symphonic black metal
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I really like these throwback albums which remind me of the old days. Only a few years after I started discovering the wonderful world of metal, I got dragged into the blackened extremes. I remember being stunned by albums from Cradle Of Filth, Ninnghizhidda and Old Man's Child. I could listen to those awesome blend of ferocious metal and bombastic symphonic elements for hours. Apparently, that genre never faded away.
Sekoria is a German band, founded in 2010. Since then, they have been perfecting their trade, now resulting in their second album 'Im Reich Der Schatten'. If you are into symphonic and epic black metal, this might be your next favorite because personally, I would place this quartet somewhere between Emperor and Old Man's Child. What I hear on this album has all the classic ingredients to make this an excellent piece of work.
After the usual intro, which by the way is pretty damn nice, Sekoria blast away with fierce riffs, blast beats and haunting screams. Above that, a number of keyboards take care of atmosphere and sheer epicness. From then on, we're on an intense journey through a dark and fearsome world, driven on pure blackened power. It lasts for a bit over an hour and never loses its grip, which is quite an accomplishment in this genre these days.
The album does feel like a concept-album and it's hard to pick out favorite track. However, there are some fantastic riffs in 'Die Nachtigall' and 'Vendetta'. Often I feel that these guys are influenced by both black metal and thrash metal but, unlike the originators of the symphonic black metal style, here those influences seem to take on a modern edge, a bit like Machine Head perhaps.
In all, of course, this is a great symphonic black metal album that definitely deserves a place in your collection. The whole is well-written and varied enough to remain interesting. It shows a well-attuned band that has the capabilities to go places, preferably some big stages in the near future...
Serge
Sekoria is a German band, founded in 2010. Since then, they have been perfecting their trade, now resulting in their second album 'Im Reich Der Schatten'. If you are into symphonic and epic black metal, this might be your next favorite because personally, I would place this quartet somewhere between Emperor and Old Man's Child. What I hear on this album has all the classic ingredients to make this an excellent piece of work.
After the usual intro, which by the way is pretty damn nice, Sekoria blast away with fierce riffs, blast beats and haunting screams. Above that, a number of keyboards take care of atmosphere and sheer epicness. From then on, we're on an intense journey through a dark and fearsome world, driven on pure blackened power. It lasts for a bit over an hour and never loses its grip, which is quite an accomplishment in this genre these days.
The album does feel like a concept-album and it's hard to pick out favorite track. However, there are some fantastic riffs in 'Die Nachtigall' and 'Vendetta'. Often I feel that these guys are influenced by both black metal and thrash metal but, unlike the originators of the symphonic black metal style, here those influences seem to take on a modern edge, a bit like Machine Head perhaps.
In all, of course, this is a great symphonic black metal album that definitely deserves a place in your collection. The whole is well-written and varied enough to remain interesting. It shows a well-attuned band that has the capabilities to go places, preferably some big stages in the near future...
Serge
