Darkenhöld - Echoes from the stone keeper

Genre : Black metal

Darkenhöld returns with their second full-length, and undoubtedly, it's more atmospheric than the debut. In a way, it's also less aggressive, and vocals are not as loud as before in the mix. Whatever. It's still incredibly technical and melodic. Main strength of this album, to me, is how many melodies and dynamic riffs it includes compared to what's usual in the black metal scene. It still has this somehow medieval, mystical touch, probably because of the synth lines... yet the best work lies in guitars and drums. That's quite cool considering how proeminent those instruments are in a black metal track. And thanks God (or anywho else), synths are kept in the background. Therefore, this new release is intense, and it bears no monotony or repetitive parts, and that makes Echoes from the stone keeper a really dynamic, straigthforward, powerful and intense album, even with its many acoustic interludes. You may be a bit sad not having louder vocals here, but you will definitely enjoy it anyway!

Personal highlights : Echoes from the stone keeper, Mesnie Hellequin.

Stream Echoes from the stone keeper on Bandcamp.

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Other reviews from Darkenhöld:

   - A passage to the towers

Djur - В Потоках Хаоса Кровей

Genre : Black metal

Usually, when black metal looses its atmospheric vein, I tend to like it less. However, Djur somehow made something catchy without using acoustic lines. I'm not sure why, but I'd say that the melodic riffs are responsible of this. Or maybe the intense, non-linear drumming style? Probably the agressive, wild and powerful vocals too. Anyway, Djur surely know how to play black metal. Songs deliver an awesome  lot of intensity, everybody does his job quite well, and compositions are nice enough to sublimate the skills. On top of this, add some very nice production, keeping things audible and raw at the same time. Really an album worth a listen if you enjoy agressive stuff.

Personnal highlights : Дивизия Djur, В Потоках Хаоса Кровей.

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Darkenhöld - A passage to the towers

Genre : Black metal

Technically, this is much more pagan-oriented metal than melancholic folk black. However, as good pagan metal became something quite rare, I felt like sharing that one, especially since it's really not popular, where it would deserve to. So, what's this record? It's some raw, agressive black metal, which however feature lots of good riffs, rhythm changes, and "headbangable" drumming. And sometimes that's all we want, right? Do not expect many soft parts, since the few ones are just the usual black metal "clichés" (not to mean anything bad), meaning a quick intro track and some interlude. However, besides the epic black metal vocals, some clean ones shine with quality. Synths make a good job too, giving quite an epic atmosphere, without being proeminent. All in all, expect some impressive pagan black metal, surely lacking melancholy and nature beauty, because that's not the point here, but giving out a nice lot of energy and agressivity. And sometimes, that's pretty cool!

Highlights : Ghouls and the tower, Darkenhöld.

Follow Darkenhöld on Facebook.
Buy merch on Bigcartel.

Other reviews from Darkenhöld:
   - Echoes from the stone keeper