Unholy  Baptism  are  a  band  from  Arizona  that  plays  a  very  diverse  and  satanic  form  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2017  album  "On  The  Precipice  Of  The  Ancient  Abyss".

  Wind  sounds  start  off  the  album  before  going  into  a  heavier  direction  which  also  uses  a  great  amount  of  dark  sounding  melodies  while  you  can  also  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording  and  the  slower  riffing  is  very  heavily  influenced  by  doom  metal.

  Vocals a re  mostly  grim  yet  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast beats  can  be  heard  which  also  gives  the  songs  a  more  raw  feeling  while t he  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  done  in  a  very  dark  and  melodic  fashion.

  A  great  portion  of  the  tracks are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  you  can  also  hear  a  great  amount  of  90's  second  wave Norwegian  influences  in  the  songs  while  still  also  having  some  more  modern  ambient  black  metal  elements  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and fast  parts  and  as  the  album  progresses  the  music  starts  getting  more  depressive  on  some  of  the  later  tracks  along  with  spoken  word  parts  also  being  used  briefly  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very powerful  sound  to  them.

  Unholy  Baptism  plays  a  style  of  satanic  black  metal  that  is  very  diverse  taking  the  raw  and  old  school  style  and  mixing  it  in  with  traces  of  the  more  ambient  and  depressive  side  of  the  genre  as  well  as  adding  in a   touch  of  doom  metal,  the  production  sounds  very  dark  and  raw  while the  lyrics  cover  Theistic  Satanism,  Occultism,  Medieval,  H.P  Lovecraft,  Death  and  Depression  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Unholy  Baptism  are  a  very  great  sounding  raw  and  diverse  satanic  black  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Bitter  Winds(So  Cold)"  "Staring  In  The  Black"  "For  The  Glory  Of  Satan"  and  "Upon  The  Shadow  Throne".  8/5  out  of  10.   

 1.For those that have enver heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
Atrexial is a band formed by experienced musicians in the Spanish and Catalonian Black and Death metal scene. Atrexial was born as a solo Project by Naga S. Maelström, but over time he found great musicians interested on being part of the Project such as Louen (Nyctophobia) on vocals and Labelua (ex - Abrahel) on drums. Once gathered, the songs were recorded, mixed and mastered, so the next step was to make it official and elevate the project to a new level, so Atrexial is now a band ready for taking over the stages.

2.Recently you have released your first album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?
The first words that come to our minds are “organic, elegant and atmospheric”. We’ve tried to shape the darkest desires of the human condition exploring them with subtlety and from a more primitive perspective. The goal was to merge Death Metal’s belligerence and darkness rawness and also adding razorblade melodies. The combination of all these agents enables an analytic exploration allowing the listener to embrace a deeper message instead of the typical uncontrolled fury that this genre proposes.

3.Can you tell us a little bit more about the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?
The lyrics are focused on inquiring into the most primitive and philosophical meaning of three of the greatest concepts or phases of the human mind. We did not just want to remain on the surface or the material world but our aim was to reach the intangible phase where instinct is born. These concepts are sorted by antiquity: fear and submission, ambition and desire for power, solitude and existence. These are the notions Souverain explores.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Atrexial'?
Atrexial is just a name for an entity intended to be a spiritual tool for those who prefer to deepen into the void between existence and transcendence. Atrexial has no other meaning than that, and that’s how it works since mankind needs words to identify ideas and create abstract concepts.

5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?
We have not played live so far. The line-up has recently been completed. IF everything keeps working like it should, then we will play live from September on. We are preparing all details regarding the live shows and we can only anticipate that the experience will generate a surrounding and menacing atmosphere. We don’t play music to be relying on an extremely visual concept because visuals must be a complement and not a smokescreen. We don’t operate with occult, bloody, or bizarre stuff. We just want the smartness of Souverain to be appreciated.

6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?
We have received some very interesting offers from both national and international agencies. Our aim is to focus on our country first before crossing borders. We are about to announce a Spanish tour, some national and international festivals, and some huge gigs with legendary bands. All details will be announced on our social networks.

7.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of black and death metal?
This extreme metal underground world is on constant motion. Day after day new bands emerge and there is a huge offer and so little time to dedicate to listening to so many bands. Some of them are extremely good. If we assimilate that, we must say we are pretty satisfied with how well the album is being sold on digital download, and on how many pre-orders we have received for the physical edition of the album. All specialized media that has dedicated a review to Souverain has rated it on very high results. Maybe “competition” is not the proper word, but “survival” is more suitable and we got the attention of many people and that means we are doing a great job.

8.What is going on with some of the other bands or musical projects these days that some of the band members are a part of?
Louen has been vocalist and guitarist for Nyctophobia, a black metal band from Barcelona since 2005 which is on standby mode. He is also working on many other projects soon to be announced, and a solo project of Doom.
Labelua is part of another band; a Death Metal project called Apostles of Perversion, from the Canary Islands, Spain.
And Naga S. Maelström is also part of Human Carnage, a Tech-Death metal band from Barcelona, and also Cauldron, a well known Black Metal band in Spain with more than 20 years of existence.

10.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
We expect to band to keep growing. We will spread our music everywhere we will choose to go. It is not easy to be part of the underground world of extreme music but we have a powerful tool and a message to spread. Atrexial is not a self-limited band.

11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
We are part of a vast musical field, and that grants us freedom to go wherever we want to while songwriting. Our message is better understood if we assimilate the concept of Black metal and Death Metal, specially Polish Blackened Death metal, and bands like Mgla, Behemoth, Vader, Behexen, Sargeist, Dark Funeral have been part of our past and present. It is undeniable that we have these kind of roots, but we have also added some personal nuances.

12.How would you describe your views on Occultism?
Human being has always inherited fear and curiosity, and tried to search for an explanation to all things including dark matters. Consciousness is the basis of the being and gives a meaning to everything around. We see occultism as a philosophical current that tries to decipher and bring the unknown to words. Occultism has already been seen as a counterpoint to all religions with the difference that it is considered a science and a gateway to the spiritual side of the individual. We stick to the most individual point of view. There’s something that cannot be stolen, manipulated or destroyed and it is self consciousness. Without that, there is not being and without being there is no collective. So, all symbols and manifestations are a product of the individual.

13.What are some of your non musical interests?
Irrelevant. Atrexial is an entity that spreads a message through music frequencies and all information outside this context and margins, is not important.

14.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Expect us

 Finland's  Spiritwood  have  returned  with  a  new  recording  which  also  continues  the  atmospheric  style  of  black  metal  from  previous  releases a nd  this  is  a  review of  his  2017  cassette  "Daemonia"  which  was  released  by  Barbatos  Productions.

  Sci fi  and  ambient  style  sounds  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  atmospheric  synths  and  grim  black  metal  screams  a  few  seconds  later  and  the  atmospheric  and  ambient  elements  also  mix  into  the  heavier  side  of  the  songs  while  a   great  portion  of t he  songs  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length.


  When  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are d one  in  a  very  melodic  fashion  and  the  synths  also  use  a  variety  of  many  different  sounding  keys  while  also  mixing  in  a  very  lo  fi  atmosphere  along  with  a  small  amount  of  avant  garde  elements  and  the  music  usually  sticks  either  to  a  slow  or  mid  paced  musical  direction.

  Spiritwood  creates  another  recording  that  remains  true  to  the  atmospheric  and  ambient  style  of  black  metal  from  previous  releases,  the  production  sounds  very  dark  and  raw  while  the  lyrics  cover  darkness  and  metaphysical  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Spiritwood  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  atmospheric  and  ambient  black  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  cassette.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Daemones"  "As  I  Reach  The  Grey  Silence"  and  "Decadent  Twisted  Mirage".  8  out  of  10.