NARBELETH
Svmma Cvm Nox Arcana
(Folter Records)
41:40min

Have I been hiding under a rock? I’d like to think my Metal knowledge is pretty stretched out. But how have I missed out on the glory that is NARBELETH for the past decade? How have I somehow not have bathed in the blissful blasphemy of Spain’s Black Metal duo’s music? I mean, goddamn. What the fuck? I had no idea what to expect when I pressed “Play”. And boy was I enlightened. Dakkar (all instruments and vocals) and Vindok (drums) know their Black Metal. With five albums in the bag, “Svmma Cvm Nox Arcana” being their most recent, without my damn knowledge they’ve been consistently creating classic-style darkness. The first track ‘Nox Arcana’ slaps me in the face immediately for not being familiar with them. The guitars sound like a flood of nastiness, the vocals are a demonic chattering from Hell and the drums keep the rapid pace as easily as a maggot eats the insides of a corpse. ‘Cold Whisper Carried By The Wind’ (great title!) is an emancipation of all we love about the genre. It’s aggressive, cold, dark and atmospheric. The third track ‘A Throne Over The Seven Stars’ continues the magic as ‘Gates Of The Beyond’ marches like an army of bloodthirsty orangutans. ‘Moon Of A Thousand Shapes’… You know what? Fuck this. It’s all fucking amazing. Why go track by track when I can easily just say “Give this a goddamn listen.” NARBELETH, where have you been all my miserable life? And where will you take me from here? Now it’s an absolute must to explore their back catalog. “Svmma Cvm Nox Arcana” is a Black Metal masterpiece for 2021. Can I call something a masterpiece when it was just released. You goddamn bet I can! I cannot wait to see what roads they take me down in the future. For more info, check out www.facebook.com/narbeleth.blackmetal, www.facebook.com/folterrecordsgermany

David Simonton

David Simonton

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