Incinerated: The Epitome of Transgression
Out 14th July on BlackSeed
Lifts the clustered melodic density of late second wave black metal (think Cirith Gorgor or Gorgon) with a thread of fatalistic lamentation, topographically similar to modern dissodeath but pivoting more toward traditional melody, rendered abrasive by the freneticism of the performances. The strained emotion, and indeed the constant need for modern bands – when not indulging in pure nostalgia – to present the darkest, bleakest, most cavernously extreme expression possible (as opposed to the most fully realised), is a tiresome aesthetic. But Incinerated inject a degree of teleology into these lengthy tracks, a laboured coda that almost makes sticking around worth the trouble. Overworked technical death metal acts as midwife to this ordeal. But one has to admit that the project succeeds on its own terms. Their aim is not – as with so many of their contemporaries – to simply nail or hone a particular style, but to work within its limitations in order to eke out real architectural substance from the raw material.
Cancer Void: First Metastasis
Out 1st August on Me Saco Un Ojo/Iron Fortress
Dark, muscular death metal combines plodding mid-paced funeral marches with linear blast-beat driven punches alongside the rhythmic confidence of punk. Like much “quite good” modern death metal it succeeds in articulating a clear thematic intent, but appears unsure of how to proceed after clearing this first hurdle. In this sense it is perhaps too focused on maintaining its own coherence. Comparing this to the canonical works of the early 90s, one finds an unwillingness to be adventurous on one’s own terms. Classic death metal rode out in multiple and often contradictory directions, but was held together by a singular vision, a confidence in stylistic coherence no matter how far the material strayed from homebase. Cancer Void are clearly know what they’re doing within a set of limited parameters, but venturing outside of these is usually dictated by a dramatic stylistic shift that tends to jettison any accrued momentum. In this they are hardly a rarity, but the shortcoming is perhaps brought into sharper relief owing to the contrast between a well honed signature and the tentative flailing that occurs when they venture beyond these borders.
Ashen: Leave the Flesh Behind
Out 22nd August on Redefining Darkness
It’s something of a Christmas tradition in the UK to take the giblets of the turkey at the start of the day and boil the crap out of them. Ostensibly this is to make stock. But the true purpose seems to be little more than creating a pungent odour, the source of which, after hours on the hob, is unceremoniously discarded in favour of a more user friendly pot of gravy powder. The lasting stench hangs in the kitchen like a memory, a facsimile of flesh, invoking the essence of something more substantive, but gone now, forever out of reach.
Vindicator: Whispers of Death
Out 22nd August, self-released
Attempts to tie thrash metal’s more adventurous deviations – in both style and technique – back to its punk roots via the rigorous focus of Master. In this endeavour they are not entirely unsuccessful. But as is often the case when clearly accomplished musicians try to reacquaint themselves with music that favours primitivism, the result is little more than a highlights reel. Unsure of what they are actually trying to say beyond spirited affirmations, the material becomes overwhelmed by its heritage. Thrash is a tricky genre to approach in 2025. Its inherent retro sheen limits any fresh approach into a simple matter of how far one wants to lean into pastiche. We must look to Chilean acts who attempt to more permanently integrate the recent history of progressive, black, and death metal into the DNA of modern thrash such as Critical Defiance, Demoniac, or Mayhemic for instruction here. Vindicator by comparison, for all their competence and enthusiasm, offer little more than a fist bump for the modern listener.
Rauhnåcht: Zwischenwelten
Out 25th August on Antiq
A continuation of the largely vibes based direction of folkist black metal in recent years. Repetitive, limited, circular, yet pleasing on the eye. Rauhnåcht for the most part eschew the need to inject a wealth of “authentic” instrumentation (aside from some percussive accents), largely allowing the guitars to articulate folk licks to contrast with the linear, plodding black metal. The folk elements themselves stick closely to the pop tradition, catchy, accessible, human (and in that sense they could be considered authentic). But they lack any agency in these compositions, mere witnesses to the larger project of bland, ambient metal landscaping that makes up the substance of the album. And in this latter capacity Rauhnåcht have certainly achieved a compelling textural offering. Tonally they reference early Ulver, Enslaved, perhaps the mournful yet warm bounce of a Temnozor. But these returning characters of lyricism are too few and far between to elevate this otherwise rather stale, barren material.
Mjolne: Through Veils of Time
Out 29th August on ATMF
Integrates late 90s symphonic black metal at its most unapologetically bombastic with a more explicit heavy metal melodicism, officiated perhaps by melodic doom. Through this tentative stylistic revisionism it achieves a kind of unpredictability by sleight of hand. Dynamics are used to great effect, as themes are carried forward first by keyboards, then by a typical symphonic black metal array, then by plodding traditional metal, then back to keyboards. The melodic palette may be generic, the presentation no doubt overegged, but the result is an effective demonstration of how to set about redeeming the legacy of subgenres considered “vulgar” in the eyes of certain branches of the fanbase. The experience carries all the melodramatic baggage of symphonic black metal, but studying the material at an architectural level reveals an artist that at least knows what they want to say and how to say it with the materials they have to hand.
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