Burguli  are  a  solo  project  from  Spain  that  plays  a  raw  and  lo-fi  form  of  ambient  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  his  self  released  2019  album  "Ombres".

  A  very  dark,  distorted  and  lo-fi  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  the  vocals  being  mostly  grim  sounding  black  metal  screams.  A  couple  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  can  be  heard  which  also  gives  the  songs  more  of  a  raw  feeling.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  also  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  the  riffing  also  adding  melody  into  some  parts  of  the  music.  When  synths  are  added  onto  the  recording  they  add  elements  of  ambient  into  the  songs  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  also  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  When  guitar  leads  are  finally  added  onto  the  recording  they  are  done  in  a  very  distorted  style  along  with  all  of  the  songs  sounding  very  different  from  each  other  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  few instrumentals  are  also  added  onto  the  recording  as  well  as  a  couple  of  of  them  being  ritualistic  ambient  tracks.  The  production  sounds  very  dark,  raw  and  lo-fi  while  the  lyrics  cover  Satanism,  Occultism,  Myths,  Darkness  and  Nature  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Burguli  are  a  very  great  sounding  raw  and  lo-fi  ambient  black  metal  solo  project  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Cries  From  The  Battle"  "Where  The  Wraiths  Stalk"  "Desciphering  The  Knowledge  of  The  Ancient"  and  "Satanas  Summum  Invocatio".  8  out  of  10.

https://burguli.bandcamp.com/album/ombres 
 

  

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the musical project?
Peasant began as a handful of bedroom demo's created between 2016 and 2018 during an uncomfortable period in my life. I'd sat on almost an albums worth of rudimentary material for a few years exploring pagan themes and inspirations from artists like Emperor, Immortal and Deathspell Omega. The project was never intended to go anywhere publicly, however after I began working with Orakul (Somalgia, Peasant) they started to become more refined and thus Peasant was born.

2.Recently you were a part of a split, how would you describe the musical style you went for on your side of the recording?
The idea behind this recording was to create a four track EP with a focus on the aphorism 'As above, So below'. The first Peasant track 'Hounds of the Shining One' had already been written for some time before the EP was conceptualised, and served more as the basis for the general sound of Peasant going forward. Myself and Orakul decided we would contrast our 'heavy' tracks with a softer, more melodic pianissimo.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects you have explored with your music?
The Peasant side of this EP is essentially a conceptual piece, exploring a story of Roman invasions in Britain circa 50-60 ce. Specifically, the lyrics in 'Hounds of the Shining One' are meant to be seen from the eyes of the ancient Iceni queen Boadicea, where as 'The Trees Find Light to Hold Earth's Grasp' began as a poem I had written and translated into Brythonic/Germanic British. It is meant as a homage to a period in British history which is often not taught in general education or represented in modern media.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Peasant'?
The name Peasant was introduced as a thematical driving force for the sound of the band, focusing on the idea of rebellion against totalitarianism and humble beginnings. We are a group of 'lower working class' people from the north of England, and as such the class divides between the lower, middle and upper classes; as with any country, feel extremely abrasive as a young person- the name Peasant felt like an accurate representation of myself and Orakul, and the lyrical themes which will be presented for the foreseeable future in this project.

5.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that was presented on the split cover?
The cover for 'Within, Without' is an extension of the combined lyrical themes of both Peasant and Somalgia, where as Peasant focuses on themes of oppression and forced ideologies; whether that be governmental or religious, Somalgia focuses more on the idea of inherent systems trapping people into a drone-like way of thinking. The artwork simply shows a normal, unremarkable person being held down by an indescript creature, as another prepares to climb inside the victim- presumably to assume control of them and assert it's will.

6.Currently there are only 2 members in the band, are you open to expanding the line up or do you prefer to remain a duo?
At present we feel we work best as a two piece for the foreseeable future, as we are mainly focused on writing for the up-coming album, we both have extensive work schedules which make finding members, practicing and playing difficult at present. That being said, once the album is finished and out to the public we intend to take the music to a live setting with other members, as we both have some interesting ideas for the live performance aspect of this band. For now, at least, Peasant will remain the brainchild of Plague and Orakul.

7.Recently you were a part of a split with 'Somalgia'', how does your musical style differ from his?
Peasant mainly takes musical inspiration from fast and experimental Black Metal bands such as Deathspell Omega, Blut Aus Nord, Bathory, Schammasch and Immortal, where as Somalgia is focused on a homage to the early 90's style of Black Metal.

8.In addition to music you also run 'Merican Publishing' which publishes dark fantasy novels, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in this genre?
My interest in Dark Fantasy began at a very young age, owing to the likes of H.P Lovecraft, Robert E. Howard, Junji Ito, Tolkien, Brian Lumley and Andrzej Sapkowski, where as visually much of my inspiration came from album covers of my youth; specifically Bathory's 'Blood, Fire, Death' and Satyricon's 'Dark Medieval Times'.
Mercian Publishing began as a means to publish my own Dark Fantasy series 'The Grey Tides', which I would highly recommend for fans of Dark Fantasy.

9.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of black metal?
Our reaction has been positive, we've heard comparisons to bands we would hail as personal favourites. I considered 'The Tree's Find Light' to be somewhat of a dark horse for a release such as this and wasn't entirely sure how fans of the Black Metal genre would take it, however the overall reaction to the experiment has been overwhelmingly positive and encouraging for our future releases.

10.When can we expect a full length and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
We are aiming for a full album release in 2020, I can't specify further than that. Musically we are open to a lot of experimentation, I'm not boxed in to any one sound when writing as I have no formal training in music, which I feel frees me up to play around with uncontemporary ideas and sounds. Expect a unique blend of genres, with the primary sound of Black Metal.

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?
My biggest influence is Bathory, I've been in to 'heavy music' from a very young age owing to the fact my parents introduced me to a multitude of Heavy Metal, Rock and Punk bands from their youth for as long as I can remember. However it was around the age of 10 when my uncle left me with a huge collection of 'Extreme' metal tapes that my own personal taste began to form. There were some amazing inclusions in their, I can remember bands like Dismember, Behemoth, Krisiun, Suffocation, Nevermore, Dark Throne and Monstrosity were all in the mix, and I loved them all- but it was Bathory's 'Blood, Fire, Death' that really spoke to me. It took me a few tries to get through the opening track, as with any child my patience was extremely low, and I wasn't sure if this was even an album from a metal band or some kind of movie soundtrack, but when those first strums of 'A Fine Day to Die' kicked in I was hooked, and it's been my favourite album ever since. Honourable mention should also go to Neurosis for expanding my interest into another side of extreme music.
At present I'm listening to Ungfell, Suhnopfer, Auratos and Mizmor. They are all fantastic bands, and I would suggest any fan of Black Metal checks out Ungfell and Suhnopfer specifically as I believe these are guys are really doing incredible things to help keep the Black Metal sound fresh and unique in 2019.

12.How would you describe your views on Paganism?
I hold a special place in my heart for paganism, which in itself is an extremely broad term encompassing not one ideology but rather hundreds spread across a vast region of the world. For me it represents a resistance against monotheistic religions, which personally I believe have caused far more issues for the general population than they have resolved- it's the idea of absolution to one deitic entity which I take issue with, as it suppress creative and free thinking. I grew up in a Church of England school, with a large portion of my family being christian, and so far all I've seen is that it cause more unnecessary problems than it has been able to solve.

13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Resist Tory oppression.
Resist the surrender of public health services to corporations and their members that represent less than 1% of the population.
Peasant debut album coming 2020 on Repose Records
-Plague.

  Yellow  Eyes  are  a  band  from  New  York  that  has  had  music  reviewed  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  an  atmospheric  form  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2019  album  "Rare  Field  Ceiling"  which  will  be  released  on  June  28th  by  Gilead  Media.

  Field  recordings  and  drones  start  off  the  album  while  all  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  before  going  into a   heavier  direction.  Vocals  are  mostly  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  along  with  solos  and  leads  being  done  in  a  very  atmospheric  and  melodic  style  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  When  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  can  be  heard  which  also  gives  the  songs  more  of  a  raw  feeling.  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  also  hear  a  decent  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  some  female  vocals  also  being  used  briefly.

  At  times  the  music  also  gets  very  atmospheric  sounding  along  with  some  tracks  also  bringing  in  a  small  amount  of  home  made  and  ethnic  musical  instruments  which  also  gives  the  songs  more  of  an  avant  garde  feeling  when  they  are  utilized  and  as  the  album  progresses  drones  also  make  a  brief  return,  clean  playing  is  also  introduced  on  the  closing  track.  The  production  sounds  very  raw  and  heavy  while  the  lyrics  cover  abstract,  sadness,  nature,  solitude  and  peasantry  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Yellow  Eyes  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  atmospheric  black  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "warmth  Trance  Reversal"  and  "Rare  Field  Ceiling".  8  out  of  10.

https://yelloweyes.bandcamp.com

1.       For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the musical project?


I started Welkin in the autumn of 2017. Prior to that, I had gotten into black metal fairly recently and was immediately drawn in by the bleak atmospheres, emotive guitar work, and intense drum playing. Welkin was formed out of a deep desire to bring out the atmospheres and emotions that the bands I had been listening to had did for me while also injecting my own style.




2.       So far you have released a demo and a split, musically how do they both differ from each other?

I would say that the demo was a more “down-to-earth” release than the split. In the sense that the themes covered in the demo and the overall atmosphere were about evoking feelings of melancholy and then triumph (in the later part of the demo). On the other hand, I had intended something more “grand” for the songs on the split. I went forward with the same tinge of melancholy from the demo but also added in elements that were aimed at painting images of grand, dark, forest landscapes in the listener’s mind To bring forth a sense of grandeur, similar to what you would get in an Emperor, Odium, or Alghazanth record.

Musically, the songs on the split are generally longer than those on the demo to really create an epic feel it and features more intense tremolo-picked chords. The drum parts on the split are also far superior than those of its predecessor.




3.       Your lyrics cover some nature, philosophical, anti-Christian, pagan and occult topics, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in these subjects?

My interest in some of these topics started before I got into Black Metal, and some after I did.

Most of my life I have been staunchly against Christianity and other forms of mass religion. To me, religion is just a way of controlling the blind and ignorant. A toxic mass that should be eradicated.

Philosophically speaking, I subscribe to the ideas of existentialism and nihilism, as one can tell from the lyrical content of the band. I guess my interest in these subjects developed naturally over the years due to a lack of an answer to what my purpose in life is. I then came to the conclusion that there is no objective meaning, I have to find my own subjective meaning. I use Black Metal as tool for expressing these ideas.

After getting into Black Metal, my interest in topics such as paganism, the occult, and nature was piqued. I was fascinated by how many bands were able to encapsulate the essence of nature in their music and how spiritual it all seemed.




4.       What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Welkin'?

Welkin refers to the sky or the firmament. I took the name from the Emperor record ‘Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk’. When I look at the sky, I feel a sense of majesty similar to what I would get while listening to Black Metal, so I thought the name would be appropriate as a representation of my own music.




5.       I have noticed you use the name 'Hasthur', is that related to 'World Of Warcraft'?

Nope, the name is based on one of the cosmic beings in the C’thullu mythos, Hastur, also known as ‘The King In Yellow’.



6.       With this project you record everything by yourself but also play in an actual band, how would you compare the 2?

The two bands are extremely different, from how they operate to the music they play. Welkin plays a more traditional, old-school, form of Black Metal rooted in the sounds of Finnish Black Metal and 90’s Norwegian Black Metal. On the other hand, Golgotha plays Black / Death Metal, largely influenced by Blasphemy, Archgoat, Beherit, Revenge, Sadomator and other such bands.

In Welkin, all music is written by me. In Golgotha, most of the music is written by Nuclear H. Butcherer and N. Maniak.




7.       Recently you were a part of a split with 'Nuurisk’, and ‘Luna Azure’, what are your thoughts on the other bands that had participated on the recordings?

Luna Azure has been a long-time part of the Singahell Black Metal scene, much longer than both Welkin and Nuurisk who were formed fairly recently. The music is very original, unique, and Voices certainly shows a mastery over atmosphere.

Nuurisk is a newer band but has put out quite a few releases already, all of which are definitely worthwhile listens for fans of DSBM or those who enjoy a more emotional, cathartic, form of Black Metal.




8.       Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interest?

I have not received any interest from any labels so far, neither am I looking for a label at the moment. But I might try to find a label to release my upcoming EP.




9.       On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of black metal?

Mostly, reception has been good especially here in Singahell.




10.   What is going on with 'Golgotha' these days?

Recently we opened for Varathron when they came here in April, after which we decided to take a break to focus on our other projects. We will likely resume activity soon.




11.   When can we expect a full length and also where do you see yourself heading into as a musician during the future?

I’m not sure when I’ll be writing a full-length release but hopefully soon. First, I’d need to find an interesting concept for the album and that usually takes a lot of time.

Only the future will reveal where this path leads.




12.   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?

Darkthrone, Burzum, Mayhem, Emperor, Windir, Immortal, Black Funeral, Bathory, Dissection, Bornholm, Darkened Nocturn Slaughtercult, Darkenhold, Draconis Infernum, Infernal Execrator, Forteresse, Holyarrow, Nokturnal Mortum, Pure Wrath, Odium, Saor, Thrawsunblat, Warwulf, Alghazanth, Satanic Warmaster, Behexen, Beherit, Morok, Severoth, Inquisition, Forest, Warmoon Lord, Dark Forest and Woods of Ypres to name some.

Right now I’m listening to bands like Forlor, Hammer, Norns and Mooncitadel. Basically, more obscure Finnish bands.




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

Thank you for the chance to participate in this interview!

  Feretrum  are  a  band  from  Hungary  that  plays  a  very  satanic  and  occult  form  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2019  album  "In  The  Eternal  World".

  A  very  dark  and  heavy  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  ritualistic  spoken  word  parts  also  being  used  briefly.  Vocals  are  mostly  grim  sounding  black  metal  screams  while  clean  playing  can  also  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  when  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  done  in a  very  melodic  style.

  When  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  and  tremolo  picking  can  be  heard  which  also  gives  the  music  more  of  a  raw  feeling.  A  great  amount  of  90's  influences  can  also  be  heard  in  the bands  musical style  while  a  couple  of  the  tracks  are  long  and  epic  in  length  as  well  as  the  riffs  also  adding  in  a  small  amount  of  melody.

 Throughout  the  recording  you  can  also  hear  a  decent  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  as  well  as  one  track  also  introducing  demonic  growls  onto  the  recording  and  spoken  word  parts  also  make  a  brief  return,  all  of  the  musical  instruments  also  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.  The  production  sounds  very  dark,  raw  and  old  school  while  the  lyrics  cover  Satanism,  Occultism,  Darkness  and  Blasphemy  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Feretrum  are  a  very  great  sounding  satanic  and  occult  black  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of t his  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Endless  War"  "The  Dimension  Of  Satan"  and  "Let  All  of  Them  Get  Rotten".  8  out  of  10.

http://www.facebook.com/feretrumhun