Altar Of Plagues

This comes closer to what many were probably expecting upon hearing word of the supposed black metal/post-rock fusion of Wolves in the Throne Room. Resembling that description much more accurately than the aforementioned act, White Tomb is spacious and sprawling, featuring two epic suites broken up into four untitled sections. Over the course of the album, Altar of Plagues touch on a variety of influences, allowing for experimentation when appropriate, as well as a more straightforward melodic black metal feel, especially early on. As the album progresses, more dynamic elements reveal themselves, not the least being a discombobulated noise/doom breakdown that resembles Khanate very obviously. However, its appearance is sudden enough and well used, preventing its presence from coming across as too contrived. The strength of Altar of Plagues' approach to black metal is their all-encompassing stylistic range — they seem insistent on avoiding pigeonholing without giving the impression of overeager youngsters throwing too many influences into the melting pot. They are one of the first must-hear bands from Ireland since Primordial, and this is very promising for a full-length debut.