Black Metal

With the memories of Vaal’s maniacal 2019 performance forever burnt into my psyche, I fervently seek out any and all new material that these Dutch deviants offer up. Vaal said it themselves in the write up for this new album, and I quote “While the fury of Vaal is still present, the focus has shifted towards a more melancholic and atmospheric approach.” I possibly didn’t realise just how much the focus has shifted before hearing this though, “Visioen Van Het Verborgen Land” is altogether more restrained and methodical than their past work, with more emphasis placed on brooding textures and slowly unfolding traditional BM. I appreciate that this small circle from The Netherlands operates within their own deeply transcendent sphere, and that they are light years ahead of my comprehension of BM, so I listen to “Visioen Van Het Verborgen Land” with a sense of the utmost respect, and while I perhaps would of wished for a little more rabid fury and off kilter madness similar to that which was witnessed on that frosty night inside Mayhem at Copenhagen, I can’t help but feel that there is something here, working its way beneath the surface insidiously, and something that will fall into place soon enough if I remain focused and steadfast. Much like “Anthems To The Welkin At Dusk”, “Visioen Van Het Verborgen Land” is likely to be revered long after its time and heralded as a milestone for Vaal, and Vaal should be commended for pushing themselves beyond the tried and true and exploring lands previously untouched.

Black Metal

Formed in 2020, out of the ashes of two projects coming to an end, Los Angeles’ VAAMATAR was born with one intention: to play black metal in its purest form. Raw and fast and free of frills, the full-length Medievalgeist is the follow-up to their debut EP, Evil Witching Black Metal. Immediately, old sensations are awakened and recast anew. The spectre of the second wave of black metal during the 1990s drapes its wings across Medievalgeist, but VAAMATAR’s strong songwriting eludes easy categorization. Instead of early Darkthrone, one can hear here contemporaneously early Dødheimsgard; instead of early Enslaved, the ’90s work of Norway’s Hades; instead of prime Marduk, comparably prime Arckanum, and so on. Which is all to underline that the duo of VAAMATAR are old souls to the bitter end, having imbibed ancient wisdoms and now spilling them freely across their own teachings in the form of Medievalgeist.

Including booklet.

Dungeon Synth

Two standouts of the modern scene combine forces for this fantasy dungeon synth split LP!

Originally released on cassette tape, this edition provides a remastered and improved audio experience.

Black Metal

Valac returns with the strength of poignant riffs and a warmer production that reveals levels of melodic entanglement, though furious and ravaging, this new album assures that the act’s legacy remains untouched and even enhanced.

Black Metal

A piercing and memorable debut full-length shrouded in darkness, its gloomy sound carries an ominous aura that wholly captures the essence of the powerful arrangements. Scornful wails, obscure guitar riffs and somber melodies set the tone for this opus, spews of madness that for its crude delivery display a superior sense of dynamics, from mid-paced and atmospheric to storming rhythmic sections.

Black Metal

One of the most accomplished newcomers Signal Rex has come across in recent years, the shadowy entity of Valais burst from the voidal womb fully formed in the middle of 2021 with their self-titled debut album. Despite existing in the vast (and vastly inconsistent) wilderness of Bandcamp, Valais in fact imparted a power and poignancy that takes most bands at least a couple records to reach, if at all. Both classically composed and forward-thinking, Valais understood right from the start the core tenets of true black metal, but equally understood how to inject their own personality and poise into such to create something that adds to the language of BLACK METAL rather than mimics its speech patterns (and sloppily so).

No, Valais as a work is a towering monument of tension and release, skillful contours and subtle dynamics, richly malevolent melody and slipstreaming violence. Aesthetic touchstones include the likes of Slidhr, latter-day Leviathan, and even Blut Aus Nord at their wiliest, but Valais also exhibit an understated sense of the pagan – perhaps stemming from their native Ireland, or perhaps from some strange cosmos far beyond our comprehension… Either way, all of this coalesces into a whilrlwinding five-song/37-minute experience that feels far vaster than that succinct runtime otherwise suggests. As such, Signal Rex is honored to rightfully release this tome in all physical formats.

Black Metal

“Black Clouds Gathering / Vallendusk” was released on DLP by Northern Silence in January 2018 and features the band’s self-titled EP from 2012 and their debut full length from 2013, both for the first time ever on vinyl.

Black Metal

The awaited return of the United States Raw Black Metal entity VAMPIRSKA is spearheaded by the unveiling of “Torturous Omens of Blood and Candlewax” re-issued for the first time by INFERNA PROFUNDUS RECORDS.

“Torturous Omens of Blood and Candlewax” is the debut LP of Raw Black Metal entity VAMPIRSKA, who has established itself as a titan among the scene of this Lo-Fi and enchanting style of black metal. Originally released in Autumn 2020, “Torturous Omens of Blood and Candlewax” pushed VAMPIRSKA into the eyes of many after a large release on CS, CD and LP format. Six tracks with a consistent blend of furious, depressive, and elegant melodies carried into existence with punishing drumming.