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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.

Hailing from the oft-overlooked UK black metal scene, WRITTEN IN TORMENT have been patiently perfecting their craft for nearly 20 years now. A demo and EP followed in quick succession in 2006, followed by a hiatus until 2013, when the debut album Bellum Omnium Contra Omnes was released. WRITTEN IN TORMENT, as ever, is helmed by mainman Leviathan, and he kept apace with a split in 2014, a demo in 2015, and then two full-lengths, Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum and Maledictus Dies Illa, in 2017 and 2019, respectively.

And now, at long last, WRITTEN IN TORMENT deliver their masterwork: Black Command. Presciently titled, Black Command finds Leviathan hitting a fever pitch of creativity, recasting old ghosts of '90s epic/melodic black metal - Throne of Ahaz, Abyssos, Midvinter, Prophanity, and Amsvartner among others - into dazzling new shapes. Rest assured, in word and deed is Black Command BLACK METAL to the hilt, but by no means does it strident traditionalism hinder it in the least. Ripping chops and deft textural layering take center stage across the album's six-song/41-minute runtime, creating a compact canvas that's somehow vast, which is to say nothing of the well-timed incorporation of acoustic guitars and cinematic synths. All this is filtered into a thematic framework focusing on the life and crimes of Jonathan Martin, the infamous arsonist of the Minster Cathedral in York. Joining Leviathan here - and no doubt adding further fuel to the fire - are Prometheus on lead guitars and keyboards and drummer Storm (Blasphemer, ex-Bal-Sagoth, ex-My Dying Bride).

Fourth press, Black vinyl, gatefold cover

New press, 2022 edition, Black Vinyl

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.

Limited Edition Digipak CD incl. 12 page booklet.

“INTER”, the debut album of German black metal quartet Fagus, offers six epic dirges deeply saturated with an eerily mesmerising ambience. The songs and arrangements are meticulously woven together, with the band having invested plenty of time and effort into an extensive pre-production process – during which the material underwent a comprehensive transformation from the initial draft to its final version. Consequently, when Fagus entered the studio, they had forged a crystal-clear understanding of what they wanted to accomplish and were able to initiate full tunnel-vision.

Once they emerged from the studio, they carried with them a comprehensive work of black metal fuelled by an atmosphere which, thanks to the tasteful interludes linking all the tracks together, does not let up from the first moment to the last. With some of its members involved in non-metal projects, there are plenty of influences from other forms of music – all processed through the lens of black metal. The result is a unique opus with many different layers to explore, likely to appeal to fans of bands like Imperium Dekadenz and Tardigrada.

The Demo Collection “Beyond Redemption – Demos & EPs 1989-1992” finally aggregates Afflicted’s (previously known as Afflicted Convulsion) historically significant pre-album demos, promos, and EPs into single must-own multi-disc package. Remastered by ace Patrick W. Engel (Corrosion of Conformity, Destruction) at Temple of Disharmony Studios, “Toxic Existence” (1989), “Psychedelic Grindcore” (1990), “Beyond Redemption” (1990), “Promo Tape” (1990), “Ingrained” (1990), “The Odious Reflection” (1990), and “Wanderland” (1990) have their original states carefully preserved and meticulously enhanced for all eternity. Re-discover Afflicted’s ascent from fledging brutes to world-class death metal innovators. “Beyond Redemption – Demos & EPs 1989-1992” will be released as Gatefold 180g 3LP with LP booklet, Ltd. 2CD Jewelcase in slipcase and digital album via Century Media Records.

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.