Mabthera is an experimental black metal band from Belarus. In 2009 it was a solo-act but over the years other members joined in. Loyal to the old school black metal wave, this band incorporates the haunted vocals and bleak atmosphere of the traditional version of the genre but with clean vocals, this could be a modern metal album. The tempo usually isn't extremely fast and the whole is quite varied.
I'm especially fond of opener 'Under Wings Of Satan', which is an excellent example of what this act is capable of. It reminds me just as much of bands like old Metallica or Pantera as it reminds me of Darkthrone or Immortal. 'Ivadék' crawls even deeper into the world of metal, coming quite close to doom and even a touch of industrial. It's this experimental and free approach to black metal that I find quite interesting.
Of course, the overal feeling is an occult, satanic and downright evil one. Furthermore, the songs aren't extremely complex, which is a good thing. Sometimes modern black metal bands tend to drown in their own sense of complexity and forget 'to rock' but Mabthera doesn't, Mabhtera knows how to write compelling songs that will get many heads nodding, including mine.
Just listen to 'A Magyarok Nyilaitól', a one-fold but very decent rock song with blackened vocals. It even has a little bit of folk metal in it. When you want blast-beats and typical black metal riffs, then 'Ahol Hideg Szelek Fújnak' is something for you. This song reminds me a bit of Emperor and everything that reminds me of Emperor is worth listening to, not? Or listen to the bizarre 'Elhintem A Magot'. This song is just wicked.
Anyway, if you like you black metal deviate from the norm, you might want to check out this band. I'm not saying they are the future of the genre but they defititely succeeded in bringing a breath of fresh (be it putrid and foul) air into the scene. I can only hope they feel like touring Europe with this material. It will be a welcome variation on themed festivals and to your infernally grinning cd shelve.
Serge