Melencolia Estatica - Letum (2008)
Aeternitas Tenebrarum Music Foundation

This is the follow-up to their previous slef-titled album & debut which left me with a very good impression.Letum is again a very good effort by Climaxia (yeap,the mainwoman of the band).With an improved production in terms of warmth and an organic feel 'Letum' hits off strongly with an Ulver inspired song that sets the mood convincingly. The melodies have an authentic nineties black metal feeling, an era rightfully revered by many. Now I'm not a guy that dwells in the past but it made me feel a bit nostalgic. Melencolia Estatica avoids clichés gracefully and therefore keeps it relevant. The melancholic mood is preserved throughout the album even though the blast-beat is the dominant rhythmic backbone. 'Letum' carefully balances between emotive parts and high-speed aggression. The result is an emotionally engaging black metal album of high quality.

8,5/10

Fen - Ancient Sorrow (EP,2007)

Northern Silence

Ancient Sorrow is the debut EP from atmospheric black metallers Fen. Mixing aspects of folk, ambient, black metal and prog the band create music that expresses loss, sorrow, exaltation and a sense of ancient pride, sounding like a cross between Rush and Mayhem. There are three tracks, the first, Desolation Embraced, an eight minute brooding track that follows a simple arrangement through epic guitar riffs and gentle keyboards. The harsh vocals utter their bile fuelled words across the uplifting melodies. The second track, The Gales Scream of Loss, is a rousing similar track, with a clean choir-like backing tethered to the tormented darker vocal deployment. Finally, Under the Endless Sky, clocking in at 12 minutes, is a step up in gear, and the rapid drum work is the only real difference to the otherwise still prevailing atmospheres of the previous track.With Ancient Sorrow Fen have created something dark and evil yet, at the same time, something majestic. Opening track “Desolation Embraced” is nearly nine minutes of experimentation with darkness. Surreal vocals layered over epic guitars and an atmospheric drum beat create this weird and wonderful maelstrom.Clean arpeggios (love it), distorted riffs,sometimes leaning more toward a whispered sort of grunt and discrete atmospheric keyboard passages following the pace of a kicking bass/drum duo. The heaviness mentioned comes from these last two elements, especially noticeable in the over-prominent bass drum sound.

8/10

In Vain - The Latter Rain (2007)

Indie Recordings

Four years into the making, In vain is ready to unleash their debut “The Latter Rain” to the world. From the point of not knowing anything about this new experimental extreme progressive metal act, I now am filled with desire to explore their creative paths to a full extent. Six full time members and fourteen guest musicians have created a unique product which will leave marks in the current international extreme metal scene. To tag In Vain as being “newcomers” is a blatant understatement as The Latter Rain is remarkably professional composed and produced.The Latter Rain consists of 10 tracks, clocking in on more than an hour of total playing time. What we're dealing with here is extreme metal with a great deal of melody, atmosphere and growing ability, music that has a complexity so grave that there's no chance you can pass judgements after just a couple of spins...It is customary at some point in a review to construct a frame of reference by naming some well-known representatives of a certain genre with which the band in question shares musical inclinations or directions, but with 'The Latter Rain' that would be a waste of time, as too much is happening to label everything specifically. Suffice to say that during the more that sixty minutes duration of this record, there is no dull moment to be found. It is not every day that something as good as 'The Latter Rain' is released!

8,5/10