Ivan Tibos.

There is wonderful terror beyond your crawling skies…

Despite more than two years of age, it still is more than interesting to focus on Pretium, until now being the sole official full-length release by Russian / Belarussian act Atra Haeresis. On this recording, the band consists of Alexey Veselov aka Fenrir, whom you might know from Bestial Deform or Ethir Anduin (bass), as well as Sergei Ambrazevich (vocals) and Alexander Antygin (guitars).

Country (for what it’s worth): France

Members: Romain Habrzyk (vocals) & Maxime Beiler (aka Leprince) (strings)

Availability: digipack-CD (100 copies) & digital

Artwork: Macchabée Artworks (Matthias Bonhoure) - very adequate cover-artwork, by the way!!!

Production: Nebiros Studio

Duration: 26:42

Genre: DSBM (Depressive-Suicidal Black Metal) / Atmospheric Black Metal

Note: once again a sense of charity floats behind this release. All donations will go to charity-programs in Ukraine that focus on orphans out there. Respect!

Country (for what it’s worth): U.S.A.

Recording: Aberration: Black Dust Studio by DH

Recording: Diabolic Oath: Pale Magus Productions

Mix: Black Dust Studio by DH

Mastering: Colin Marston (Menegroth, The Thousand Caves)

Availability: 7”EP (with download card) & digital

Duration: 12:35

Cover art: Misanthropic Art (Chris Kiesling)

Genre: Morbid Death Metal

Another short one…

Country (for what it’s worth): U.S.A.

Members: Neal Rodriguez (vocals + guitars), Lara Daniel (drums), Yair Vero (guitars), Irving Masvidal (bass)

Production & engineering: Nick Nativo

Duration: 19:28

Genre: Thrash Metal

Introduction: Bloodrunner is a Thrash-act from Chicago (Illinois) that started almost two decades ago. After a demo and a first official album, things got silent for almost fifteen years. …until now…

A short one…

I promised (myself) to write down my thoughts on this debut album (and sole full-length until now) after my review for the EP Turiya; and because of my appreciation, ‘back then’ as well as now (as from their new yet absolutely marvelous sonic approach), for German label Dunkelheit Produktionen.

Members on this album: Akif aka Plague (guitars & recording), Ah Puch (drums), Rivoo aka Tiyanak (vocals & bass)

I’m not sure, yet I think I never wrote a review for Seatle-based Noise-label Imploding Sounds before. A pity, for this netlabel does house quite some fine and/or ‘popular’ artists: Lord Cernunnos, TAB IN/TAB OUT, Juanito))), RDKPL and many, many more. But anyway, now I will, because of (1) the qualitative high-level roster behind this label (they are always worth being mentioned somehow) and because of (2) both projects involved within this split.

Quite recently I got in touch with George ‘Solaris Lupus’, the guy behind Aspaarn. Aspaarn is a Swiss solo-outfit that released two full length and two mini releases until now. This review will deal with the debut, because, dixit the soul behind it, ‘it is the genesis of the project and by far the most instinctive and spontaneous’. That’s a good reason for focusing on that first recording.

Raffaele Pezzella, musician, master, label owner and so much more, came with the idea to have a kind of ‘contest’, an award in order to go even further with the promotion of the scene. This ‘election’ must be seen as a dedication to the underestimated worlds of sonic satisfaction, where / when ‘darkness’ and ‘innovation’ meet.