For one not deeply rooted in the mechanics or goings on in the genre, sch as myself, black metal can be either really gripping or something I wish would fall between the cracks in the ground. Today's featured crew of deviants definitely find themselves in the company of the former. Barshasketh manage to keep this grind freak interested for the duration, something which even the biggest names in black metal have yet to accomplish. Chalk this up to some decidedly non-black metal elements of their sound? Maybe. Maybe I dig them more than most because they just rip evil, intense metal tracks? Make your own mind up.
Latest spin Ophidian Henosis has something to do with snakes and their relevance in the history of the Occult. Or something. These themes are lost on me but I'm sure people more vested in lyrical themes will really enjoy digging into them. I'm just all about the driving force behind some truly wicked tremolo picked riffs and grand tonal changes. Equally adept at reigning in the ferocity for slower, more sinister passages, this group of international blast smugglers turn devilish black metal into something more bombastic; again, I'm not a power metal fan by any means but some of the key changes and shifts remind me of the grandiose nature of that genre too. If the current crop of proto black metal acts don't whet your whistle, Barshasketh should moisten you up something rotten. I've been sitting on this one since July but it is definitely that time of year where this bag of bestial sounds needs to be ripped open and let loose.
Ophidian Henosis is available through World Terror Committee right now. Do it.
