Saille - Gnosis

Artist: Saille
Release Title: Gnosis
Year: 2017
Label: Code666 Records
Genre: Symphonic Black Metal
Tracklisting:
1. Benei ha'Elohim
2. Pandaemonium Gathers
3. Blôt 04:44
4. Genesis 11; 1-9
5. Before the Crawling Chaos
6. Prometheus
7. Thou, My Maker
8. Magnum Opus
9. 1904 Era Vulgaris

Continuing their mark into ever-more expansive realms, Belgium symphonic black metallers Saille have taken the mold of their former mastermind Dries Gaerdelen into utilizing these darker, more intense settings the way the band initially sounded on their earlier efforts. With Dries stepping down to focus on the bookings, the newly-christened five-piece version offers their fourth full-length effort March 13, 2017 on Code666 Records.

Despite the loss of a prominent figure, the band still retains a quite competent and effective showing of their trademarked brand of material. This is effectively bombastic symphonic-styled black metal, full of ravenous up-tempo tremolo-picked rhythms with plenty of explosive, over-the-top symphonics which generate those furious paces throughout here. The riffing is still pretty much the support here, offering that specifically polished, crimson-accented riff-work with the full-on outbursts of melodic harmonies scattered throughout here to make for an intriguing mixture of bombastic and symphonic when mixed with the keyboards. Taking on the grandiosity of their past efforts by layering tons of frantic tinkering and virtuoso tendencies to add to the blistering riffing and blasting drum-work throughout here, and with the album featuring this work for a vast majority of the time it’s expressive and dynamic offering. This does end up with the rather frustrating part of letting the album segue into itself way too frequently here, making for a hard time to tell where you are with all the songs pretty much blending into a veritable sea of keyboards and brimstone-accented guitars for a large portion of the time. It doesn’t become all that detrimental due to the intensity and energy featured throughout here, but it does lower it somewhat.

While it’s not a highly original offering with the repetitious nature of so many of the tracks rendering this one into a bit of a blur at times, there’s still a lot to really like with this one in terms of enjoyable material here which makes this an easy selection for fans of their past work or symphonic black metal in general.

Score: 87/100

Does it sound good? Order it from here:
https://saille.bandcamp.com/album/gnosis

Temple of Demigod - The Great Old Ones

Artist: Temple of Demigod
Release Title: The Great Old Ones
Year: 2016
Label: Black Lion Records
Genre: Symphonic Black/Death Metal
Tracklisting:
1. Labyrinth
2. Ominous King
3. The Awakening of a Mighty One
4. Azathoth Supreme Chaos
5. Mountains of Madness
6. Lurking in the Threshold
7. Embodiment of Chaos
8. The Great Old Ones

Formed in September 2014, Armenian one-man symphonic black/death metal project Temple of Demigod wasted little time getting material out as main-man Mark Erskine sought to evoke the majesty and terror found in the writings of legendary horror writer H.P. Lovecraft into crushing black/death metal. After several years of preparing, the bands’ debut full-length was originally released December 24, 2016 on Black Lion Records.

Echoing the lyrical themes explicitly, the main crux of the bands’ style is found in the sweeping mixture of ornate blackened death metal spiced up with symphonic elements. The material is mostly kept charging along at a crunchy mid-tempo augmented with thick, beefy riffing and tight drumming that carries a stellar atmospheric tone throughout here, letting the main focus shift nicely between the black and death metal realms. That heavy crunch to the riffing and the more textured focus on varied tempo changes as the album continues through its paces which give this a decidedly more prominent death metal aspect to the rhythms for the most part which is balanced out nicely by the fiery melodic accents and bombastic keyboard-laced symphonics that come into play here. This makes for a wholly more intriguing dynamic when it starts in on the more advanced integrations between the raging over-the-top symphonics and the twisting, turning riff-work which adds a larger degree of theatrics to the package that gives this the kind of tempo shifts that give this an added benefit to be had here with the more heavy, crunchy patterns added to the bombastic nature here. These here really help to make for a rather impressive if seemingly overly-familiar time here. The album plays way too close and familiar to plenty of other bands in this style which really has very little originality in their rhythms and arrangements which come across often in the album moves between so many easily-identifiable sources. Still, the enthusiasm of the project is enough to overcome that and holds this up for the most part.

Despite featuring some rather familiar and overly identifiable sources in terms of noticing influences, the debut nature and high-energy quality of the material rises this one up more than enough to make a worthy choice for those that enjoy the members’ other works or fans of the symphonic genre.

Score: 89/100

Does it sound good? Order it from here:
https://templeofdemigodus.bandcamp.com/album/the-great-old-ones

Endemise - Anathema

Artist: Endemise
Release Title: Anathema
Year: 2016
Label: Self-Released/Independent
Genre: Symphonic Black/Death Metal
Tracklisting:
1. Nocturne
2. Anathema
3. Blackening
4. Procreator
5. Fragments in Stone
6. Soma
7. Come Serene Dark
8. Fragments in Flame

Managing to offer more of the same, Canadian symphonic black/death metallers Endemise have contributed to their main style of attack throughout their career which really brings a new showcase for their grand sound. With a three-year gap between releases that sees Graham Murphy settling into the second guitarist role for the group, their third full-length album was originally released October 28, 2016 on Maple Metal Records.

From the start this here finds itself contained within a fine mixture of the two main genres featured by utilizing a strong display of swirling black metal amidst the predominantly death metal stylings here. Featuring the keyboard-laced symphonics for the most part here with plenty of utterly bombastic and dynamic rhythms that offer the grandiosity typically found here, and then wrapping it all in a truly engaging and wholly appropriate black metal series of stylings that make for a rather impressive contrast. The near-Gothic stylings here with the grandiose drumming stylings and full-on orchestrations add another fine layer alongside the swirling tremolo rhythms and generate plenty of truly enjoyable elements with some fine melodic leanings throughout here, and these leave this one somewhat enjoyable. While these are quite fun, they bring up the album’s main problem here which comes from the fact that there’s just not a lot of really strong and varied series of rhythms throughout here which really tends to make this go by without really finding out where you are in the album as a whole.that lowers this one somewhat. Despite unleashing a strongly-performed album for the most part, there’s just not a whole lot really here to give this much of a coherent style or identity as it’s just not all that dynamic to really make a different impression here. It’s what really holds this one back even with the positive elements.

Though it’s got some positive work throughout here with the strong orchestral elements and some energetic work at times, there’s still plenty of work here that drags this down enough to really leave this one for the most undiscerning fans of symphonic black or death metal for the most part as most others should heed caution with this one.

Score: 76/100

Does it sound good? Order it from here:
http://endemise.bandcamp.com/album/anathema

Far Beyond - A Frozen Flame of Ice

Artist: Far Beyond
Release Title: A Frozen Flame of Ice
Year: 2016
Label: Aeterna Records
Genre: Symphonic Gothic/Black Metal
Tracklisting:
1. Evernight - Part I
2. The Song Remains the Same
3. A Frozen Flame of Ice
4. Last Farewell
5. Unrelenting Force
6. Evernight - Part II

Finally returning to his main project, German one-man symphonic gothic/black metal project Far Beyond marks the full return of the group following a decade of silence with mainman Eugen Dodenhoeft coming back after working on other groups in the meantime. Now recharged and more focused than ever with solid session musicians, they release the second full-length effort September 1, 2016 on Aeterna Records.

From the onset here this one is pretty heavily stepped in the symphonic air as the keyboards are given a dominant presence here with plenty of work-outs throughout here which gets this one involved in a grand, epic soundscape quite easily. There’s numerous amounts of bombastic keyboards going throughout here alongside the album’s mostly straightforward riff-work that goes for a more Gothic-tinged atmosphere here with the way in which it goes for the incredibly simply speed-metal passages filled with brimming melodies and slow, plodding rhythms that flow throughout the majority of the work here. While the way it goes for the main rhythms are pretty much unyielding in that manner as it generates these elements for the main part of the album and weaves those bombastic keyboards into these sections with gusto as it’s a heavily symphonic charge that generates that majestic sweeping atmosphere perfectly alongside the album’s preponderance of clean vocals that gives it a wholly warm and bombastic atmosphere. Even when it goes for the fun of the ravenous drumming and explosive up-tempo melodies this one still gets in a lot of work to really like about it, with the album’s one main departure here coming in the form of it’s rather epic nature that makes this a challenge to sit through at times. It’s just a touch too long for some and really offers up plenty to like with the epic song-structures but is such a massive epic that it might be a challenge to get into. It’s not a big detrimental, though, and doesn’t come close to overcoming the remaining enjoyment found here.

While it’s a pretty hefty album on the surface of it all, that’s not nearly enough to dispell the fact that there’s just so much rather fun and enjoyably massive arrangements here that whip together the Gothic and black metal movements that it serves as a fine choice for aficionados of that style or just symphonic black metal in general.

Score: 93/100

Does it sound good? Order it from here:
http://farbeyond.bandcamp.com

Mist of Misery - Absence

Artist: Mist of Misery
Release Title: Absence
Year: 2016
Label: Black Lion Productions
Genre: Symphonic Black Metal
Tracklisting:
1. Melancholic Thoughts
2. Euthanasia
3. Absence
4. Final Departure
5. Epitaph of Penitence
6. Wistful Twilight
7. Paragon of Perdition
8. Mist of Misery
9. Serenity in Nothingness

Following the success of their previous release, Swedish symphonic black metallers Mist of Misery have gotten quite proficient at their mixing of depressive, melancholic and ambient atmospheres in symphonic black metal soundscapes. With five years spent honing and refining this into a fine art, the group prepares its second full-length and first release with vocals on August 31, 2016 on Black Lion Productions.

Considering its origins, this here is a rather impressive and dynamic offering that readily combines the band's penchant for weaving depressive atmospherics into a grandiose, majestic bombast as there’s a great contrast between these styles. With their seemingly disparate mixing of depressive black metal with symphonic elements, it leaves this with a highly appealing soundscape of cold, minimalist swirling riff-work that sounds quite downbeat and depressive rather than large and glorious which is what’s usually the case in the genre. That atmospheric charge here into more mournful, melancholic rhythms against the dynamic, dexterous drumming and cold, swirling tremolo riffing is what gives this one quite an impressive and wholly enjoyable ambient soundscape that manages to feature enough overt blasting and charging cinematic keyboards to sound symphonic in cases, yet the overwhelming downbeat and depressive nature takes precedence here to create a much more dynamic restrained scale. In this case, the only thing that really doesn’t offer up much interest overall is the short instrumentals which are spread out quite often within the music and are used way too much for such a short album which does upset the running time pretty heavily stopping to place another interlude. Still, this isn’t all that bad of a problem and doesn’t stop the rest of the music from being enjoyable.

Despite the album’s few minor upsets where it’s not as fully-flowing as it really should’ve been, there’s still so much to enjoy with their explosive and oftentimes dynamic mixture of depressive melodies and symphonic black metal that it really appeals to work well for crowds of both styles as well as those looking for something beyond the realm of normal symphonic black metal.

Score: 90/100

Does it sound good? Order it from here:
http://mistofmiseryblacklion.bandcamp.com/album/absence

Onirism - Cosmic Dream

Artist: Onirism
Release Title: Cosmic Dream
Year: 2016
Label: Self-Released/Independent
Genre: Symphonic Black Metal
Tracklisting:
1. Purple Sky (Introduction)
2. Beginning of a New Era
3. From the End to the Origins
4. Ephemeral World I
5. Ephemeral World II
6. At the Heart of the Desert for the Eternity (Introduction)
7. The Curse of Ahriman
8. The Old Man
9. Darkness
10. Weavers of Time
11. Baneful Glows in the Night Sky (Introduction)
12. Cosmic Dream

From the inception in 2014, French one-man symphonic black metal act Onirism has utilized founder Antoine Guibert’s penchant for writing about lucid dreams on epic symphonic black metal music with many atmospheres throughout the music. Now, he presents his epic full-length release independently January 2, 2016 with nearly eighty minutes of symphonic madness.

Regardless of anything else, what’s most apparent on this album is it’s epic scope and ideals here which run the gamut from extreme symphonics to their penchant for atmospheric rhythms and patterns. The symphonics come from the expected sources here with plenty of over-the-top majestic keyboards running rampant across the release not only supplying plenty of dynamic and charging tempos that are given plenty of room to incorporate the utterly blistering riff-work here raging along in perfect time here with these savage rhythms cutting along throughout the whole of the album. This is a truly fast and up-tempo effort with plenty of really impressive works here when he gets up to speed and can work his faster rhythms here to rumble alongside the keyboard works, and with the drumming blistering away with their hard-hitting patterns featuring plenty of dynamic tempo changes that are entirely possible within the epic song-structures on display. Still, even with all that fast and hard-hitting music what really undermines this one is the epic-ness and generally overlong arrangements that are oftentimes filled with excessive elements from the folk interludes to majestic sprawling sections that are just so lifeless and draining that it sometimes takes the track awhile to get back into the proper swing of things. That in itself is aided along by the fact that the album’s simply way too long, especially for a band’s debut release as the overwhelming amount of material here becomes a struggle to listen to as time goes on and really struggles with retaining its attention in the second half as the length of the material but also the girth works against it.

Though not nearly as troubled as it makes itself out to be here with it’s rather overlong presentation and just generally being way too bloated for it’s own good, there’s still more than enough at work here to make this a stylish and somewhat impressive effort that should mightily appeal to fans of all styles of symphonic black metal who can look past the flaws here.

Score: 75/100

Does it sound good? Order it from here:
http://onirismband.bandcamp.com/album/cosmic-dream

Dark Haunters - To Persevere is Diabolical

Artist: Dark Haunters
Release Title: To Persevere is Diabolical
Year: 2016
Label: Revalve Records
Genre: Symphonic Black/Death Metal
Tracklisting:
1. In Perseverance...
2. The Burning Eyes of Vengeance
3. Legend of Pai Mei
4. Blood Wolfen Hunger
5. In My Fortress
6. The Tigress & the Prophecy
7. Rising Through the Curse
8. ...Towards the Realm

Born in Atri in 1999, Italian symphonic black/death metallers Dark Haunters initially came together with the intention of playing a gothic black metal with a symphonic classical designs before settling on a more cohesive symphonic design. After years of lineup struggles and numerous concert appearances honing their craft to perfection, the sextet finally unleashes their full-length debut May 5, 2016 on Revalve Records.

What becomes immediately apparent throughout here is the band’s competence and impactful attack, which takes a large dose of inspiration from the symphonic scene with the omnipresent and impactful keyboards that are featured alongside the raging music here. Bouncing along through the music with a cinematic style of accents washing over the blackened soundtrack underneath which manages to merge the raging tremolo-styled rhythms leading along through the deeper, heavy-hitting chugging that comes off as the finest combination of these styles. The riff-work is tight and technical to match the blasting drumming hammering away in the attack, and there’s a nice, heavy-handed sense of fury and intensity in the tracks which makes for a rather immersive symphonic attack within the music, especially when the band fires off into the higher intensity levels. It’s mostly when the band drops down slightly when it stumbles slightly as the group’s tendency towards the slightly sluggish, plodding paces tend to show off it’s rather troubling natures as the riffing isn’t that lively and the symphonics get muted when it’s galloping along, leaving it to feel a little lighter and less dynamic where this appears more often in the second half of the album which does leave it ending on a slightly down-beat ending. As well, this general style doesn’t really leave the band open to explore much in terms of variety causing it to stick to the same general well of attacks for the majority of the time so it can tend to wear itself out through some familiar work at times. Otherwise, this one really does get some enjoyable times in here.

Though it’s not necessarily the most original or consistent act in the scene, this is a solid debut effort that initializes them into the scene in a rather appealing way that at the very least will get those into symphonic black metal to check them out though those who prefer the more traditional works won’t be as impressed.

Score: 83/100

Does it sound good? Order it from here:
http://revalverecords.bigcartel.com/product/dark-haunters-to-persevere-is-diabolical

Elderblood - Messiah

Artist: Elderblood
Release Title: Messiah
Year: 2016
Label: Osmose Productions
Genre: Symphonic Black Metal
Tracklisting:
1. Thagirion's Sun
2. Invocation of Baphomet
3. Devil in the Flesh
4. Leviathan
5. Satana
6. In Burning Hands of God
7. Adamas Ater

Founded in 2011 by frontman and guitarist Astargh, Ukrainian symphonic black metal upstarts Elderblood are certainly the most important band in that style from their home country. With new member Blodorn joining in on bass and a new label to spearhead their attack, this impressive second release is issued May 27, 2016 on Osmose Productions surely cements their growing status in the underground.

As is to be expected in bands of this style, the main focus here is on the symphonic display which is one of the more impactful and devastating found here. Bombastic, majestic and grandiose to the point of overkill, there’s so much dynamics in the onslaught of keyboard-work featured here that it generates a successful cinematic-score like feeling throughout here that truly sounds as massive as possible with it dominating the mix firing away impressive technical flurries or simple accents to further that cinematic connection. Even without that present there’s some absolutely killer work here as the band can drop the symphonics and present more traditional arrangements with a tight, frantic series of riff-work with swirling tremolo lead-work that’s incredibly heavy while packing a powerful punch and then letting the symphonic work act as melodic accents to the tracks which is just as impressive. This even manages to correct the last flaw from the previous effort in chopping off several tracks so it’s not so bloated and overlong, clocking in at a more respectable length with about half the tracks featured on this release which is another stand-out part of the album as the impact here is just as great while not overstaying it’s welcome and really makes the release a wholly ferocious and devastating effort. Some might find fault with the bands’ over-the-top keyboard theatrics and wish that they played it a little more straightforward considering they’re that good as they are in that format, but this is still a nitpicky and barely worthwhile flaw that still does need to be mentioned anyway as the album really does deliver.

On the whole this is a near-flawless release that really should put the band up into the upper echelon of the genre as there’s so much at work here that’s truly enjoyable as well as devastating that it really should be picked up by anyone into the genre while symphonic fanatics who haven’t found this group yet should be shamed for waiting so long to do so.

Score: 97/100

Does it sound good? Order it from here:
http://osmoseproductions.bandcamp.com/album/messiah