Blood Torrent are one of those glorious secrets of German black metal that don't get nearly the recognition they deserve, but when you find out about them the scene suddenly starts to make a little more sense. Void Universe is a skull cracker any way you slice it and it's a delight to hear them turn it all the way up. Blood Torrent have a very real sense of bombast, and their willingness to lean into rollicking classic rock tropes and go faster than over the top with some of their sonic idioms makes for an album that is fun to listen too and sure to keep you coming back.
This is black metal with a slightly different vision. Rather than just seeking to emulate the gods of the genre, Blood Torrent draw from a broader set of influences meaning that their sound owes just as much to 70s hard rock gods as it does to classic black metal titans. The end result is a record that is bombastic and thrilling, fully aware of its own sense of dominance and fun, and which will leave you thirsting for blood. This is the magic of black metal brought back to some of its most primal components, and really letting the genre rock in a way that I feel many of the modern bands in the scene are afraid to do. Which is too bad - because it rules.
Void Universe is a masterful offering and one that I think underground devotees are going to eagerly be coming back too time and time again. Tracks like "The Cosmic Breakdown" act as perfect high powered fusions of classic rock and black metal, with tremolo guitars and frostbitten tones colliding into flashy solos and bluesy double stops. The end result can be a bit disorienting, but the black 'n roll elements that keep this band bloodthirsty and exciting are exactly the sort of thing to fascinate underground devotees.
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