Blut Aus Nord

France’s favourite underground blackened doom troopers have returned with another stab at their desolate, disquieting and almost avant-garde approach to concocting auditory depression. The most appealing aspect of this band is that they are actually able to execute a record that is almost exclusively focused on conceiving an ominous and disturbing atmosphere; not everyone can channel morbidity without sounding contrived. Several doom-laden layers give the record an eerie tone that captures the true essence of horror and fear, summoning a macabre presence that lingers instead of promptly terrorising. The drum beats sound like a slowed, deranged Justin Broderick experiment while the discordant droning and distant wails that are textured superbly is more akin to bands like Xasthur. The result is hypnotic and menacing, a natural progression for Blut Aus Nord since leaving the realm of black metal almost entirely. Essentially, it doesn’t get any darker than this.