Now this is what I call music!!! This CD is, without a shadow of a doubt, one of my favorites, and one of the best in my entire collection. Some people compared this disc to Emperor (in the early days, like Wrath of the Tyrant and I.T.N.E…), I don’t completely agree with that view though, as the music on this CD is far more violent and fast, the vocals are better, and the drums are usually more complex. The songs on this CD are all extremely good, being very well played and written, they also have a very evil and violent mood about them; and even though this is one of the fastest, darkest, and most ‘true’ bands I’ve heard in a long time they still find a way to effectively use synthesizers and acoustic guitars to great effect, it is said that a truly great Black Metal band can take any instrument and make it sound good and fitting within the song’s context, this is a good example. The amount of energy that this band puts into their music is also incredible. The vocals are extremely good, nothing original but still terrific, Lord Kraath definitely sings better than almost any Black Metal vocalist on the scene today! The drums are done by a session drummer named ‘Anders’ (A.K.A. Zathanel from Sorhin…) and are also superb, playing at a speed which surpasses bands like Dark Funeral and Marduk while still keeping it interesting, you have simply got to fucking respect that. This disc was also produced exceedingly well… This disc is simply flawless, a masterpiece in it’s field, and truly deserving of great praise! I’m afraid, though, that my opinion may be somewhat biased as I recently contacted, and spoke to, several members of this band, who are really very cool guys.. Even though my view may be biased (though I don’t think so as I really fucking liked this band long before contacting them…) you can probably draw your own conclusions, anybody even slightly interested in Black Metal MUST buy this disc… Very highly recommended! (Also, their later CDs, Lords of the Nightrealm, and Hell Eternal also kick ass, even though they are a significant departure from the style of Black Metal they play on this CD…)

Pros: Great guitars, vocals, drums, production, etc
Cons: None significant (though the packaging could have been better…)
Style of music: Black Metal that reminds some people of Emperor (Wrath of the Tyrant…), the production is also very well balanced and no instrument is much louder than the next…
Will Likely Appeal to: Anybody who is deeply into Black Metal and considers himself ‘elite’ will fucking LOVE this disc, but anybody even remotely interested in Black Metal should buy this disc

Overall: A masterpiece 10/10 (this is one of those very rare CDs that I actually give perfect scores to, and I only give them to totally flawless releases, as this is…)

© 2000 sauron anarazel