Black Cascade
http://www.heathenharvest.com
Black metal from the United States is a precious thing indeed. From beyond the waves hails many a great band such as Ceremonial Castings, Xasthur and Absu. One of the most profiled bands of them all however must be Wolves in the Throne Room(from now on called WITTR). The band is quite young with only five years in the back and two full length albums but has been ploughing up a lot of following around the globe, not least here in Sweden where this beast is located. So has this band from Lost Cascadia once again manage to conjure an album so great and unique that its nailed right into the heart of the black metal community? I would say yes, defiantly. The album starts of with the silent pouring of rain and it utterly enhances the albums brooding analogue sound perfectly mixed by Randall Dunn of Sunn O))).
The production is clean yet not overly done, a balance so slim that its almost nigh existing have been reach and is a very define moment of the album. The music is great with solid riffs, thundering drums and great melodies. Each song is a masterpiece in its own way and although four tracks might look a little thin for a full length album the whole album clocks at almost 50 minutes of pure quality black metal.
WITTR are a band deeply connected with mysticism and natural philosophies, an aspect that dragged me to the band like a fat maggot to a carcass. The mystical aspect of the band really shines through in the lyrical aspects and enhances the experience. The soundscapes are almost ritual in composition and summons a feeling inside that your part of something alive and brooding. The song Ahrimanic Trance is a bloody monster with its cold growing riff that really gives away a feeling of transcending boundaries.
The lyrics are solid and well written and the instrument handled masterfully. Its really hard for me to find anything in the album that haven’t been given the care it deserves, it is all in all a masterly experience breeding in the sensation of wandering the woodlands in the company of wolves. WITTR is featured in an article here at heathen harvest and I recommend you to go read it, and then go get your hands on this album. If you like black metal with a ritual approach laden with natural themes then you have no excuse, and should you not like it, then you have not yet opened your eyes. WITTR delivers, and that with a quantity unheard of in many circles of black metal.