Ravendark's  Monarchal  Canticle  are  a  band  from  Brazil  that  plays  a  raw  mixture  of  black,  death  and  thrash  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2015  album  "Sobre  as  Cinzas  do  Francasso  Alheio"  which  was  released  by  Hammer  of Damnation.

  Air  raid  sirens  and  sounds  of  war  start  off  the  album  along  with  soem  World  War  II  style  military  music  in  the  background  and  after  a  couple  of  minutes  the  music  gets  heavier  and  goes  for  a  raw  blackened  thrash  metal  style  that  also  uses  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  and  blackened  death  metal  style  growls.

  Morbid  sounding  melodies  can  be  heard  quite  a  bit  throughout  the  recording  and  the  band  also  brings  in  a  lot  of  extreme  metal  influences  from  the  legendary  bands  of  their  home  country  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced and  fast  parts  and  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  can  also  be  heard  at  times.
 

  Military  samples  also  make  their  return  on  later  tracks  and  the  music  is  perfectly  balanced  between  both  the  first  and  second  wave  styles  of  black  metal  and  they  also  bring  in  a  Sodom  cover  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  classical  guitars  can  be  heard  along  with  a  brief  use  of  melodic  chanting  before  making  a  return  back  to  a  heavier  musical  direction  and  some  of  the  faster  riffs  bring  elements  of  bestial  black  and  war  metal  onto  the  recording  and  there  are  also  a  couple  of  tracks  that  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length. 

  Ravendark's  Monarchal  Canticle  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  the  heaviest  and  most  raw  elements  of  South  American  black,  death  and  thrash  metal  and  mix  them  in  with  a  great  amount  of  war  samples  to  create  one  of  rawest  and  heaviest  extreme  metal  album  to  be  released  in  a  long  time,  the  production  sounds  very  raw  and  heavy  while  the  lyrics  are  written  in  their  native  tongue  and  cover  war  and  hatred  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Ravendark's  Monarchal  Canticle   are  a  very  great  sounding  raw  mixture  of  black,  death  and  thrash  metal  and  if  you  are a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Execucao  Final"  "Sodomia  E  Luxuria"  "Antihumanismo  Patrio"  and  "Destruicao  Em  Massa".  8  out  of  10.     

  

   

  Vile  Insignia  are  a  band  from  Alberta,  Canada  that  plays  a  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their self  released  2015  album  "Bestial  Invocation".

  A  very  distorted  and  evil sounding  intro  starts  off  the album  along  with  a  small  amount  of  synths  and  after  the  intro  the  music  gets  more  heavier  and  goes  into  a  melodic  black  metal  direction  as  well  as  adding  in  high  pitched  screams  and  you  can  also  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  the  recording. 

  Death  metal  growls  can  be  heard  in  some  parts  of  the  songs  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  and  the  solos  and  leads  also  remain  true  to  a  melodic  blackened  death  metal  sound  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  the  music  can  also  get  very  brutal  at  times  and  some  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length.

  Vile  Insignia  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  a  very  fast  style  of  black  metal  and  mixes  it  with  death  metal  and  a  great  amount  of  melody  to  create  an  album  that  is  very  heavy  and  dark,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  Occultism,  Evil  and  Blasphemous  themes.  

  In  my  opinion  Vile  Insignia  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Reich  Of  Evil"  "The  Infernal  Siege"  "Ritualistic  Invocation"  and  "Morbid Tales  Of  Bloodshed".  8  out  of  10.  

    

  Insanity  Cult are  a  band  from  Greece  that  plays  a  very  raw  and  melancholic  form  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2015  album  "As  My  End  Unfolds".

  Thunder  and  rain  sounds start  off  the  album  along  with  some  classical  guitars  a  few  seconds  later  and  after  the  intro  the  music  goes  for  more  of  a  fast  and  raw  black  metal  sound  along  with  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  and  high  pitched  screams  and  the  songs  also bring  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts.

   Melodies  can  be  heard  at  times  and  the  band  also  brings  a  small  amount  of  clean  playing  into  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  some  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  when  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  very  dark  and  melodic  sounding  while  the  vocals  also  bring  in  angry  spoken  word  parts  at  times.

  When  synths  are  utilized  they  give  the  songs  more  of  an  atmospheric  feeling  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them and  as  the  album  progresses  the  music  gets  more  depressive  and  the  vocals  also  start  adding  in  more  grim  style  screams  and  some  of  the  tracks  also  bring  in a  small  amount  of  acoustic  guitars  and  clean  singing  male  and  female  female  vocals  while  some  songs  also  bring  in  a  brief  use  of  death  metal  growls.

  Insanity  Cult  plays  a  style  of  black  metal  that  is  very  raw  and  depressive  while  also  mixing  in  a  good  amount  of  melody  and  acoustic  guitar  parts that  makes  their  songs  stand  out  a  bit  more,  the  production  sounds  very  raw  and  heavy  while  the  lyrics  cover  pain,  sorrow,  suicide  and  emptiness.

  In my  opinion  Insanity  Cult  are  a  very  great  sounding  raw  and  melancholic  black  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Through  Sorrow  I  Breathe"  "Hymn  To  A  Forbidden  Truth"  and  "In  My  Final  Ache".  8  out  of  10. 

   

    1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell usa little bit about the band?
1. I started Oþalan late in 2014 as a solo project under the moniker Aþalawulfaz that i could use to honor my Swedish ancestors and delve into topics that wouldn't generally fit in other projects i have done in the past. I later added þunraz (C.L. as seen on the CD booklet). Even though the songs for our debut were mostly completely written by then we did collaborate on some riffs to full finish the songs. Most recently I've added a good friend of mine as our full time drummer who goes under the name Gaistaz.

    2.Recently you have released a split, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?
2. The musical sound for our music is hard for me to describe, and i usually leave that up to the listeners, but i could definitely say that it is meant to be listened to deep in the forests.

    3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?
3. When it comes to lyrical content, it's all about the old ways and nature. You may find some slightly anti-christian messages but that's not what its really about. They mostly tr to capture the feeling of nature, proto germanic culture, and ancient Scandinavian religious rituals. Long before Eastern influences and modern edicts.

    4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Opalan'?
4. The name Oþalan is the old Norse spelling of the odal rune in the elder Futhark alphabet. It has several different meanings but for this it is the meaning of heritage.

    5.The band members come from both Sweden and the United States, how does this work when it comes to the recording process?
5. The recording process is really pretty simple. I write and record all the guitars and bass, and when songs are finished i send them to Gaistaz to record his drums over and when i get the final form of the songs musically; myself and Gaistaz will collaborate on the lyrics and ill record vocals. The songs for the split with Kalmankantaja we had a session drummer who is a good friend of mine called John King who plays in the technical death metal band Primordium.

    6.Has the band done any live shows or is this strictly a studio project?
6. The band so far has not played any live shows, but if i can put together a full line up in Sweden the future may see some shows for Oþalan.

    7.Recently you where a part of a split with 'Kalmankantaga', what are your thoughts on the other band that had participated on the album?
7. I'm very pleased with the split we did. I was a fan of Kalmankantaja before we ever did the split and it has been cool working with Aki and the guest vocalist they had just for this release.

    8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of black metal?
8. We honestly haven't seen a lot so far. The split isn't out yet and only one song from each band has been released from it. I'm sure things will pick up once we get closer to the full release and begin getting some promotion from Wolfspell. We have had kind words on youtube and a decent amount of views though. I don't generally gauge it by Facebook likes or anything though. We shall see what people really think of us once the CD is out.

    9.When can we expect a full length album and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
9. The full length is currently in the works, and will be released on CD through Wolfspell Records when the time comes. All i can say is that the songs are much longer and the music is much more chaotic, while still retaining the folk elements from our previous material. I would relate it to Mgła if they had acoustic sections.

    10.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?
10. Some major influences for me personally and especially for the music heard in Oþalan would be Ulver, and Burzum and Abigor primarily as well as bands like Agalloch and early Wyrd. I've been liking almost everything Fallen Empire Records releases, especially Lluvia and Hæthen.

    11.How would you describe your views on Paganism?
11. I would describe my views on paganism as in high regard. It is the true religion and culture of my people, and it influences me greatly. 100% respect.

    12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
12. I'd just like to say thanks to Kalmankantaja and Wolfspell records for the opportunities we've been given as a brand new band, and to the people who have enjoyed our music and checked us out so far. thanks to you for this interview!

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



Aegorton is a one man black metal/doom metal project from the UK. I started this project in 2014, with the intention to create all of my music single handed. I write, play, record, mix, promote, and release all of my music alone. The production is raw, but not so raw that it's hard to tell what is going on, like with many early black metal demos.



2.So far this year you have released 2 demo's, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on both of the recordings?



The first demo, simply called "Demo 2015" has more straightforward, simple sound. It has only guitar and drums, and has only 3 original songs (if you don't count the intro and outro). Demo 2015 took black metal riffs and fused them with doom metal riffs. It's as simple as that. I wanted a very simple sound then. Demo 2015 is good, however the second release, Plaguelord, is much more complex. On Plaguelord, I tried to create subtler, more complex, thought-out music. I bought a bass guitar, played around with effects, I took a step forward and tried more to create an atmosphere and feeling to my music. I experimented more and the music was more black metal oriented this time. I took inspiration from bands such as Ulver. This time, there was a common theme of the plague, and I tried to reflect this in the music I made. Demo 2015 was a more straightforward showcase of ideas, Plaguelord is more complete and thought out. Demo 2015 has atmospheric moments but overall is showing off black and doom riffs, albeit good ones.



3.So far all of the music has been instrumental, are you planning on ever bringing in vocals in the future?



Yes, I do. I plan to include vocals on the next release, whenever that may materialize.



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



Aegorton is simply an amalgamation of parts of other words. I was having trouble finding a name, so I decided I would take parts of words and fit them together until I found something that sounded right. The word "Aegorton" has no definition, but it has meaning, although the meaning is not clearly defined. 



5.With this musical project you record everything by yourself, are you open to working with other musicians or do you prefer to remain solo?



I am adamant on not including any other band members, however, I am open to someone appearing as a guest on a track or two. I am also open to working with others, however, under a different project.



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



I am looking for a label. I may be releasing cassette copies of Plaguelord through a friend of a friend's label, although this label is very small.





7.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of black and doom metal?



Very positive! I don't recall receiving negative comments on any of my online pages, such as Soundcloud or YouTube. I receive positive reviews from fans and critics alike. Although, black metal fans seem to appreciate Aegorton more, as, primarily, I focus on black metal more than doom metal.



8.What is going on with the other musical projects these days that you are a part of?



I have a dark ambient side project I am working on at the moment, called Ootheka. I plan to release a demo under that project sometime later this year or early next year. I haven't got anything released under that name so far. I am also talking with a friend from another black metal project, and we may be creating a project together soon, so look out for that.



9.Where do you see yourself heading into as a musician in the future?



I only see myself improving, both my musical ability, and my musical output. Although, the future is a mystery, like it is to everyone and everything.



10.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?



I am, obviously, influenced by other black metal bands mainly. Main influences on me, musically, would be Burzum, Ulver, Strid, Darkthrone, Kvist, Sigh... The list goes on. You can hear these influences quite clearly sometimes. At the moment, I've been listening to Nokturnal Mortum, Kvist, Mutiilation, Ulver, along with other albums or bands I have in my collection. My musical taste is very metal oriented, I listen to most styles of metal, and, also, non-metal music as well, although not as much.



11.Does Occultism play any role in your music?



Yes, I find inspiration for musical ideas through occult themes, although I include other themes in my music, the most obvious example being Plaguelord having a theme about the Plague. I am very interested in history, so horrific events from the past, or the past in general, play a bigger role. Then again, I am also interested in the occult, and occult or supernatural themes are present in my music.



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



Thank you for the enjoyable interview. To those interested, you can download Aegorton's  music via the Bandcamp page, or purchase CD copies if you prefer.