Nightbringer & Dødsengel - Circumambulations of the Solar Inferno (Split, 2013) Review

Nightbringer & Dødsengel "Circumambulations of the Solar Inferno"

Spring 2013, Daemon Worship Productions

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Occult masterminds Dødsengel from Norway meet the infamous Americans Nightbringer to collaborate on a split release under the aegis of Daemon Worship Productions, which is one of the most legit labels in the industry, hands down. It's the only release that both bands have scheduled for this year and a combined ritual of these guys together is an extraordinary event that should not go unnoticed.

Such an album should have artwork of some proper level of artistic merit, and it surely does. In dark brown, there is a sigil with a pentacle-like symbol and drawings of the God Ra all around it, which provides some information about the concept of the release as well. The conceptual background of this split is the esoteric doctrines of the journey of the sun in four courters, to death, to the underworld, to the rebirth and finally its ascent. Did you expect anything less enigmatic?

If you are familiar with Nightbringer's Hierophany of an Open Grave, you probably know what to expect. The first two songs are by them and they are very similar to the full length work of the band, consisting of intense black metal combined with parts of slow and decaying riff melodies. There is a new drummer called Menthor (has also played in bands like Lvcifyre, Corpus Christii and Enthroned) who doesn't miss a hit, if not improving the overall outcome. The production of the band is polished, as it was in the last two full lengths. Nightbringer have assured that there is a ritualistic and noisy introduction in their first song "Watchtower of the West: Gate of the Mighty Dead" so that the listener is welcomed to the claustrophobic oblivion that they will be in for about half an hour.

As Dødsengel kicks in, the differences in the production are apparent. Their sound is thinner and somehow dirtier, even though everything can be heard almost perfectly. They are known for their experimentation and it is a main characteristic of these two songs as well, melding doom metal with black metal, as well as some ritual ambient parts. "Watchtower of the East: Horus Sunflesh" has some shivering riffs and reminds a little bit of Negative Plane, whereas "Watchtower of the South: Drunk Upon Inmost Fire" has a tight intro, some chanting voices in the middle, solid musicianship as well as a meditating aesthetic.  It's more self-reflecting and the longest piece of the split, lasting 12 minutes.

I can't decide which side of the split i prefer and i believe breaking this release into parts would cause it to lose some of it's beauty. It is a multi-sided record with many hidden aspects around it, it can be described as innovative, and i'm positive for that alone. If you are a fan of these bands, check this out, some of their best stuff are acclaimed to be inside here.

DAMAGE: 7.5/10

Nightbringer - Hierophany of An Open Grave (2011) Review

Nightbringer "Hierophany of an Open Grave"
Summer 2011, Season of Mist

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I can't decide if time favors this band's ideas on writing and releasing albums. Only one year passed since the release of "Apocalypse Sun" and Nightbringer unleashed their third full length, and maybe their best work to date. This is an album that puts to the test theories like "Only the European BM is true", which is of course false, but just for the sake of arguement. I knew these guys were amazing musicians and i'm glad they decided to quit goofing around and get down to serious business. All the objections i had in the previous albums have been diversified and transformed to something greater and complete, which puts them among the top of their field.

Despite its length being a little bit over the top with one hour of music, the album is full of intriguing musical uances. They have perfected the art of switching tempos during the songs, improving the dynamics and comforting the listener that the listening experience will not be staggering this time. It has finally stepped into a room of real cosmic darkness, violently claiming the throne, as the tracks vary from chaotic fast melodies into tormenting doomy ones.

The blending of the two is perfect and almost goes unnoticed, making the album's flow truly amazing. The musicianship reigns supreme, erases any signs of mechanical studio recreation of the music (something that did not achieve in the previous releases) and all the instruments are alive with flesh and blood to praise the recording. 

Nightbringer experimented with new progressions and added some acoustic guitars while keeping the pattern of riffs they followed in their older albums. Some of the tracks on this album, like "The Gnosis of Inhumation", "The Angel of Smokeless Fire" and "Psychagogoi" are the best the band has ever released so far.

The ideological content of the album is a malicious presence, haunting the music. It is enshrouded in a mysticistic aura that is a painful burden to someone not familiar with their music, it is unfriendly and aims for the highest values of life and death, via a path of thorns. The band is exposing itself to serve the music, with a glorious vision of the genre as a unique art. Ritualistic chants, scourging sounds, demonic synths, never used before and invoke into an overwhelming result.

The difference is that this record is full of variety and wealth of melodies. It has become even harder to assimilate their music now, but that doesn't prevent them from getting the credits they deserve for it. As far as i'm concerned, the album was welcomed with open arms in the underground community, and i'm glad. This album has given birth to the wings that evolved the band from something unclear to a true, majestic band.

DAMAGE: 8.5/10

Nightbringer - Apocalypse Sun (2010) Review

Nightbringer "Apocalypse Sun"
Spring 2010, Avantgarde Music

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Coming back with a second album two years after their debut, Nightbringer released "Apocalypse Sun", which was highly anticipated at the time. It seems like "Death and the Black Work" worked great for the band's carreer and triggered them to continue, as the fanbase kept growing. I can't see what's so special about their first record, but this one is a notable improvement, by all means. To me, they fully placed themselves among the best bands of USBM and the orthodox scene with this album, which is ferocious and demonic from the start to the finish.

I had a feeling that the production would not let the compositions rise in the first record, and since this one is following the same path, i was correct. The immense musical borders of the band are unfolded with great success here, since the sound is clear and polished. The compositional ideas are not vastly different from the ones on the first but they do have expanded and they are much more enjoyable, as they are distinguishable. The album fails to avoid repetition, but it does create a chaotic atmosphere, which at least helps the band spread their occult message. One that listens to this album will recognize that it roots deeply into the orthodox territory, without having to read about the band's views in the first place, and that means victory for a record. The concept of the album, once again, will not be understood by the average listener because of the lack of knowledge on the subject, and that's why it's important for the music to somehow speak for itself. I'm sure part of the band's fans are trully inspired by these apocalyptic lyrics, and most of them probably peruse on them as well.

Nightbringer have wisely increased the number of tracks and they have divided their work to shorter portions. The album again lasts more than one hour, but it's easier to go through when there are tracks as short as 4 or 5 minutes. I'm glad they decided to move away from the slow pace they had, with additions to several fast songs and parts of songs, as the first two of the album "I Am I" and "Supplication Before the Throne of Tehom" and "Goblet of Sulfur and Poison". There is less ambiance as well -if there is any- and that leaves room to the tracks to create a vibe of their own. The guitars have that unbridled riffing method again and it fits most of the times, except when the album gets sluggish in songs like "Excitium: Litany of the Devouring Earth" and "The Utterance of Kasab'el", which are the weak points of the album. They don't have any major down points on their own, but compared to the delightful variety contained, they are cast aside. The vocal work is deep, painful and interesting. It helps the instruments most of the times, even though some howls are a bit inordinate and cover too much space for their spot. I admire the drums a little bit more as well, despite the fact that their machine-made sound is too obvious in a couple of songs.

All in all, it is a memorable album. When you listen to it for the first time, it feels like you have not consumed 100% of what it has to offer, and it seems one has to shut everything else off to fully appreciate the album. I can't speak for the black metal kvltsters that might be disappointed with the clean sound, which of course is not a negative issue. I did enjoy it more than the first album, but it didn't leave me with the best impression after i was done for half a dozen times. The comparisons with Deathspell Omega can't be avoided, but not in terms of which band is better (no contest) but as an example similar to Nightbringer's music. I can feel the potential and apart from my own taste, which did not fully approve it, i recommend it for the fans.

DAMAGE: 6.0/10

Nightbringer - Death and the Black Work (2008) Review

Nightbringer "Death and the Black Work"
Late winter 2008, Full Moon Productions

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Nightbringer had already been around for almost ten years when their debut full length album "Death and the Black Work" was released in 2008. They are by now well known for their contribution to the USBM scene and their daring occult concept, which is present in their first work as well. I did listen to the album when it was first released and Nightbringer were not that popular, and it seemed like a cool record with bits and bites of value, but not something i would choose to listen to again anytime soon, if anytime. As Nightbringer built their own cult name in the scene and now the whole land knows them, i decided to revisit the first vile recordings. Today, it's just an unimpressive record.

The band is heavily devoted to the occult ideology and they are influenced by that in the aesthetic and lyrics of their music. I do like the orthodox style and i have high hopes of such bands, since they ought to breed darkness in them and deliver it via dim noises and melodies. However, i can't get any feeling out of this one whatsoever, even after several listens. The whole package (artwork and lyrics) is rather simplistic and uninventive, which brings up wonders like "Is that what they were preparing the last decade?", "Was this band formed the day before they released this?" or even "These kids listen to too much Deathspell Omega". An experienced listener would not fall victim of the superfluous mysticism and blackness, especially when one would get into the music itself. I've seen various comments about how this is a trendy black metal album etc... Its not completely false, but not correct either, considering that they proved their commitement the following years, but not with this sloppy and poorly written album. Because of the fact that the music is rather weak, all the occult characteristic seems like a fancy addition. I have to admit that i can't derive much from the actual lyrical work here, since i'm not that educated on the subject. I'm not getting skullcrushed by the artisticly violent music it shall have, as i do with other bands of this kind.

"Death and the Black Work" clocks up to one hour and five minutes from seven tracks. I was prepared for long songs and that's what i get. A disappointing aspect of that matter is the speed of the album, which is always middle-paced and repetitive, like the music is trying to hide behind the dusty production, like its afraid to get a little faster and heavier. The riffs are slow and dissonant, trying to create that occult atmosphere but failing, whereas the bass and the drums are scarce. There are a couple of fast parts and they don't bring anything new to the table, because of the drowning overall sound the album has. I had a hard time looking for a decent drum line into the mass of mediocre and lifeless plays and i'm confident that it would not sound very different if they were not at all there. The variatons from blast beats to slow and fast paced lines would have a certain beauty, if the production and the rest of the instrumentation weren't that brain entagling. They are focused on the guitars more, trying to create multiple riff layers as the compositions develop (Darkspace also attempt it, but with much better success). There are some interesting guitar lines, randomly scattered around the confusing main body, close to their ideal bands like Deathspell Omega, lacking the originality and variety the latter have. As if all that was not enough, the record is also way too long to be bearable, sooner or later you'll find yourself yawning and sighing in silence as if it will never end. I was begging for it to stop and i had the two 14 and 10 minute last songs to get through.

There is a short introduction in the beginning of the first song, something like dark ambient/noise to help the stench establish itself, but it does not have any effect, with its repeating samples and tape-recorded-like sounds. Various dark ambient parts are used throughout the album, but they don't move the earth any more than it already moves. So, was there anything i liked about it? Well, i can't say i did not enjoy a part of it, simply because i has been played again and its easy to dig. And because i like the bands they tried to immitate. If you skip the intro, "Caput Draconis - Black Saturn" is a solid song and so is "The River Lethe", as well as the beginning in "Of Silence and Exsanguination" which shows some vague influences from drone doom metal. Even if these parts seem attractive to me, i would not exchange a couple of good moments with an hour long below average album.

DAMAGE: 3.5/10