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For something to be “ecstatic,” the feelings and emotions it evokes must transcend what one tends to experience most regularly in their lives. Ecstatic joy isn’t just happiness; it’s a feeling of jubilation which impacts one emotionally and in a metaphysical, arguably spiritual sense too. Although it has long been associated with connotations of the dark and macabre, extreme music has the ability to be a powerful mode of expression for these feelings of absolute bliss, overwhelming love, and awe-inspiring sublimity. Extreme emotions no less and those which black metal quartet Agriculture evokes with its ecstatic subversion of the subgenre’s tropes.

What was initially a meeting and subsequent series of jam sessions between Kern Haug and Daniel Meyer, two musicians in the Los Angeles underground noise scene, would eventually manifest as a shared vision to portray the sublimity of the human experience through the vehicle of heavy music. Following the additions of veteran guitarist Richard Chowenhill and bassist / vocalist Leah Levinson to the band’s lineup, this idea would crystalize into the “ecstatic black metal” backbone of Agriculture’s music, first heard on the band’s 2022 debut EP, The Circle Chant.

With Agriculture’s self-titled record and first full-length LP, it’s abundantly clear that the band’s use of heavy music to showcase the most resplendent emotions and moments of the human experience has a far deeper meaning. Woven between the flurries of soaring tremolo picking, crescendoing guitar harmonies, celebratory screamed vocals, thoughtful improvisation, and meditative atmospheric passages is the record’s mission statement to experience the wonders and joys of both the esoteric and physical world.

Debut full-length album from Moribund Dawn! Mystical & Imperial Swedish style black metal praising Vinterland, Dawn, & Dissection. Recorded by Zach Rippy (Power Trip, Savage Necromancy) at Sound Signal Audio. Artwork by Neil Frianeza Catangay. Shrink-wrapped jewel case CD with deluxe silver foil-stamped slipcase

Back in 2000, MYSTIC CIRCLE just reached their peak with the release of their third studio epic “Infernal Satanic Verses” and were rightly regarded as Germany's leading black metal band. In the summer after the millennium turn, MYSTIC CIRCLE followed up with the 5-track EP “Kriegsgötter II”, a compilation with cover versions of BATHORY, CELTIC FROST and ACHERON, and a new recording of their demo classic “Die Götter der Urväter”.

However, the founding line-up broke up and A. Blackwar left the band. Only his return in 2020 and the reunion with vocalist Beelzebub conjured up the spirit of that time again, resulting in the latest two new records “Mystic Circle” and “Erzdämon”. Now in 2025, “Kriegsgötter MMXXV” will be released as an extended new edition with 8 tracks, incl. the newly re-recorded IRON MAIDEN classic “Afraid To Shoot Strangers”, as well as the POSSESSED cover “Death Metal” and the soundtrack tune “Cry Little Sister” from the movie “The Lost Boys”.

On "Arete", NETHERBIRD return with their signature melodic black/death metal that has become their hallmark. It is deeply rooted in the Scandinavian underground legacy, yet delivered with a strong sense of feel and urgency, allowing these tracks to exude the confidence and songwriting prowess of a band at the peak of their craft. The album itself is the third installment of the trilogy that started on “The Grander Voyage” and continued on “Into the Vast Uncharted”. The journey has come to its completion with this album, where the very concept of Arete – the classic ideal of excellence – is scrutinized from various angles in these songs.

Sweden's black metal troll ARCKANUM return with his eighth opus, "Fenris Kindir"!! Equal parts ripping riffs and howled vocals from the edge of Ragnarok, "Fenris Kindir" expands on the darkness of "Helvitismyrkr" and finds ARCKANUM taking a battle axe to the world. Having emerged from the black metal underground, the bludgeoning brute force of the "Fenris Kindir" demands the respect and fear that plundering raiders from the North commanded centuries prior.
 

Something rises in the bleak and blackened skies of society as we know it. Vortex community GAEREA are about to bestow their Undying Sigil to the masses, with their brand-new full length album, ‘Limbo’! Are you ready for the tale of the Fallen Society and the journey to the vast Void, the only good in Life? Let us begin then. In the first hopeless circle, on too great and Undeniable Nothingness.

CD in JakeBox with 12-page booklet.
The JakeBox is an eco friendly packaging product.
Its most significant characteristic is the folded "claw" that holds the disc, and in an eye-catching way unfolds itself, presenting the disc, lifting it up and making it easily accessible.

When Gaerea emerged out of pandemic limbo, the masked band came branded with a vision of black metal that was guided not by myths or pagan beliefs but a purging of emotion. The world quickly came to share that vision, following them from the gates of Hellfest to tours through China and the U.S.
But with ‘Coma’, Gaerea are no longer strictly black metal. Though once again produced by trusted confidant Miguel Tereso, their fourth album broadens their signature sound by taking it in two seemingly opposed directions. There are more moments of intense beauty, but they only heighten the ensuing blows.
“World Ablaze” ignited this new era of Gaerea by holding a more conventional song structure over fiery tremolo picking. “Hope Shatters” upends even the loftiest of fan expectations; after the song collapses under its blistering heaviness, the melody hangs perilously in the air, like a swaying chandelier, before it’s smashed to pieces by hammering bass and concussive blast beats. “I’ve known faces within me”, their unnamed vocalist cries in the wake of a slow and somber guitar solo before “Unknown” snaps into a razor-sharp hook. “I transform with every passing moment”.
With ‘Coma’, Gaerea surface to the top of extreme metal.

For fans of MGLA, UADA, NUMENOREAN, THE GREAT OLD ONES.

Vintersorg’s classic album remastered! A real gem of epic Swedish Viking Metal!

As someone who listens to Metal albums on a daily basis, as well as being a Metal fan for well over 40 years, there are many great Metal albums out there. But sometimes an album comes along that changes how we look at Metal. We are not sure if that was Andreas “Vintersorg” Hedlund‘s intention when he wrote his debut full length, “Till Fjälls”, but that is exactly what this album did. His intention was to create a sound that was Black Metal based but also focusing more on clean vocals and adding more traditional Swedish folk elements to the that base. He inadvertently patented a new sound and sub-genre.

The album opens with, “Rundans,” which is basically an intro, being part acoustic and part electric. Keyboards take the place of what sounds like wind instruments. “For kung och fosterland,” follows as the first proper song, opening with speed and fury there are tremolo riffs and grim vocals but they lead to a much more melodic approach with the clean vocals taking over. Vintersorg sings here in a low baritone which became his trademark. But it is the way he used those melodies intertwined with the heavier more Black Metal oriented sounds was new and nothing like it existed before.

But what the real magic here is the entire package. Songs about that show how ancient paganism was so rooted in the actual forces of nature; while done so in his own language over top this epic Metal music that was all new.

From the cold of Norrland this album manages to take the cold and grim and add some warmth and emotion. This masterpiece was just the first in a string of absolutely brilliant albums from this incredible talented artist. After 27 years this album still resonated with me the same as it did when I first heard it. This is proof that great music is timeless.

For fans of: Falkenbach, Moonsorrow, Borknagar, Finntroll, Kampfar, Einherjer.

Classic Folk/Black Metal goes progressive! Remastered and finally available again.

In progressive music circles, the genre of Black Metal sometimes seemed to get a treatment as if it is was plague-like. Even a lot of Metalheads themselves cannot bring themselves to develop a taste for it, although diehard fans of the genre swear it is one of the most atmospheric and emotive styles of music in existence to date.

With Vintersorg’s “Cosmic Genesis” it appears as if there is a perfect album for those who are not too much into Black/Pagan Metal (or other extreme forms) but are interested to look into it. Strong melodies and intelligent instrumentation mixed with some more primal, heavy sounding riffs make for a very wellrounded Metal album that a much wider variety of listeners should find appreciation for.

One of the biggest points of contention people seem to have with Black Metal are the high-pitched screams which dominate and help define the genre. While these are indeed present in “Cosmic Genesis”, the main form of vocal delivery rests on the deep and strong clean singing of Andreas Hedlund, at times verging on being operatic in nature. Strong melodies and some rocking guitar riffs are the order of the day for this classic Vintersorg album. A special track worth mentioning here is a great cover of the Uriah Heep track “Rainbow Demon”, which is performed in great Vintersorg style (and has a strong medievalsounding intro). The album is full of great Black/Folk Metal tracks, although the highlights would undeniably include the opener (‘Astral & Arcane,’) the title track, and the powerful ballad ‘The Enigmatic Spirit,’ which should convince anyone to check out this album after hearing it. We think the highly melodic nature of this album will help at least a few people open up to Black Metal as a whole, who are not too familiar with this style, or do not like it too extreme.

For fans of: Falkenbach, Moonsorrow, Borknagar, Finntroll, Kampfar, Einherjer.