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Issue #8, April 2025

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I know I have said this before, but many great bands have emerged from the American black metal scene in recent years. Back in February, I heaped praise upon Fellwinter, Gauntlet Ring, and Arbor, but there are several more entities I wish to highlight. The first is Saidan, who play a unique fusion of black metal and J-rock. Next is Klanen, whose work is as cold as the dusk-shrouded northern wastes. Finally there is Arazubak, a mysterious entity whose compositions are equally alluring.

Saidan - Onryo: Vengeful Spirits in the Eastern Night

Saidan's first release, Onryo: Vengeful Spirits in the Eastern Night, features a primitive version of the musical formula they would use on later albums. The production strikes a nice balance between lo-fi abrasiveness and clarity. The drums frequently switch between rapid blast beats and mid-paced punkish rhythms. The vicious high-pitched screams sound like they're being made by the titular vengeful spirits. The many tremolo riffs are steeped in melody, and the chord progressions draw influence from J-rock. It's an unorthodox well to draw from, but the end result sounds great. The final track is the best one on here, for it features the most memorable riffs.

Saidan - Jigoku: Spiraling Chasms of the Blackest Hell

This album begins with ominous echoing female vocals and ambient sounds before launching into a raging black metal assault. The later tracks reveal that the band has improved their musical formula. The many raging blast beats are broken up at regular intervals by finely crafted fills, and their punkish rhythms show a lot more polish. The screams and howls are not as high-pitched, but they are more vicious. The tremolo riffs are more refined and their melodies occasionally borrow from the Finnish scene, but the J-rock influence has grown stronger. What really surprised me were the excellent solos and the Slayer-style thrash metal breakdowns. I never thought I would hear breakdowns in a black metal album, but there you have it. I also enjoyed the slow and somber final track. It serves as a nice change of pace.

Saidan - Onryo II: Her Spirit Eternal

Saidan's second full-length album, Onryo II: Her Spirit Eternal, does not waste any time getting into the action. From the very first second, the band assaults you with rampaging yet melodic black metal. A few minutes later, they slow down and place even greater focus on the melody. The blast beats and mid-paced patterns continue to receive greater amounts of polish, and there are even moments when they play galloping rhythms full of double bass. The screams and howls still sound superb. Once again, the guitars are what truly amaze. The tremolo riffs are sometimes menacing and other times atmospheric. The Slayer-style breakdowns once again appear on songs like "Queen of the Haunted Dell." The J-rock influence has grown even more prominent, manifesting itself in copious amounts of lively and infectious chord progressions. The whole experience is at times dark and brooding and other times invigorating.

Saidan - Visual Kill: The Blossoming of Psychotic Depravity

Saidan fell silent for two years, but then they returned in 2024 with Visual Kill: The Blossoming of Psychotic Depravity, their best album to date. It is the culmination of everything they have recorded in the past. The production is cold but clear. The furious blast beats, galloping rhythms, energetic punk rhythms, and elaborate fills are all finely crafted and delivered with absolute precision. The screams have taken on a raspy quality that sounds similar to most other black metal bands, but they still display immense skill and passion. As with all their past albums, the guitars are what shine brightest on here. The tremolo riffs are a perfect blend of dark, melodic, and atmospheric. The punkish riffs are extremely lively and the breakdowns are diabolical. A strong J-rock influence weaves its way through all of these different riffs, manifesting itself in profoundly catchy melodic passages. The most infectious of these can be found on "Desecration of a Lustful Illusion" and "Visual Kill." This influence is also evident in the many build-up/release sections, where the music gets slow and quiet, then gradually builds up tempo before unleashing into a musical assault. The band prove their immense talent by flawlessly incorporating this element into a black metal context. Visual Kill: The Blossoming of Psychotic Depravity is one of the best and most engaging metal albums of 2024, and Saidan is one of the best and most inventive black metal bands currently active.

Klanen - Yours Is the Light By Which My Spirit Is Born

Klanen's first EP has the poetic title of Yours Is the Light By Which My Spirit Is Born. The music is frigid and harsh, but also slightly melodic. The production is extremely cold, but all the elements can still be heard well. A drum machine is used, but it's not too obnoxious. It also plays some nice blast beats and galloping double bass rhythms. The rasps and howls are drenched in reverb, giving them a sinister ghostly sound. Most of the time the tremolo riffs have a traditionally dark and ominous quality, but hints of melody show themselves on occasion. They also play slow and brooding chord progressions that border on sounding like depressive black metal. What a strong debut this was.

Klanen - I Command the Night to Fall

Four months after the release of Yours Is the Light By Which My Spirit Is Born, Klanen released a second EP called I Command the Night to Fall, another poetic title. The production quality is slightly worse as it sounds more muffled, but I've listened to black metal albums that had far worse production than this, so that's not a problem for me. Strangely enough, the drums sound stronger here, especially during the blast beats. I love the snare sound. The upbeat and galloping rhythms also have a bit more refinement. The raspy vocals have a classic quality to them. No complaints there. The drums play many more punkish rhythms this time around, but there are still plenty of simple blast beats to be had. The raspy, reverb-drenched vocals have remained the same, but the guitars have become just as punkish as the drums. They almost remind me of Vlad Tepes. Despite this, they still include ice cold tremolo riffs that occasionally show bits of melody, the best of which can be found on the final track.

Klanen - Coerced into Desolate Eternity

Barely four months passed between I Command the Night to Fall and Klanen's first full-length album Coerced into Desolate Eternity. Just like most other raw black metal bands that came before, this one-man act is very productive. The production here is, to put it politely, an acquired taste. It's much more muffled than it was on their first two demos. I still got used to it, though, so it wasn't that much of a problem for me. The music itself, on the other hands, shines even more brightly than it did in the past. The minimalist blast beats put on a fantastic display of rage and fury. The thumping double bass during the mid-paced rhythms also have great impact despite the muffled sound quality. The raspy vocals are now accompanied by bellowing growls that sound like they're being made by some diabolical creature lurking in utter darkness. The tremolo riffs sound menacing one moment and morose the next, and the melodic passages here sound even better than those on their previous works. Despite the muffled production, the magnificent qualities of the music still make themselves known. This album is an excellent tribute to the raw black metal bands of decades past.

Saidan & Klanen - Saidan / Klanen Split

Less than one month after Klanen released their first full-length album, they joined Saidan on a split. Saidan is first. This is shortly after the release of their first demo Onryo: Vengeful Spirits in the Eastern Night, so the J-rock influence is not as prominent as it would become on their later work. The music is still engaging regardless. The blast beats and mid-paced rhythms are still invigorating, the high-pitched screams are still frightening, and the tremolo riffs still offer up a mix of nocturnal frigidness and wondrous melody. They even include a nice Slayer-style breakdown and fantastic solos. Klanen is next. The production quality has been drastically improved. It no longer sounds so muffled, which allows the finer musical details to come through more clearly. The minimalist blast beats are still furious and the mid-paced rhythms are still energetic, but then they proceed to make things more interesting by punctuating all of these patterns with fills. The raspy vocals and bellowing growls still boil with anger. The tremolo riffs have become more intricate, and the melodies have become more gripping. Rarely have I seen such a huge improvement over such a short period of time.

It did not take long for this to become one of my favorite split albums. Both bands featured are immensely talented and offer up amazing work.

Arazubak - Demo I

Arazubak come from an undisclosed location in America, and they play a style of black metal that feels equally mysterious. Their first demo features an even mix of LLN foreboding and Eastern European melody. The production conceals the music in a cloud of fuzzy distortion, thereby amplifying its mystique. The drums alternate between simple blast beats and thumping mid-paced rhythms. The vocals consist of a ghastly raspy howl that is cloaked in reverb. They also throw in a few growls on occasion. The frigid tremolo riffs conjure up images of snowstorms. Sometimes these are broken up by either melodic passages or sinister mid-paced chord progressions. The tight instrumental work and the dark, atmospheric production make for a great first demo.

Arazubak - Arazubak

Almost half a year after the release of their first demo, Arazubak put out their self-titled full-length debut. The production is a bit cleaner, but the musical formula has remained mostly the same. The drums still churn out simple, furious blast beats; the raspy howls still sound ghostly; and the guitars still provide lots of cold tremolo riffs and dark mid-paced chord progressions. The only major difference I've noticed is that there is a slightly greater emphasis on melody. Some of these passages sound like Judas Iscariot but done better. This release is not reinventing the wheel, but it doesn't need to. It's full of great music, and that's what truly matters.

Arazubak - The Haunted Spawn of Torment

Arazubak's self-titled full-length debut and their second full-length The Haunted Spawn of Torment were just two days shy of being released exactly one year apart. This is one of those cases where a band makes incremental modifications to their formula instead of drastically changing themselves with every recording. The drums still play raging blast beats, but there are also moments when they slow things down, creating a more somber mood. They also punctuate all of these patterns with fills. The raspy howls grow ever more sinister. The duality of the guitars continues to become more pronounced. The tremolo riffs are darker and more foreboding, almost sounding like the LLN at times. The melodic passages are more vibrant and heartfelt. The songwriting is also a lot more varied and dynamic. They play slow and quite depressive passages on "Full Moon Apparitions," and there is even a moment on "Bewildered by the Allure of Death" where they play palm-muted riffs that draw inspiration from traditional heavy metal. The music's core has been changed only slightly, but those small changes have led to huge improvements.

Arazubak & Nansarunai - Arazubak / Nansarunai Split

One year after the release of The Haunted Spawn of Torment, Arazubak released a split with Nansarunai. For those who don't know, Nansarunai is a raw black metal band from Indonesia that plays great music inspired by the French Black Legions. Arazubak play the first three songs. It's mostly a repeat of what they did on The Haunted Spawn of Torment, but it's still great. The blast beats and mid-paced rhythms still have a strong delivery. The reverb-drenched howls still sound haunting. The tremolo riffs and melodic passages are still pleasant to hear. It's consistent overall, and that's the best part. Nansarunai play the last three songs. Their offering is a bit more raw than Arazubak's, but the music is more chilling and frightening. The production makes the music sound like it's emanating from some long forgotten part of a dense jungle. The rapid blast beats and stomping mid-paced rhythms conjure up images of ancient warfare. The howls sound like they're being made by the ghostly people of a long dead civilization. The tremolo riffs induce a feeling of fear and panic most of the time, but they also include some graceful melodies on occasion.

This was a fantastic split album. Not only is the music performed very well and incredibly atmospheric, but it also shows the cultural differences between both bands. Arazubak is rooted in American horror and Nansarunai channels the mystic energy of Indonesia's distant past.

Arazubak - Betrayed by Devotion

Two years after their split with Nansarunai, Arazubak put out a short demo called Betrayed by Devotion. The production still has that exquisite raw quality, but the music has become more upbeat and slightly punkish. Aside from the blast beats and mid-paced rhythms they have done in the past, they also play lively and vibrant passages. The raspy howls are as haunting as ever, but the guitars have become much more melodic. The tremolo riffs and chord progressions have become less chilling and more triumphant. Some of these passages even remind me of fellow American black metal band Solar Cross. There are also moments on the second track when I can hear the bass quite well. This offering was quite short, but it was excellent nonetheless.

Arazubak - Misery

Earlier this year, Arazubak released an EP called Misery. It's more or less a continuation of what they had done in the past, albeit a bit darker in tone. The songwriting and melodies are still great, especially on the last track, but unfortunately, the whole thing is held back by the production quality. The cloudiness and atmosphere of the past have gone missing, so the songs aren't as engaging for me. There is still enjoyment to be had, though. Perhaps the band can rectify these aforementioned production problems on their next full-length.