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ANFAUGLIR was forged by US multi-instrumentalists Lord Bauglir and Griss as an exploration in storytelling through epic symphonic Black Metal. Based upon the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, the duo aim to match the source material's scope and grandeur with unique cinematic compositions which transport listeners directly to Middle-earth.

Originally active 2004-2010, when they released cult 2008 debut album "Hymns over Anfauglith", ANFAUGLIR are now resurrected in glorious style to unleash a new suite of rousing, emotive and triumphant longform manifestations of a legendary mystical world.

Avoiding traditional song structures, the immaculately-produced new opus "Akallabêth" - meaning 'The Downfallen' in Adûnaic, the language of Tolkein's Númenoreans - is written and arranged in the vein of a traditional classical symphony. Themes and melodies develop, recur and transform, entwining delicately rapturous motifs with violent tragedy through the vastness of multi-layered orchestration, choral majesty, evocative chamber-work and sweeping Black Metal.

Ambientscapes mixed with black metal Hell from the mastermind behind the exemplary Nightbringer and Bestia Arcana.
 

Averaging an album per year since their 2018 formation, this latest expression from the rightly-revered Swiss Atmospheric Black Metal band AARA shows no drop in quality, nor let-up in their perpetually questing sense of purpose.

In follow up to 2023's "Triade III: Nyx" - the climatic installment of the 'Melmoth' trilogy based on Charles Robert Maturin's classic Gothic novel - the band now break away from the literary and apply their stunning musicality to real-world events.

"Eiger" is conceptually focused on the 3967 meters mountain of the same name in the Bernese Alps. Since 1935, at least 64 climbers have died attempting to conquer the Eiger’s sheer, ice-covered north face which has earned it the nickname of 'Mordwand' ('murder wall'). The album specifically examines an attempt to climb the Mordwand in July 1936 which ended in tragedy, as four young mountaineers succumbed to treacherous conditions and disappeared, presumed caught in an avalanche.

AARA's music has evolved dynamically in tandem with the subject matter, becoming more visceral, tangible and hauntingly powerful. An organic and spacious production allows the trademark elegiac, spirited leads and reverberant acoustic guitars of main-composer Berg to give increased emotional weight to a performance of on-the-edge savagery from vocalist/lyricist Fluss. The icy melodies, pensive moods, vibrant plummets and shifts/drifts contrast the wonderment of the natural world with a heightened sense of existential malaise and ultimately horror.

Like strokes of inspiration, exquisite guitar melodies weave a fluent plethora of moods and emotions, showcasing a heavy classical influence. Undulant blast beats and biting screams serve as a counterpoint to pristine atmospheres and ethereal choirs, an obstinate reminder of the finite nature of man and his creations.

Here at the onset of a new decade, AARA presents a landmark of thoughtful, unorthodox Black Metal.

Comes in a 4-panel digipack with a 12-page booklet.

The wonderfully productive Swiss atmospheric Black Metal band AARA return with urgency to unleash "Triade II: Hemera", their 4th full-length since 2019 and the second chapter of the Melmoth trilogy.

Based upon the 1820 Gothic novel 'Melmoth the Wanderer' by Charles Robert Maturin - and closely connected in style and atmosphere to 2021's initial instalment "Triade I: Eos" - each of the 6 brutally melodic tracks follows the book's chronological mid-point narrative in a dazzling critical examination of theism and scepticism through the medium of top-tier Black Metal.

Although conceptually aligned with part one of the trilogy, "Triade II: Hemera" further-advances the AARA sound into realms of progressive extremity: defined once again by the beauteous lead melodies of composer/guitarist Berg, the record combines a raw violent undertow with subtle rhythmic shifts, left-field riffs/refrains and sublimated vocal savagery - interweaving Christian choirs, the Jewish shofar horn and traditional Indian vocal samples into yet another outstanding offering from an unstoppable young band overflowing with ideas and confidence.

Shiki, the 2022 studio album from Sigh is an opus of dark and eclectic blackened Heavy Metal, shrouded in traditional Eastern influences. 

CD edition.

Eastern Darkness features an extensive collection of cult Japanese Black Metal legends Sigh's early demos, EPs and rarities.

Double CD

MYSTICUM’S NEW ALBUM, ’PLANET SATAN’. THE LONG-AWAITED & ALREADY LEGENDARY MILESTONE IN BLACK METAL SUPREMACY FROM THE NORWEGIAN PIONEERS.
CD in mediabook with 24-page booklet
 

Originally released in 2002, We’re Going to Hell for This is a compilation of rarities featuring unreleased material spanning 1992-2001.

The collection also includes live tracks, demo tracks, and cover versions of classics by the likes of Darkthrone, Discharge and Venom. 

The live tracks featured here were recorded in Switzerland and also at the famous Inferno festival in Norway and contain an excellent selection of Carpathian live carnage.

This edition of Ulver’s Vargnatt marks 30 years since the original release of this classic 1993 demo. 

CD edition with audio sourced from the original DAT. 

Contains the bonus track Vargnatt, captured live at Bootleg TV in Oslo, 1993, and sourced from the original U-matic, courtesy of the National Library of Norway.