Black Metal History Month- Verheerer : "Archar"

I found this one prowling Bandcamp for new black metal. Here is a black metal project from Germany that proves on the opener of it's new album it can nail both the atmosphere and the raw animalistic attack. They do hit you with blast beasts in the last minute to remind you this is a black metal band, but they have already trampled you with a wide array of other mean spirited riffs. They have girt to the production with out sacrificing quality. You can hear the bass an it gives their over all sound that much more punch. On the title track that follows their powerful intro, they follow a slightly more standard path. They are tagged with sludge and though I would not call them a blackened sludge band they do pack a similar punch, just at higher speeds and with a more venomous intention.

The vocals are a throaty scowl more long the lines of Goatwhore, just not dropping down into he lower more death metal tone, so more like what Sami does. They throw in samples that are well placed and provide a narrative to some of the more droning riffs as they are being layered. On the thirds song their momentum doesn't relent, but it also runs into a blur and sounds like every other black metal band so I am less impressed. The closing song which is named after them finds the locking into riffs that mean more and the song it self has more space to breathe. The drummer and bass player are locked in to make it a juggernaut. The vocals snarl at you in a make that doesn't hide the lyrics are their thoughts on the bastard world, which is something a little more convincing than just dialing in the Satan. The guitars are really well layered here and make the most of the 8 minutes this song consumes. This album is pretty solid, I think it starts at the strongest point and then finds them trying to reclaim those sounds summoned at the height of their powers with out slipping back into the mire of sounding like every other black metal band. I'll give it an 8 , which is high praise for these guys considering I just gave "Plaguewielder" and 8.5. Not that they are in the same league as Darkthrone, but they are finding a well earned spot for themselves in the charred halls of black metal lore.