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Since 2005, Greece's SAD have been a madly prolific bastion of pure 'n' cold black metal. Their canon is vast and varied - VERY relatively so, given that this is all-caps BLACK METAL after all - with the longstanding duo of instrumentalist Ungod and vocalist Nadir exploring the darkest corridors of their souls every step of the way. They've did so across a half-dozen albums for such esteemed labels as Drakkar, Obscure Abhorrence, and Old Temple among others as well as a dozen splits, but then joined forces with PURITY THROUGH FIRE in 2020 for the release of their seventh album, Misty Breath of Ancient Forests.

Indeed, that album was aptly titled, for it saw SAD delivering their most ancient work in many moons. But the Greek duo are ever surprising, and nearly four years later do they emerge from the shadows with the fully-fuck-off Black Metal Craft. It's no accident that the album is titled such, as it reasserts the purity at the very heart of the SAD aesthetic and strips it to the fucking bone with ghoulish violence. Raw and rippling, here SAD somehow inject the melancholic melodicism of its Misty predecessor and then stir the maelstrom to a swirling boil, remaining hypnotic and locked-in whilst managing to gallop forth from time to time in a manner most regal. Put another way, Black Metal Craft could serve as a love letter to the late '90s heyday of Sombre Records or the aforementioned Drakkar, so old & cold its aesthetic (and, again, unapologetic its title). PURITY THROUGH FIRE is thus the most fitting stronghold for SAD's eternal black metal craft!

Winter Suicide (2007) Demo
Verzweiflung (2008) - Full Lenght
Ambient Stuff

Wintereintritt (2008) - Full Lenght

CD re-release of the first demo
 

The release of "De Dunkla Herrarna" was delayed for over a year because Lik tried to strangle Svartedöden causing the band to be put on halt.

Now available on cd too...

Written and recorded in a handful of days, the four epic, emotive songs on offer pass the 47-minute mark
There are a lot of dreamy, expansive, spacey, cosmic passages included
atmospheric Black Metal.
There’s a lot of melody at work and blastbeats are totally eschewed
in favour of slow- to mid-paced observations backboned by drums that genuinely sound like
they were recorded in an ice cave.
This record is mysterious, authentic, ancient yet ageless cold, cold, cold BM magic from the darkest shores of Sweden.

Ascolta su SoundCloud

One of the most imposing and revered bands in black metal's underground for the past decade, BEKËTH NEXËHMÜ have built a literally towering body of work. The band is yet another creative vehicle of Ancient Records linchpin Swartadauþuz (Azelisassath, Digerdöden, Gnipahålan, Musmahhu, Mystik, Summum, Trolldom, Daudadagr, as well as current labelmates GREVE and MUVITIUM), but it's largely BEKËTH NEXËHMÜ where the man has most built his legacy. To date, three official albums have been released - 2010's de dunkla herrarna, 2019's De fördolda klangorna, and last year's literally massive De Fornas Likgaldrar double-album, which featured over two hours of re-recorded material, recast as a whole new experience - and a literal bounty of demos, each one arguably greater and grander than most band's actual albums, that have equally put a frightening new(er) face on Swedish black metal, by turns becoming the nowadays face of the form.

Limited edition of 198 copies on white vinyl, incl. gatefold cover and download.
Isen’s debut album delivers a powerful blend of melodic black metal, diving deep into the aggressive essence of late Norwegian second wave while weaving in melodic elements reminiscent of classic Swedish black metal, yet with a unique twist. Cutting riffs, bleak atmospheres, and organic production converge to form an album that honours the genre’s golden era, yet forges its own dark and evocative path. Each track unfolds like a puzzle piece in a haunting journey through frozen emotional landscapes, where melancholy and fury coexist in eerie harmony. A must-have for any fan of the genre