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Happy Birthday MER! You’re old enough to run now!

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It’s our birthday, so let’s indulge ourselves!

Blood Countess – Imperatrix Saguinis

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You wouldn’t be crazy to think that Blood Countess has a blood fetish. I mean, the album is called Imperatrix Sanguinus. Wasn’t it easier to just use a self-title? It’s also obvious there’s some infatuation with royalty. Anyway, if you haven’t noticed already, this is an old school Black Metal album that promises everything the style represents, and yet I’m cautious as usual.

Trve Kvlt #14

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You know what to do, click continue!

Atlantic Ridge – Atlantic Ridge

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Look at that awesome artwork. Doesn’t it make you wonder why almost nobody is willing to make Black-Doom? Is it even possible to make slow Black Metal? I don’t know, but here is Atlantic Ridge with their album Atlantic Ridge (how creative!). It’s a record trying to defy expectations. At this point in my life, I don’t have any. Hopefully, all the challenges come from a band ready to take down my prejudices.

Angellore – Nocturnes

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I see the album has five tracks and almost nothing below the five-minute mark. I started sweating, because when a band is this into length, there are only two ways to go: a blast or a bust. Angellore‘s Nocturnes has no easy task to fulfill. It’s going to be hard to make the time count, but that’s why you’re here—to see if you can find that hidden gem, right?

Wrang – Verwording

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You know what we haven’t done in a while? Reviewed some Black N’ Roll. Granted, it’s not the most common release in the mailbox, but that only made me more curious about what Wrang‘s Verwording had to offer. Will it be more static noise, or will it give us a great ride into tribulation? I assume it’s about the sea this time, because my Dutch is at a coma patient level. So let’s start.

Retro-Review: Between the Buried and Me – Alaska

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This review is dedicated to Patrick, one of our patrons. It was his pick. Thanks.

The year is 2005. Hurricane Katrina ravages New Orleans. London suffers a horrible terrorist attack. YouTube is launched. So is the Xbox 360. Yes. Right, the Metal. I almost forgot. It was an insanely strong year, to be fair. Something like a silver age, with Nile, Opeth, Arch Enemy, and Pelican releasing timeless classics. But today we’re going to talk about a criminally underrated gem: Between The Buried and Me‘s Alaska.

Doodswens – Doodswens

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Some would argue—and be kind of right—that pure Black Metal with genuine quality is kind of dead. Let me tell you that I sort of agree with this statement. However, that doesn’t mean we’ve given up the hopeless search. Enter Doodswens‘s self-titled album, a project that is still in diapers but promises a lot. In fact, everything about this thing screams commitment to the craft. Yet, I’ve been let down so many times before that I don’t want to hold my breath.

Six Feet Under – Next to Die

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Six Feet Under is back, and honestly, I’m terrified. Not because of how ruthless the material could be, but because in case you don’t know, the band has become a meme in our community regarding all the things you shouldn’t do as an old Death Metal band. So is Next to Die going to torture me out of this job? Is it going to be the most painful experience I have this year? You can see that my expectations are at least realistic.

Nixil / Drouth – Toward Dead Temples

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Time to do something I never do: reviewing a split. There’s just no moment for these eclectic releases. However, Nixil / Drouth‘s Toward Dead Temples caught my attention not only because I’m on a business trip and need a short release that takes less effort than usual—no, no. It’s because this thing radiated Blackened decadent energy, and I’m always in the mood for something like that. Aren’t you?