CD

A newcomer hailing from Norway, SOLUS GRIEF is the work of one Peregrinus, who handles all instruments, vocals, and mixing & mastering. And where so many "one-man black metal bands" sound as much (or worse), SOLUS GRIEF buck that trend with a righteously robust sound and fully in-the-moment style of execution. In other words, Peregrinus sounds more like an actual band than many "bands" do.

With a Last Exhale is the evocatively titled debut of SOLUS GRIEF, self-released digitally late last year - and so entranced by its rigid-yet-unique style of black metal, PURITY THROUGH FIRE is now rightfully releasing the album on two physical formats. It would not be incorrect to assume a four-song/41-minute black metal record recorded by one man would be of the depressive/suicidal variety, and to some degree, both those appellations could be applied to SOLUS GRIEF. However, as Peregrinus soon displays, With a Last Exhale moves many, MANY places - and many of them quite surprising, despite remaining steadfastly within BLACK METAL - and with a jaw-dropping fluidity; this is NOT one-riff minimalism/"hypnosis" nor an expression living/dying on "atmosphere" alone. Indeed, with plenty of atmosphere to spare, Peregrinus' compositional skills astoundingly span the full reach of extreme metal, subtly (and tastefully) touching such boundaries as '90s melodic death metal, '80s epic doom, or even just proper heavy metal...but the expression is resolutely a black metal one, the emotions intense and inward, as befitting a title like With a Last Exhale. And the bass guitar here is something that must be experienced.

Reminiscence"' is the debut full-length album by German female-fronted Dark Rock entity Ellereve.

Not only the water’s stream nor the heavy stones surrounding Elisa on her album’s cover are hitting powerfully, but also her songs’ instrumentals develop like that. Ellereve floats between captivating, magical soundscapes made of reverbs and distortions. By mashing electronic elements, folk influences, post-rock vibes, and varied dynamics to raise intensity and tension - the German singer-songwriter unveils her heart-treading melancholy and introverted nature. A curious sound researcher,

Elisa taught herself how to produce music in 2019 to maintain artistic freedom and be more independent in songwriting. The music of Ellereve has been recorded with the precious aid of her live band, which actively complements the organic and multi-faceted songwriting of the artist. The final production was done with her good friend and producer Salomon Appiah (7Apes), with whom she already worked on her debut EP "Heart Murmurs".

The visual side of the album was captured by the experienced hands of Konstantin Alexandroff and Laura Patricia. The album will be released as a limited CD edition (incl. 4 Bonustracks), various vinyl editions, and on all digital channels.

Limited edition foilprinted 4 panel digipak.

This ethereal industrial album deals with the classic concepts of dreamland and death as different counties of the same realm and a sources of inspiration and relief of the pains and struggles of the material world. It also touches on Finnish mythological stories, dreamlike visions of creating and shaping the world. Musically somewhere between "ethereal" with the synth washes and vocals and "ambient-industrial" styles, with slight touches with traditional instruments like percussions, piano, glockenspiel, kantele and tenor recorder. There's traces of some very inspirational and legendary bands that can most likely be heard. Like dazy dreaminess and hypnotic discrepancy between the repetitiviness and chaotic improvisation of Coil, calm mythological old world wisdom of Dead Can Dance, and some splinters of the majestic psychedelia of Popol Vuh to mention the most important ones.

Limited Edition Digipak CD incl. 8 page booklet. Artwork by Joan Llopis Doménech.

“Alkai” is the fourth album of Lithuanian ritualistic dark-folk project Vėlių Namai. It serves as an open invitation to experience the mystical world of the Baltics - to feel the sacredness of its ancient past.

Draped in a sonic tapestry woven from a great variety of musical traditions, the listener is sent off on a hypnotic flight of the imagination. Ceremonial chanting and droning folk parts give way to a kind of otherworldly, trance-inducing techno performed with mostly organic instruments. As with the radically different music styles, digital and analogue sounds are fused together seamlessly. Pulsating minimalism merges with vocals and shamanic percussion to create a hypnotic soundscape coated by mesmerizing melodies played on guitars, lutes, and ethnic string instruments such as the Turkish baglama, Lithuanian kanklės and Latvian giga. This ambitious concoction boils down to an exquisite brew infused in equal parts with Dead Can Dance, Wardruna, Sigur Ros, and various electronic music.

Classic jewel-case CD incl. 8 page booklet.

Trench of Loneliness” is the fourth album of Iterum Nata – a psychedelic folk-rock project by Finnish multi-instrumentalist Jesse Heikkinen. While the music is occasionally upbeat, the general atmosphere has more in common with neo-folk than Jesse’s former band: Hexvessel, for whom he played lead guitar for five years. All aspects of Iterum Nata are profoundly inspired by the pagan worldview, esotericism, and the dark regions of the human mind; the result is something that could easily pass as the bastard offspring of Rome, Tenhi, Of the Wand & the Moon, Linda Perhacs, Espers, and early King Crimson.

“Trench of Loneliness” was recorded at Studio Beyond North Star. With the exception of Hiski Pajuniemi’s appearance on tin whistle, Jesse handled everything – from the composition to tracking and mixing – entirely by himself.

RÄUM was founded in 2020 in Liège - Belgium. The project emerged during the pandemic and offers a journey through the hopes, vices, fears and the decadence of human kind.
It reveals the vacuity and the auto-destructive nature of the human soul, leading to an endless movement of rise and fall. Like a demon, it needs to burn our world to the ground to reborn again.
Expressing a raw and multi-influenced Post Black Metal, the band creates desolate and melancolic atmospheres through oppresive and sometimes chaotic sonic wave.

11-Year Anniversary Edition of the since long unavailable EP

includes 4 bonus tracks and newly written essay on the featured songs by Kvarforth
mastered to perfection by Andy La Rocque in December 2022, and clad in refined artwork by Tuomas Tahvanainen and Nucleart Design.

Limited to 1000 copies

Collector's Edition in 4-panel digipack with 12-page booklet, limited to 500 copies.

Skratte was founded as a solo-project by Hevnbrann in 2012 in order to materialize his musical vision. Inspired by the coldness and brutality of Norwegian Black Metal as well as the characteristic versatility and harmonious playing of the French, Skratte combines the most diverse elements and motives in its distinct sounds.

While “Akt I” still had more of a classic, melodic Black Metal orientation with Folk elements, Hevnbrann allows “Akt II” to rise up against the boundaries of conventional Folk Black Metal, often crossing them and merging furious Black Metal with epic male vocals, Gothic Rock reminiscences, monumental acoustic arrangements and melancholic violins into a totally unique soundscape that reaches out to listeners and then draws them in relentlessly.

Thematically, “Akt II” gives a voice to the nature spirits and accompanies them on an emotional journey that takes them ever onwards, struggling and striving against the turmoil of today’s world.

Collector's Edition in Digipack with 12-page fold-out booklet with the lyrics on one side and a map of the territory on the other, limited to 500 copies.

While “Chapter One” told about a group of adventurers and their travel to distant Valdura, “Chapter Two” focuses on the arrival of Aryun and his companions in that mythical realm. Unexpectedly drawn into a long simmering conflict between the corrupt government and the resistance in Valdura’s capital Tordal, they meet the female resistance leader Tabe who informs them of the plight they just encountered.

For songwriter Erech the six songs on “Chapter Two” are the logical continuation of the music on the debut, with perhaps a bit less overall focus on straightforward melodic Black Metal and instead playing with influences from Power Metal and atmospheric Black Metal sprinkled with classic Folk songwriting. To that end, and more often than on the debut, the throaty, intoxicating voice of Circe takes center stage besides the raspy Black Metal vocals of Erech, and there she truly shines.