symphonic black metal
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Nothing starts the day like a hot coffee and some haunting black metal. At mornings like these I feel as if I back into the late nineties, firmly locked into my bedroom and listening to those classic albums by Dimmu Borgir, Old Man's Child and company. Anxiously I awaited the next release by yet another high profile atmospheric black metal band, be it Cradle Of Filth, Samael, The Kovenant or any other of those keyboards loaded extreme musical acts.
Grimorium Verum perfectly fits within that line-up. The band hails from Russia and has actually been around since 1996. Early in this century the band disbanded because of some personal and creative issues, only to rise again four years later. Now, it seems as they are as strong as ever, coming up with a fierce album, their third to be exact. If you're nostalgic for the glorious decade of blackened orchestration, here's your chance to dwell in that world again.
The album opens with the intro 'Relict', which immediately shows the dark bombast that Grimorium Verum stands for. It's followed by the massive song 'Rising Morning Star'. This song returns the bombastic symphonic elements of the opener but adds powerful guitars and haunted vocals to the whole, making the picture complete. From this point on we're dealing with an album that could compete with those classics I mentioned earlier. The focus seems to be more on atmosphere than speed and verocity, resulting in a lot of mid-tempo passages and tons of orchestral arrangements.
Besides nineties black metal, there seem to be some influences from the Götheborg metal scene and old school thrash, most noticable in some of the solos on this album. 'Night Burning Icons', for example, reminds me a bit of bands like In Flames or Children Of Bodom while 'The Vision In Solar Eclipse' breathes the spirit of Samael. These elements and influences run throughtout the entire album, often resulting in stunning pieces of music.
In all, this is an excellent album and a welcome addition to any blackened shelve where those nineties metal gods are present. So I can only recommend checking it out. Even more so, there's absolutely no reason why you shouldn't buy this if you're a symphonic black metal fan. Everything you like in the genre is present (even clean chants in the brilliant anthem 'In Satan We Trust'). The production is solid, the sound is brutal and the atmosphere is ice cold. This is an awesome piece of work...
Serge
Grimorium Verum perfectly fits within that line-up. The band hails from Russia and has actually been around since 1996. Early in this century the band disbanded because of some personal and creative issues, only to rise again four years later. Now, it seems as they are as strong as ever, coming up with a fierce album, their third to be exact. If you're nostalgic for the glorious decade of blackened orchestration, here's your chance to dwell in that world again.
The album opens with the intro 'Relict', which immediately shows the dark bombast that Grimorium Verum stands for. It's followed by the massive song 'Rising Morning Star'. This song returns the bombastic symphonic elements of the opener but adds powerful guitars and haunted vocals to the whole, making the picture complete. From this point on we're dealing with an album that could compete with those classics I mentioned earlier. The focus seems to be more on atmosphere than speed and verocity, resulting in a lot of mid-tempo passages and tons of orchestral arrangements.
Besides nineties black metal, there seem to be some influences from the Götheborg metal scene and old school thrash, most noticable in some of the solos on this album. 'Night Burning Icons', for example, reminds me a bit of bands like In Flames or Children Of Bodom while 'The Vision In Solar Eclipse' breathes the spirit of Samael. These elements and influences run throughtout the entire album, often resulting in stunning pieces of music.
In all, this is an excellent album and a welcome addition to any blackened shelve where those nineties metal gods are present. So I can only recommend checking it out. Even more so, there's absolutely no reason why you shouldn't buy this if you're a symphonic black metal fan. Everything you like in the genre is present (even clean chants in the brilliant anthem 'In Satan We Trust'). The production is solid, the sound is brutal and the atmosphere is ice cold. This is an awesome piece of work...
Serge
