As the mists of time shift, ancient treasures from the past emerge. Such is the wicked magic of Black Beast, a band who fell out of the scene in the late 2000s, and re-emerged triumphantly in 2019 with their debut full length, the masterful Nocturnal Bloodlust. Now the band has returned with Arctic Darkness, a masterful follow up that seemingly uses the darkness of the pandemic in order to refine bold new heights for the bands sound and jaw dropping approach. This is black metal done in the grand Finnish style and it's a delight to get lost in the madness.
Arctic Darkness impresses because of the breadth of the sound and the twisted vision that guides so much of it forward. There is a crippling power to songs like "Depths Of Damnation" and the way that it accelerates through your brain, pulverizing you with each crushing blast beat. There is also a real sense of rock and roll that defines some of these songs, like "Kuoleman Kylmästä Kosketuksesta" the hard hitting side 2 opener or the fist pumping "Night Of Arctic Darkness". It's a delight to let these blasts wash over you and suffocate you under a storm of swords. This is black metal executed at a million miles an hour. A masterclass of speed to choke out posers and make us all genuflect before the mastery of Finnish black metal done as it was always meant to be.
Black Beast understand the crushing power of the genre. Hearing them unveil stunning anthem after stunning anthem is a delight. They understand the genre in a deeply fundamental way and it's a delight to really sink your teeth into the twisted mayhem that they unleash here. If you're looking for your next wonderfully wicked black metal find then this is for you. Black Beast understand the power of darkness, it's on you to come and immerse yourself in the bitter world they have created for us all to suffer with them in.
Buy the album!
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