The Top 10 Black Metal Albums of 2023

It is not surprising that Black Metal's popularity has waned in the hipster metal scene . If people are calling it problematic then they are poseurs who were never into it in the first places as it has always represented  misanthropic hate and nihilistic disdain for the world,  These albums captured what black metal should be with very little compromise, as being the outsider sub-genre of metal, here is are band that exceled the most at it.   After I sort trough the top 10 albums of all the respective genres, I use those lists to compile the top 10 albums of the year. 2023. The very fact these bands made it on the list speaks to how great these albums are, so it's not a slight that the number 8 album is above the 9th album, there is something that just gives it an edge that makes me want to listen to it more. After all, we can try to look cool and pick the hippest bands for a list, but at the end of the day what makes an album the best is that it makes you want more, you look forward to listening to it again. Perhaps you can find your next favorite on this list; and have included links to reviews of these albums if you want to check out the audio on these guys. Anyway here are the top 10 Black Metal  albums of 2023.

10-Felsenmirror -"s/t"

They do have a dark sound and are very deliberate, which I prefer to a bunch of blast beats, If you were to take away the folk of Agalloch, long with the more technical side of their guitar work and replaced it with crust then you would get something close to what goes down here. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/02/black-metal-history-month-felsebmirror.html

 9- Tulus -"Fandens Kall" 

They are a piece of black metal history, as it features members of Khold. If you do not know Khold, but claim to like black metal then you are a poseur and should burn a church with yourself in it. Granted Khold is not as big of a name in Norwegian black metal as Darkthrone, Mayhem, Emperor or ... well you can see where this is going. They are most impressive due to the fact they retained their rock n roll sense of groove, making their songs catchier than your average blast fest. Or really any blast fest for that matter, since they all sound the same.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/02/black-metal-history-month-tulus-fandens.html

8-Altari-  "Kröflueldar" 

There is a darker more melodic throb. The bellowing vocals are the most black metal thing about the opening track. What I like about this album is two songs in and it is clear the darkness of the overall sound is the most black metal thing about this, as they are not hitting you with the normal metallic onslaught of blast beats. For that reason, there is something more honest in the sound. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/02/black-metal-history-month-altari.html

7-Monachopsis Art - "An Empty Existence" 

Not as raw as many of their Finnish countrymen, there is a more deliberate and majestic feel . The vocals are multilayered, with both the anguished scowling of the more wretched larynx torture along with the softer more operatic intonations of Natalie from the Abbey. It's the melodic excursions that add more depth than their peers.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/02/black-metal-monachopsis-art-empty.html

6-Dødheimsgard -"Black Medium Current" 

The 6th album this band has released since 1995 means that they value quality over quantity. Their first album in eight years, finds that they are still Norwegian black metal in the truest since of the term, but they are not just trying to replicate what Darkthrone once did. They are not afraid of blast beats, but do not depend on them, while sung vocals are used almost in equal measure to the harsh growls as They shift through many melodic moods and atmospheres.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/04/ddheimsgard-black-medium-current.html

5-Cloak - "Black Flame Eternal "

This  Atlanta band might have  finally hit their creative stride with album number three.  The songwriting stomps with more debilitation. The influence of Dissection is still here and heard on "With Fury and Allegiance".  While fellow Atlantans Withered have flirted with black metal influence in the past , these guys are the first to really commit to it. The layers of guitar benefit from the evolution of production that hits the sweet spot on this album. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/05/cloak-black-flame-eternal.html

4- Shining - "s/t" 

My favorite depressive black metal band is back for album 11. They are stepping back into their old ways. Niklas is joined by two former members of Cradle of Filth, to bring a darkly unrepentent vision of sonic darkness, that pays homage to classic metal in it's own way, as King Diamond's Andy Laroque produced the album as well as adds a guest guitar spot. This album is darker and has more malicious intent than Cloaks more theatrical efforts.  

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/08/shining-st.html

 

3-Hexvessel - "Polar Veil" 

With this project's 6th album, things have taken a turn to black metal. The metallic buzz of guitar casts chilling shadows behind the mournful vocal melody. It moves at more of a drone, but with the dreary chant of the vocals it somehow works. He does have a black metal past, so this is not a surprise in how these sounds are married. The fact this album takes the risk of showing clean vocals can hold down a black metal album elvevates it over the heavier release by Shining. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/07/hexvessel-polar-veil.html

 

2-Wayfarer- "American Gothic" 

This band has gotten progressively better with each album. This one is more metallic than their last. The Western-tinged throb of guitar is still in the mix.  They still hold plenty of snarls, though lean into a more deliberate double bass attack rather than adhering to the blast-beaten formula of black metal. The  have gone deeper into their dusty brand of black metal, with more power and authority than Hexvessel earning them this spot.  

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/10/wayfarer-american-gothic.html

 

1-Downfall of Gaia -""Silhouettes Of Disgust."

This album is more black metal in its feeling than what I remember of the 2019 album. It is both darker and more aggressive. The soaring atmosphere still lingers, but not enough to stop this raging storm of sound they are creating here. The world is a darker and angrier place, so this is fitting. It takes more chances than Wayfarer, who are also great songwriters, but in more of a well-fitted groove, as Downfall of Gaia, is not content with a formula. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/02/black-metal-history-month-downfall-of.html

Wayfarer : "American Gothic"

 

This is a band that has gotten progressively better with each album. Their last album took the number 2 spot in the best black metal albums of 2020. After a great deal of fanfare and a Western-tinged throb of guitar, they get into their more black metal side, which going into this album I was going to be not surprised if they abandoned that entirely. They still hold plenty of snarls, though lean into a more deliberate double bass attack rather than adhering to the blast-beaten formula of black metal. They waste no time lurching into their dark and dusty brand of black metal on the second song. The title of the song "The Cattle Thief' shows they are straying from the typical hymns of darkness to telling tales of grim Americana and the desperation that unfolding in the Wild West. Two songs in and I am already feeling that this is going to be a more metallic album than the last one. Melodic singing does creep in toward the end of the song. 

"Reaper on the Oil Fields" finds the sung vocals behind a distorted filter mixed behind the clang of guitars. I love how the darkness is allowed to simmer. "To Enter My House Justified" still carries the haunted western sound but couple with the epic rage of Immortal. "A High Plains Eulogy" is much more melodic than the previous songs. It features sung vocals as the focus. The overall feel of the creeping riff is darker. "Black Plumes Over God's Country" is more straightforward, though not fast-paced, and employs clean guitars where the chorus would be. They take the road less traveled in this regard by slowing down, then speeding up thanks to the double bass, coming out of this section.  There is a cool guitar solo that adds to the mood rather than dazzle with shredding. 

The last song "Final Constellation" is another song that features sung vocals as the focal point. It has the ringing western feel to the guitars but flows with a hypnotic shoe gaze-like pulse to create something that is very original sounding. This unexpected return to a more straightforward metal album that is still colored by the Western influence comes together in a beautifully dark manner, and shows how they have matured,. I will give this one a 10. This album drops October 27th on Profound Lore. 

The Top 10 Black Metal Albums of 2020

In todays world we need the hateful nature of black metal more than ever. Here is the best of the  current crop. As with years past I sort through the genre lists before making the overall top ten of the year list. I know many of you are ready for 2020 to be over with. Hate to break it to you but nothing is getting better next year. As far as 2020 goes for black metal  there is  only1 new band on this years list . It's been a year for the tried and true though none of the standard veterans from the first run of the second wave. The very fact these bands made it on the list speaks to how great these albums are, so it's not a slight that the number 8 album is above the 9th album, there is something that just gives it an edge that makes me want to listen to it more. After all we can try to look cool and pick the hippest bands for a list, but at the end of the day what makes an album the best is that it makes you want more, you look forward to listening to it again. Sure you can bitch and complain about your favorite band not being on the list. However I listen to five new albums a day so yes I heard your favorite album and was not impressed. No I do not care what you think about it .I do hope you can find your next favorite on this list and have included links to reviews of these albums if you want to check out audio on these guys. Anyways here are the top 10 Black Metal  albums of 2020

10--Autumn For Cripple Children- "All Fell Silent, All Went quiet"

For 11 years years this band from the Netherlands has been brining it with very little fanfare from the metal press. They have dipped in and out of varied incarnations of post- rock and shoe gaze, but this album finds them shifting their the haze to get their snarl back. 

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2020/04/an-autumn-for-crippled-all-fell-silent.html

9- Curse Upon A Prayer - " Infidel" 

This band from Finland is back to make black metal hate again. They make no bones about going after Islam and I respect the hell out of that. This album finds both their range of sonics and songwriting expand. These guys are not a gimmick and serious song writing willing to rip your face off. It is this need to hate that gave them the edge to grab the number 9 spot. 

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2020/02/black-metal-history-month-curse-upon.html

8- Uada- "Djinn" 

This album finds the Portland band excelling at both songwriting and in the sounds they have crafted here, as the band continues to expand their sound. It had drawn some unfounded post punk comparisons. The riffing is very metal, though it is dark and has a fair amount of tension to it. Their songwriting was refined enough to put them at number 8. 

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2020/08/uada-djinn.html

7-Kall- "Brand" 

The boys from Lifelover are back. They have not brought any sunshine this time either. The amount of growth since their 2014 debut is off the charts. They jam the songs out as elements of jazz dance around the depressive tapestry of sound. They command more sonic range than UADA , giving them the number 7 spot.  

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2020/08/kall-brand.html

6- Forgotten Tomb- "Nihilistic Estrangement"

Dark and melodic, while not sacrificing the venom to their hell fire. They really stepped up on all levels and gave the songs more grounded and urban feel than the bulk of black metal out today securing them here at number 6. 

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2020/05/forgotten-tomb-nihilistic-estrangement.html

 

5-Vous Autres -"Sel de Pierre" 

This French band continues to lay to waste with a surreal blend of atmosphere and emotionally crushing  riffs to terrorize your ears. All done with the most monstrous beauty.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2020/08/vous-autres-sel-de-pierre.html

 

4-Svnth "Spring in Blue"

One reason I like doing these end-of-the-year lists is how they make me go back and listen to albums that I liked earlier in the year and forgot about. This was one of those. I did tell myself I was going to download this and just now got around to downloading it. That is how 2020 is though. It is everything a thinking man might want from modern black metal. 

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2020/08/svnth-spring-in-blue.html 

3- Tombs - "Under Sullen Skies"

 Yeah it is a tough year for black metal when these guys do not take the top spot. That is not a slight on this album. In fact it is the heaviest of the top 3. They do delve into their more gothy side at time, but for the most part it is hammering and in your face. Mike Hill is pissed and that makes me happy.

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2020/11/tombs-under-sullen-skies.html

2- Wayfarer - " Romance With Violence" 

These guys are not content with just being heavy anymore. This is sound track to a western in hell. The range of dynamic here is stunning., It was a tough call between this one and the album that took the top spot, it just came down to which one I listened to more. This album is not just one of the best black metal albums to come out this year it is one of the best albums of any genre. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2020/11/wayfarer-romance-with-violence.html

1- Chrome Waves - "Where We Live" 

This is the least black metal album of the 3, but it is the best. They ride the line between shoegazing and black metal so hard that I have to listen through the entire album and compare it song by song to see where it fell, it was a 60/ 40 mix. Making it still more black metal than most Deafheaven albums. Not just the best black metal albums of the year but in the top 10 best albums overall. 

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2020/09/chrome-waves-where-we-live.html

Wayfarer : " A Romance With Violence"

When it came out two years ago "Worlds Blood" was one of my favorite black metal albums. It is not play by the rules . Their newest album goes in two directions, one of them is more towards the Western sounds that was a subtle under current, the other is more traditional black metal. No one can say they made the same album twice. The chord progression are blue grass , but played as black metal. Well I do not remember much in the way of actual singing on the last album that is what we are getting here. It makes me think of what it might sound like if Nick Cave sang for Jane's Addiction. It is pretty gothy and I am of course fine with that .  This is a good example of why different and not what you expected can be a pleasant surprise. 

 The ten minute "Masquerade of the Gunslinger"s is a great song, aside from the sung middle section it is more in line with the previous album. The sun middle part just show how they are expanding the range of colors. Things are not as black , but the shading here brings out the curves of the songs. This album is wonderfully produced it really sounds great. After an instrumental interlude, they bring both sides of their equation together for the last song that doesn't feel like it's  ten minute run time due to the great dynamic interplay of the western strum, with reverbed vocals that builds into a black metal burst then ebbs back down. 

It almost sounds like a different band , but it is the same line up that recorded their last album. What a difference two years can make. Their drummer is also in Blood Incantation so it is not like he has lots of time to just jam around. Pretty close to being pretty perfect, this one is going to give Tombs and Chrome Waves a fight for the top black metal album honors . I will round this up to a 10. 

the Top 50 Heaviest Albums of All Time : 50 - 41

The idea to make this list came as I was trying to make an apocalypse playlist. These are heavy times and they make me want to listen to the most crushing music I have. Metal is like drugs. What seemed heavy at first no longer does after a time so you have to up your dose of heaviness in order to get the same result. I extended the invitation on social media for people to nominate albums with the caveat that the bar for heaviness these albums needed to surpass was Morbid Angel's "Blessed Are the Sick " album. It's the band's heaviest and while Morbid Angel is one of my favorite death metal bands they are not the most crushing . They are good at what they do. Some of the albums that got nominated did make the cut. There was however a great deal of mention of bands like Mercyful Fate and Black Sabbath, both of whom are among my favorite bands not just metal , but off all time. However this is not a list of my favorite bands. Nor is it s list of the most influential albums . It is a list of the heaviest albums. Ones that are crushing in a way that makes listeners of lesser metal uncomfortable. When you put Black Sabbath up against the albums on this list, while they influenced most if not all of the musicians playing on them Sabbath comes across as just harder edge rock. This is not taking away from Ozzy and the boys that is just how it is.  

When asked how is heavy being defined the best answer I have given is " the density of sound, sonically intense with an malevolent emotional intention behind it" . So just loud and distorted are less than the bare minimum. I need musicians using their instruments to create darkness and torment. Things like playing fast might factor in here and there , but speed alone doesn't make anything heavy. There are tons of fast punk bands that are not heavy. Just tuning low is not heavy, Korn certainly is not on here. There are many different factors that play into each album to earn it's place here and different genres as well with Death Metal, Black Metal , Grind Core and Sludge having the best showing those a few thrash bands and doom bands made the cut . Any ways here are the top 50 heaviest albums of all time.  

50 Morbid Angel- " Blessed are the Sick"

The bands heaviest album, it sounds like they are using their instruments to worship ancient demon gods. The music lives up to the blasphemous declarations of the lyrics. 

49- Starkweather - "Into the Wire" 


Metal mixed with hardcore once worked. These guys are proof. They sound totally unhinged with t the darkness spewed out on this album .  

48- Watain- "Sworn to the Dark"

Black metal can fall into the trap of relying on blast beats , which becomes an atmospheric drone rather than carrying any kind of heft. These guys believe in what they are snarling about which gives an added intention to the spirit of their music. It is most pummeling on this album. 

47-Wayfarer - " World's Blood"

Blending black metal with sludge this band proves you do not have to forsake all semblance of melody in order to be heavy. In fact it is the creepy quality of the guitar melodies that make this heavier. 

46-Godflesh- "Streetcleaner"

This 1989 album has stood the test of time and is just as crushing today as when it come out . 

45- Fister- " No Spirit Within"

These nasty sludge bringers bring a balanced blend of density and darkness with a doomy hopelessness pervading the songs. 

44-Entombed- Left hand Path


In 1990 this album created the template for death metal coming out of Sweden from that point on. With a more jagged guitar one and riffs that hit like hammers.

43-Coffins - "the Fleshland"

Tokyo's death doom warlords destroys your ear drums like a zombie Godzilla on this album. 

 42-Brutal Truth- "Extreme Conditions Demand Extreme Responses"

Helmed by Dan Lilker  from Nuclear Assault when this album came out in 1992 it was on of the heaviest things going at the time . 

41- Today is the Day- " In the Eyes of God"

Vocals can often become an after thought in more extreme forms of metal, this album uses them to create a more deranged narrative that furthers the deranged atmosphere.

the Top 10 Black Metal Albums of 2018

It is that time again. Black Metal is in a weird place this year. There is no lack of it, as the sub-genre has left it's stain on almost all forms of metal, it is the attitude that finds it's self being compromised and watered down. Hateful was one of the best days once used to described it's sound and now that is being apologized for due to the current political climate.So here are some band's who help make black metal hate again. The score from my reviews to help determine the ranking , but also how many times Last FM told me I listened to each album.An album can have all the critical acclaim in the world but if it does not inspire multiple listens then how good can it actually be ?

While the top ten lists for other genres leaned more heavily on the side of  new blood for black metal is was the  more well established acts who put out the greatest quality albums .  Rather than posting media of a track from each band I am leaving a link to the review, which will contain Bandcamp or Full Album Streams. Ok enough talking about it, the time has come to dig into the top 10 black metal albums of 2018.

10-Mutilation Rites - "Chasm"

 Many of New York's black metal bands come from the hipster circles of Brooklyn. They bring elements of punk, post-rock and avant garde indie rock into the mix. Mutilation Rites separates themselves by only bringing more metal into the equation. Most of the improvements come from the production end, as they might weigh in on more of the death metal side of  their sound, but the identity of the band is firmly intact even with line up changes.

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2018/07/mutilation-rites-chasm.html

9- Hegemone- "We Disappear" 


 While this album originally scored lower than Mutilation Rites , it grew on me and I listened to it more. It's woeful blackened Sludge that throbs against scathing screamed vocals . Occasionally the vocals drop down into a lower growl. There is a weird almost industrial pounding breaking down mixed with post- rock , so these guys are not afraid to step out and experiment. They have the dark sonic intensity that I am on the look out for in heavy music.


 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2018/08/hegemone-we-disappear.html

8-Curse Upon a Prayer -"Three Woes"


 Make Black Metal hate again.This band from Finland has the balls to not give a fuck and this album lashes out at Islam. Now there is a political slant since aside from the hippies in Sweden, the rest of Scandinavia tries to be fairly isolationist.Thundering double bass, blast beats and tremolo picked guitar all do their part to make this black metal as fuck.Their are hints of melody in the guitar. They passion with which they throw themselves into their music compensates for anytime they might not be the most original band on the planet.


 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2018/05/curse-upon-prayer-three-woes.html

7-Cultes des ghoules-"Sinister" 

 The fourth album from the Polish black metal band finds , an almost more Urfaust sound . The vocals are more sung in a resonate bellow on the first song , than howled or screamed manically. They continue to get darker , though perhaps not heavier.It's a mature effort on their part and finds a balance between making fans of true black metal happy as their grim souls can be, without getting stale and embracing experimentation.

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2018/09/cultes-des-ghoules-sinister.html

6-Mol- "Jord"

This album came out in April and almost breezed by under the radar which would've been a damn shame. They hammer into their songs with a meaner sneer than the bulk of the so called "black gaze' bands despite being not far removed from Deafheaven sonically. Most of the songs are strong and they take what could be a tired bandwagon and freshen it up.

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2018/06/mol-jord.html

5- Nachtmystium- "Resilient"

 These guys are one of my favorite black metal projects. They are not all blast beats. In fact it's just a dark tortured pulse. Very similar to depressive suicidal black metal, though Judd is just not being melodramatic about it and has tried to kill himself in other ways than the most obvious , which I think is also a metaphor for his music. Better than most black metal acts have mustered since it is not at all redundant.

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2018/12/nachymystium-resilient.html

4-Craft - "White Noise and Black Metal" 

 Right from the smoother guitar tone of the first song it's obvious things are now very different for this band. The sonic sprawl of their sound allows them to get away with more blast beats than before It is however not as hateful as I hope which took at period of adjustment for me, but in the end it did grow on me. It's less confrontational and more mature, a phrase that might not seem to be praise in many black metal circles , but here it works for what they are doing.

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2018/06/craft-white-noise-and-black-metal.html

3-Wayfarer "World's Blood" 

 This band from Colorado creates some dark brooding metal that makes you forget they are from the States. The vocals are a lower growl that leans more in the death metal direction. When they pick up the pace there is the shadowy feeling looming with a more black metal influence. So regardless of genre there is a great mood and atmosphere coating this album. Some songs ebb and flow into clean passages like more kinetic version old Agalloch. This album grew on me in the best ways possible thanks to it's well balanced sense of dynamics and a great dark guitar tone.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2018/08/wayfarer-worlds-blood.html

2-Watain-"Trident Wolf Eclipse"



Watain are back with a renewed venom on their 6th album. They hit you with a thundering combative thrashing dialed way up. There is more of a blasting fury colored feral rawness yet retaining the more nuanced accents of their songwriting. In tone compared to "the Wild Hunt" proves this to be a much more straightforward black metal album, as they return to their more mean spirited roots. They band could have easily said "This album is going to be a return to our heavier more punishing sound, and they would not have been lying.


https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2017/12/watain-trident-wolfe-eclipse.html

1-Totalselfhatred - "Solitude" 


7 years since their last album, they once has a more aggressive take on depressive black metal,but it is hard to complain about what goes down as it's so well done. My ears can not escape the fact that the first song falls neatly into the depressive black metal box, where their earlier work had more of a unhinged feral quality to it. I also don't remember synths and piano playing as big of a role as they do here. The album really needed to be played loudly in order to soak in all the layers. Maturity is one of this album's characteristics. Gone are the rock god solos, but everything well played, with no doubt they are excellent musicians who have grown up to serve the song. They are little more mellowed with time, but with a wider depth of emotion.


https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2018/02/black-metal-history-month.html

Wayfarer : "Worlds Blood"

I like the fact this Colorado based black metal band doesn't start their album off with blast beats. Some do show up a minute and a half into things, but that is more variation than most of the black metal sitting in my in-box. Three minutes in it slows to a darker more melodic section that has a slight western feel. The 13 minute "On Horseback They Carried Thunder" is more metallic in it's intent , but otherwise sonically in the same range as the first song. The only difference is much like the title suggests the guitars take on more of a gallop.Unlike the first song this is also more typical black metal. In the final moments of this epic they twist in more atmosphere.

"the Crows Ahead Cry War" opens with reverb tinged guitar stirring a storm over the old west. It builds more like something Neurosis used to do  when they were a metal band. The dynamics allow the song to simmer rather than pummel you. The vocals are lower throaty growl. It gets even more melodic in the last two minutes of the song, finding this band continuing to expand the range of  color they use. "the Dreaming Plain" stays at a mid-paced throb. The vocals go up into more of a croak. They use double bass to build it up in almost a more Enslaved like manner. This picks the pace up and keeps the song moving. It evolves from the original pulse building from their rather than a shift in riffs altogether. Their are some stronger accents employed and dynamic shifts into more melodic realms.

The album ends with the almost country strum of "A Nation of Immigrants". Clean vocals appear, there are a hollow mournful chant as much as they are sung. The song has a hypnotic drone. While I like where they are going, they never seem to get there as the song stays on this drone. I'll round this album up to a 9.5 as it brings fresh sounds to the table, while it might not be the most Cvlt take on black metal its a great album that is both dark and melodic in the face of dense heaviness.

Wayfarer: "Old Souls"

This band from Colorado creates some dark brooding metal makes you forget they are from the States. Primarily they strike me as being a blackened death metal band with the vocals leaning them more in the death metal direction. When the pace picks up a little toward the end the shadowy feeling reinforces the looming black metal influence, but over all there is just a great mood and atmosphere coating this death metal which gives your ears the impression of black metal. There is more of a strum to the interlude "Frontiers" which strikes as just the intro to "Old Souls New Dawn".  This song begins much more melodically, sure their are some moments that might make you think this is pagan or folk metal due to the more epic scale they build this upon, but the same could be said for Unleashed who is a death metal band.

The songs are all on the longer side, tipping the scales at over ten minutes, but this is time well spent. Things get increasingly melodic, but never drone or grow stagnant. "Catcher" has an almost accessible groove to it. The song swings with the drums sitting back in the pocket.  Two minutes in things switch up with a cleaner guitar part that the drums play around rather than locking in with, however in this case it works. They really cram so much into this four and a half minutes it makes me wonder if they needed to use all ten of those minutes on the first song. "Deathless Tundra" backs off a little allowing a spacious bleak melody to form. They build the tension and then let you glide over in a very progressive fashion. They song throbs and pulses more than it tries to beat you over the head with the riffs which works much better for me.

"The Dust Lakes" steers them more towards post-rock. The guitars sound great so I am not complaining. It works better than when they blast into "All Lost In Aimless Chaos". They songs hit some ebb and flow into clean passages like old Agalloch, but it is much more kinetic.I'll round this up to a 9, I am not sure I'll put it on the iPod, but will give it some thought. This is great death metal with a touch of other genres enough to give it a well balanced sense of dynamics, these guys have a great dark guitar tone.