. Unlike bands that use history as a platform for nationalism, Wodensthrone’s lyrical themes are less about territorial pride and more about a longing for a lost world—one where untouched landscapes stretched endlessly, unmarred by industrialization. This atmosphere permeates every aspect of the album, from its sweeping compositions to the evocative use of synths and acoustics.

The band’s musical approach finds itself at a fascinating crossroads. Loss is as much indebted to the ethereal, nature-infused stylings of Drudkh as it is to the stormy, unrelenting aggression of Wolves in the Throne Room. This duality is immediately apparent in tracks like “Black Moss,” which erupts with frantic double bass and sharp tremolo riffs before melting into haunting, melodic passages. “Upon These Stones” takes this even further, its lush synth work and clean instrumentation elevating the album’s immersive, almost cinematic scope. Then there’s the standout “Heófungtid,” a track that perfectly captures Wodensthrone’s ability to balance raw energy with moments of quiet introspection.

Despite wearing its influences on its sleeve, Loss never feels derivative. Instead, it refines and reshapes familiar black metal elements into something uniquely its own. The production strikes a delicate balance between grit and clarity, allowing the album’s layers to breathe without stripping away its primal edge. While some might draw comparisons to the atmospheric American black metal movement, Wodensthrone ultimately carves out its own space within the broader landscape of the genre.

With Loss, Wodensthrone contribute to the ongoing resurgence of British black metal, proving that the scene is no longer just a regional force but a global contender. It’s an album that not only delivers powerful, immersive compositions but also reaffirms the idea that black metal can be as much about beauty and history as it is about darkness and aggression.

Bullet Ratings - Jan '25 [II]

Anhedonist - Netherwards (2012): In the cave, Cyclops just blocked the entrance. [3.5]

Anvil - Juggernaut of Justice (2011): Old geezer rock that I will never care about whether it’s good or not. [2]

Black Cilice - Transfixion of Spirits (2019): A lot of freaks meditate on this, but not me. [2.5]

Blood Feast - Kill for Pleasure (1987): Not Pleasure to Kill, but still O.G. and the realest. [4]

Cognizant - Cognizant (2016): Snapped necks, pretty crazy overall. [3.5]

Cytotoxin - Gammageddon (2017): Hacksaws the kvlt out of you. [4]

Eyehategod - Dopesick (1996): If you weren’t in a bad mood, well you are now. [3.5]

Rot - A Cold Dead Stare (2002): Legendary grindcore band from Brazil, with a handful of full lengths and infinite splits / mini-albums since starting in 1990. [3.5]

Vacuous - Dreams of Dysphoria (2022): Murky but standard. [3]

While Heavent Wept - Sorrow of the Angels (1998): Thus with a kiss I die, into the well of sorrow, the death of love. [2.5]

Bullet Ratings - Jan '25

Barshasketh - Antinomian Asceticism (New Zealand, World Terror Committee): The album starts very potently but starts losing its direction towards the middle / ending part. Still quite enjoyable, well-written stuff. [3.25 / 5]

Harvst - Mahlstrom (Germany, Onism Productions): I would prefer not to. [2.25 / 5]

Infernal Cross - Blood Red Triumph (Sweden, Self-released): Devilish black / thrash metal with everything at the right place. [3.25 / 5]

Luring - Malevolent Lycanthropic Heresy (Ohio / US, Iron Bonehead Productions): Nice melodies, lo-fi approach and comes off as punchy and as evil as needed. Fine, but I might not come back to it. [3 / 5]

Mooondark - The Abysmal Womb (Sweden, Pulverised Records): Released on demo in the early nineties and then disappeared, this is their debut full length after getting back together two decades later. Like the aesthetics, but sadly nothing special. [2.5 / 5]

Necromaniac - Sciomancy, Malediction & Rites Abominable (England, Invictus Productions): The most literal and accurate definition of “morbid metal” I have ever seen. [4 / 5]

Revolting - Night of the Horrid (Sweden, Xtreem Music): Has been heard thousands and thousands of times, yet another one. [2 / 5]

Rudra - Antithesis (Indonesia, Awakening Records): Legendary Indonesian band, with many releases since 1992 and I haven’t talked about them that much here. A bit of black and a bit of death metal, but totally their own sound, and quite decent. [3.5 / 5]

Skagos - Chariot Sun Blazing (Canada, Self-released): Look who’s back. I have really enjoyed their previous two in the past, and the new one is no exception. Hope for more activity from one of the best Cascadian black metal bands out there. [3.5 / 5].

Uulliata Digir - Uulliata Digir (Poland, Self-released): What did I just listen. Amazing. [3.75 / 5]

Albums of the Year 2024

When is it better to reflect than at the year’s twilight? Days shined brighter this time compared to the last one, but I can’t say the same about the sonic wreckage left behind after 12 months and 365 dawn to dusk sessions of intense and not so intense listening. Admittedly, I did not step too much out of my comfort zones, or at least not forcibly, just to elaborate on more eclectic practices while sprinkling ‘philosophized’ glitter all over my playlists. As a matter of fact:

Top 15 EPs of 2024

15. Castrated - Surgical Vissicitude
14. Father Befouled - Immaculate Pain
13. Emasculator - The Disfigured and the Divide
12. Gravenoire - Devant la porte des étoiles
11. Crucifixion Ritual - Desecration of the Archangels
10. Sortilegia - Sorcerous Communion
9. Killing of a Sacred Deer - Killing of a Sacred Deer
8. Black Funeral - Wallachian Voivode
7. Gorgasm - Sadichist
6. Hate Forest - Justice
5. Gutvoid - Breathing Obelisk
4. Disentomb - Nothing Above
3. Orgy of Carrion - Rusted Gateways
2. Cavern Womb - Stages of Infinity
1. Sedimentum - Derrière les portes d'une arcane transcendante

Grave Heresy - Incineration Victory (2024)

It began as a quiet rebellion, a slow erosion of faith, but soon the whispers gained momentum, reverberating through the lands like the rumble of distant thunder. Mortal flesh weakened, unable to withstand the strain of resisting the unholy power brewing in the depths. The people, driven by desperation and rage, sought answers that transcended the flesh – an escape from the limits of mortality.

Then, as if heralding the final days, came the incineration victory, an unholy triumph that left towns and villages in cinders. It was not the fire itself, but the twisted ritual that accompanied it, a sacrilegious rite, and an act of utter defiance against divinity. Here, the hammer of anti-creation itself was swung, erasing belief and reducing the concept of sanctity to ashes. In the charred remains, the faithful found only emptiness.

But the worst was yet to come. A crimson dawn signaled the onset of conquest, a campaign driven by an insatiable lust for dominion over the remnants of the faithful. Sulphurist hordes were summoned from the nether, legions of beings crafted from the essence of suffering and malice, their arrival a mass death proclamation that echoed across the desolate landscape.

Warhead worship became the new gospel, a twisted reverence for annihilation and destruction. This was no ordinary conflict, but an ageless onslaught, a battle that seemed timeless, relentless. The skies grew dark as great plumes of smoke and the stench of sulfur rose, signs of the summoning of the sulphurist hordes. They poured forth like an unstoppable torrent, sweeping over the land in a wave of malice and destruction, leaving behind a scarred and desolate wasteland.

In the end, there was nothing but silence, a land stripped of life and hope. The so-called "victory" was hollow, an incineration victory that left only ashes and despair, as the prophecy of mass death came full circle. A somber, eternal reminder of the perils of unchecked ambition and heresy.

Incineration Victory

Scarlet Empyrean - Nattlyd (2024)

In a realm where mountains rose into the sky like the bones of forgotten titans, and rivers carved silver veins through an emerald tapestry of wild lands, there existed an ancient kingdom known as Veridyn. It was a land untouched by time, where the trees whispered the stories of creation, and the stars themselves seemed to hum with the deep rhythms of life. In this place of mysticism and spiritual power, the forces of nature ruled as sovereigns, until the Obsidian Monarch rose from the depths of the Scarlet Empyrean.

The Obsidian Monarch was not born of earth or sky, but of something far older—an entity born in the Depths of Uncompacted Light, where time and space wove together in an eternal flux. A being of pure shadow and flame, his ascent was heralded by a sky stained crimson. The birds no longer soared above, and the winds became still, as if the world itself held its breath in anticipation of the coming storm.

War followed in the Monarch’s wake, casting a pall of devastation across Veridyn. His armies, creatures of twisted metal and dark magic, marched with relentless precision. Under the burning sky, they scorched the earth, turning the once-green fields into barren wastelands. The heart of battle raged across the land, and the once serene groves and tranquil rivers were now stained with blood. But within this chaos, a quiet strength grew.

The people of Veridyn had always revered the natural world, and in their darkest hour, they turned to it for guidance. Among them was a young warrior-priestess named Aeliora, who had long studied the sacred art of Serenity Within Devastation. It was a philosophy passed down by the druids, one that taught the balance between destruction and creation, war and peace, life and death. She understood that to fight the Obsidian Monarch was not merely a matter of steel and spells; it was a battle of the soul.

Aeliora journeyed into the heart of Veridyn’s oldest forest, a place where even the trees bore scars from the primordial wars of creation. There, in a hidden glade, she sought the counsel of the Eldertree, an ancient sentinel that had stood since the beginning of time. Its voice, deep and resonant, spoke within her mind, guiding her to an understanding that would turn the tide of battle.

“To soar above the Scarlet Empyrean is to embrace the light and the shadow within,” the Eldertree whispered. “Only through both can you find the strength to confront the Monarch.”

Aeliora spent days in meditation beneath the branches of the Eldertree, seeking the serenity that lay hidden in the heart of devastation. She tapped into the primal forces of nature, the wind, water, and earth flowing through her veins like rivers of power. It was here that she realized the Obsidian Monarch’s fatal flaw—his being was of uncompacted light, the very essence of the universe before form. But he had rejected balance, consuming himself in the shadows. Aeliora would have to channel both creation and destruction to defeat him.

When the time came for the final confrontation, Aeliora stood before the gates of Veridyn, her people behind her, their hearts heavy with the weight of war. The sky above was an ocean of scarlet fire, and from it descended the Obsidian Monarch, a being of twisted majesty, his form wreathed in flames darker than night. The heart of battle thrummed in the air as their eyes met, and in that moment, Aeliora saw the full depth of his despair—an endless hunger for power and immortality.

The battle was swift and fierce. The Monarch wielded dark magic that shattered stone and scorched earth, while Aeliora moved like a leaf on the wind, channeling the elements. For every strike of devastation, she responded with serenity, and for every onslaught of shadow, she unleashed a torrent of light.

In the end, it was not Aeliora’s strength that defeated the Monarch, but her understanding. As their battle raged in the depths of the Scarlet Empyrean, she offered him what he could not comprehend—balance. Aeliora opened her soul to both the light and the darkness, embracing the chaos of war and the peace of nature, creating harmony where there had only been division.

The Obsidian Monarch, faced with this revelation, faltered. His form, once so powerful, began to unravel, the uncompacted light within him dissipating into the ether. He was a being of imbalance, and Aeliora’s serenity shattered him.

As the Monarch dissolved into the air, the scarlet sky above began to fade, the once-devastated lands now bathed in the golden light of a new dawn. The people of Veridyn stood in awe as the winds began to stir again, birds took flight, and the rivers once more flowed clear and strong.

Aeliora stood before the Eldertree, her spirit forever changed. She had not only won the war but had become one with the forces of nature itself—a living embodiment of Serenity Within Devastation. The scars of battle would remain on the land, but within them, life would flourish anew. She had soared above the Scarlet Empyrean and had found the peace that lay in balance.

And in the depths of her soul, she knew that the war had been not just for her people but for the very essence of the world—an eternal dance of creation and destruction, light and shadow, all bound together in the endless cycle of life.

Nattlyd