Wednesday, March 05, 2014

Nocturnal - Storming Evil (2014)

Album | Storming Evil
Country | Germany
Genre | Black / Thrash Metal
Label | High Roller Records Records

| Tyrants of damnation |

Among my favorite bands of the twenty first century in the black / thrash territories are the Germans Nocturnal, who crushed my brain with their debut Arrival of the Carnivore in 2004 and have been under my radar ever since. The band is busy releasing mini-records but had not offered anything for three years now, before putting their third full length album Storming Evil not long ago. Germany has an excellent history in thrash metal and a notable one in black, so filthy bands out of these lands are always good to check out.

One of the characteristics that I find very appealing in this band is their comfort with the necessary variety of riffs and melodies in their music, which always delivers a lively and old-school feeling, no matter how clean the sound is. The fact is that it's quite polished here but still, I erased any possible complaints with the first listen, an immediate hook up. They achieve more than any average band of their genre with their evident and memorable guitar lines, which enrich each song to it's full capacity. Tracks such as "Rising Demons", "Perish in Darkness", "Storm from the Graves" deserve being called black / thrash jewels.

There is a noteworthy musical harmony in Nocturnal that makes this album very easy to enjoy, as if the tracks are placed in the perfect positions and everything is executed as it was meant to be. I didn't find a dull moment or two, where I thought "ok, nice part but very much in the borders of the genre", all of it is fully entertaining, even for someone who has heard a hundred bands of the same philosophy. I also want to pinpoint the kick ass job done by the vocalist, who has a very powerful throat for shrieked / harsh vocals, but doesn't miss the eighties falsettos from time to time, making his role as important as the one of the guitars.

Storming Evil was better than I first thought it would be and it already is some of the best material I have listened lately, in terms of underground poser-free metal. Arrival of the Carnivore will always be unique in my heart but this one is also way above average, full of energy and diverse, in it's own way. By now, I have full faith that Nocturnal will never disappoint me with a full length and I will have something to jam on for quite a while, taking breaks from my busy playlists. This record is impressive at first sight and grows on you as you listen too, so beware.

DAMAGE: 9/10

Facebook

No comments:

Post a Comment