Happy Wednesday! This one is a bit different as there will be a bit of a double feature, click HERE to check out this week's other premiere. You can also check out all other editions of Extreme of the Extreme HERE.
Canada is known for its cold, brutal, snowy winters, making it the perfect breeding grounds for black metal bands if Norway is any indication. Astaroth Incarnate, formerly known simply as Astaroth, hailing from the great white north are preparing the release of their new EP Ascendance. Having already shown off two of the tracks on the album, these demon spawn have given us a chance to premiere the new release as a whole. The two previously released songs "I Am Fire/I Am Death (Alpha)" and "I Am Fire/I Am Death (Omega)" (referred to as simply "Alpha" and "Omega" going forward) are two very different sounding tracks used to convey an entire story.
The EP kicks off with "Alpha", a song that has gone through many iterations before this final release as any old school fans of the band would know. The song in its final form, takes on a much more Emperor or Dummy Borgir style of symphonic black metal. The orchestration pushes the song along and almost guides it into a less aggressive and brutal sound, into a more melodic one. "Omega" on the other hand, is much more about the instrumentals and much less about the vocals. The vocals, are much less extreme and more of a whisper throughout with a few moments of extremity. Guitarists Pablo Sagastume and Ric Galvez are put on the forefront to show off everything they have on this track and any guitar nerds will appreciate their work.
The EP ends with the Cradle of Filth hit "Her Ghost In The Fog". Astaroth Incarnate pull help from the classically trained Alina Gavrilenko, also known as Snowmaiden. While Gavrilenko does a wonderful job with the female vocals on the track and nailing them as they were in the original, vocalist Sam Astaroth takes his own approach. Although Astaroth does stick true to the vocals of Dani Filth, he pulls in his own influence and truly makes the track his own. This release is a big step for Astaroth Incarnate and anyone who's heard their previous album and demo work would be able to find how much the band experimented with new sounds and styles on Ascendance. Hopefully there's not too long of a wait for the next full length after this to see how the band incorporates everything into a full release. The album can be streamed in full below and Toronto area fans can check out Astaroth Incarnate as they play a few EP release shows!
Dec. 6th – Toronto – w/ Lindsay Schoolcraft (Cradle of Filth) and Darkstone Crows
Dec. 13th – Sudbury w/ Within Nostalgia and Miss Fire
Dec. 14th – North Bay w/ Within Nostalgia and Kylyk
Dec. 20th – Waterloo – w/ Stolos and Cathartic Demise
Dec. 21st – London – w/ Invicta and Age of Athena
