Astral Silence - Astral Journey

After a split late last year, we finally have the final product in this years first 2010 album for W-O-X.
If you enjoyed the tracks on the split, enjoy Darkspace and related space-age projects out there, then there's very little you should dislike about this.
Vast atmospheres with hints of dread and doom lurking with menace this is a good way to start the new year. Nebula Black Metal is back!

The Event Horizon

Nordreich - Auf heimischen Pfaden

Now how surprising is this..a Pagan Black Metal album on Xul.

Well before you click the red box containing an X, hang on a second.

This is actually pretty good.

Not being plagued with acoustics and clean vocals, this boasts some snazzy enjoyable riffs, ok, there is an element of a "pagan" atmosphere, but think to yourself more Cimmerian Hillmen and not so much "skinny hippy eating flowers and stroking ducks".

Say no to Haiti.

Xul works in wonderful and mysterious ways

DO NOT SUPPORT THESE ANIMALS, THERE WAS NO EARTHQUAKE, IT WAS SIMPLY A MACHINE SENT BACK FROM THE FUTURE. NO SYMPATHY! NO DONATIONS! XUL!

LET THESE ANIMALS DIE, LET THEM BURN AND SUFFER, DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY.

THIS WAS XUL'S WILL!

Heidenreich

A side project of good old Abigor's that would oddly be a foreshadowing of things to come for the band. Basically a sketchpad of PK's ideas that mixed industrial elements into some Abigor riffs. One can definitely see this as his experimental child for the time. They released an mcd and a cd and then he folded it to focus on Abigor and later Hellbound. Not too bad, if a bit of a disjointed approach to cyber bm.

GRIM AND BITTER HEART

Alastis

Switzerland's Castor and Pollux were Samael and their lesser known sibling Alastis. Similar in their approach, only Samael was the evil twin. The worship of the black mass and all things unholy until they found Laibach and blasted off into space. Alastis were left behind, the lonely, depressed and hopeless romantic that never got the attention of their more famous sibling.
Alastis focused more on a doomy and atmospheric form of dark metal that was surprisingly quite catchy and at times uplifting. They were masters of the subtle art of building their songs. Not in any new or creative ways, but in ways that just stuck with you. As much as we come back to Samael as a reference point, it's really quite easy to see that Alastis was Samael if they had continued to play in a metal style and focused on a more doomy and goth influenced approach. A relaxing listen not meant to make you focus on acts of domestic terrorism, Alastis is indeed a moody sort of beast to get you through your more downtrodden moments of life. They managed to mark out a 5 album career (including 3 on century media) and then called it a day... Not a bad legacy to leave behind.
Personally Revenge is the place to start at their most polished best, but ...And Death Smiled and The Other SIde are also excellent albums to begin with. Then absorb the other two as needed.



LIKE A DREAM

Choronzon

One of the most schizophrenic movements of cyber black metal ever created. The entire purpose of Choronzon is to exist to serve that demonic current the project is named for and I'll be fukked if it's not only pulled off, but voiced by Choronzon itself. An absolute mindfukk of a project and sound here, layers swirling all over the place over chaos chaos chaos chaos FUKKING HELL! Yeah, it's that good. Words fail it... Listening you are driven to violence, possessed by Choronzon, doing the deeds of Choronzon and running out the door to quickly murder any passersby that even dare add their voice to the noise coming out of your speakers.
Literally, this will drive you to do some acts of fun. Breaking into your neighbors to violate the anus of that crying baby never felt so good as when Choronzon was blasting as your fukktrakk.
This is the sonic equivalent of burning your candle at both ends... the energy is fantastic, but you know that you are dying all that much faster... Not only essential, but XUL absolutely orders you to listen. Panic Pandemic to begin with and then flush out the rest of your system. Pray to whatever God or void you wish, Xul has found a sibling spirit, and its name is Choronzon.

AESTHETIC SHOCK TACTICS

Fields of the Nephilim

Masters of the rock oriented world of goth, Fields of the Nephilim were at the top of the heap stylistically in the 80s. Taking a Pink Floyd influence, dabbling with Iron Maiden and old Western music, adding it to their 4AD palette in the process, then washing it it all down with some occultism themed material... all wrapped up in goths gone spaghetti western appearances. That difficult to attain but perfect blend of both sound and look in order to create that mystical aura to a band. They had it for sure. Very psychedelic in their own ways, this is one of those bands that is usually easy for metal fans to cross over into as their first forays into real gothic music. Capturing you with that spirit of other worldly dream state they sweep you away in their currents. One moment you're in the Old West, the next you're on the astral plane contemplating how you will ever get home again. The next driving down the highway without a care in the world as you feel death surrounding you on all angles with a welcome blanket of fuzzed out opiate warmth. Truly powerful stuff to absorb here and definitely not a band that can even begin to be scratched with just a casual surface listen. The band themselves eventually dissolved with vocalist Carl McCoy forming a more Ministry influenced outfit simply known as "The Nefilim", who released one lp (Zoon) included here for the sake of including it... Plus it's just one dark album.
You're going to want to start here with Revelations, then once that is a bit digested work your way towards Dawnrazor and Elizium and The Nephilim. Enjoy, as this is one of the finest examples of 80s goth that ever existed.

TAKE THE DREAM