Review by Vladimir on April 10, 2024.

In the Serbian black metal scene, one band that came out of nowhere and became a very pleasant surprise, was none other than Nadsvest. Back in 2019, when the band released their debut EP Kolo Ognja I železa, they presented their music that is very much along the same line as Malokarpatan and Negative Plane, that brought back the elements of oldschool European black metal before the second wave template. Nadsvest’s arrival was a very pleasant welcome, and the feedback they got from the EP was overwhelmingly positive, but awhile has passed since then, and for 5 years there were no talks of a new album. However, things would change once the band would finally resurface out of nowhere when the first new single 'Vihori Boja' was uploaded on Soulseller Records’ official YouTube channel, teasing their brand-new output in the form of their first full-length album Slovo Meseca I Krvi, with the release date of May 17th, 2024. With so much anticipation and excitement from the local fanbase, as well as black metal fans worldwide, they had much to live up to, especially since they had recently signed to a very respected label such as Soulseller Records, which has a roster of so many great black metal bands. And now without further ado, it’s time to explore the letter of moon and blood that foretold the return of the lycanthropic beast, as I take a look at their debut full-length album Slovo Meseca I Krvi. 

As the drums begin dictating a heavy marching rhythm, harsh guttural uttering and aggressive riffs join in to unite their rusty blades and raise all hell. The first track 'Vihori Boja' sets up the mood perfectly by building such a strong and ominous foundation, filled with atmosphere, bestial energy and dark Gregorian chants that summon the shadows of the abyss. Fast drumming and synthesizers finally come to play on the second track 'Ponori Adski', adding an extra devilish flavor to the already merciless destruction, and as the riffs become more interesting, you know for sure that this is where the fun really begins. As the album progresses from one track to another, it manages to get gradually darker and more intense, keeping the listener on the edge of his seat, especially with the clean guitar intro and drum buildup of the third track 'Vaznesenje Zveri', where the witching hour strikes as the bells begin to toll. There is a strong ominous presence in the music of Nadsvest, that manages to convey a death-defying and almost lycanthropic atmosphere with their tight riffing, which is constantly being carried over from one song to another, all until the very end. The smooth flow of the album is so superb that it builds up to the big moment at the end, and it totally delivers once it reaches the conclusion with the finale of the last track 'Trijumf Silnika - Smrt Sveta'. The finale of the song has a very gothic vibe thanks to the particular use of synthesizers that are very reminiscent of Popol Vuh’s Brüder des Schattens that was used for Werner Herzog’s Nosferatu. 

The songwriting is dynamic as hell, with frequent tempo changes and different ideas thrown in this mixture to expand it and spice things up. Some of those ideas include occasional guitar melodies, epic chant vocals and various drum patterns that altogether make the song more outstanding. Their performance is so bestial and full of rage that the bloody vocal performance of S. just makes the instrumentation even more intense and enraged that it’s borderline “war metal” at times. I like that this album takes the already strong foundation of their first EP Kolo Ognja I železa and reshapes it completely by giving more edge to the riffs, while still maintaining that dark age atmosphere which was a strong element of their music. They continue their tradition of incorporating Serbian dark folklore elements in their music and lyrics, as the lyrical themes deal with the black arts through the lens of the darker aspects of Serbian folklore, whereas the album’s concept is an epic poem exploring the stages in the process of awakening the primal werewolf force in the warrior, the triumph of the spirit and the ultimate sacrifice of the flesh. Throughout this album, you will hear a lot of influences coming from bands such as Tormentor, Master’s Hammer, Root, Malokarpatan, Negative Plane, Bathory, Mortuary Drape, with a little bit of Sarcofago, Beherit and Blasphemy thrown in for good measure. Ever since their debut with the Kolo Ognja I železa EP from 2019, it was obvious that Nadsvest’s songs were predominantly influenced by Master’s Hammer early material, ranging from their demos to their studio albums "Ritual" and "Jilemnický Okultista", and you can still hear a lot of those elements, especially on the fifth track 'Od Meseca I Krvi'. I like the fact that there is not a single bit of generic “norsecore” black metal, or any predominantly second wave black metal instances at all, because a lot of it focuses on that overlooked aspect of black metal music that had an entirely different atmosphere, heavily inspired by dark European folklore, with lots of other esoteric and occult elements to raise the intensity in the overall band performance. While still on the subject of their pre-second wave elements, they even incorporate those “reverse blast beats” that a lot of 80’s Brazilian extreme metal bands used in their cult classic albums, very much in the style of Sarcofago’s ex-drummer D.D. Crazy. Although the album art is great with its simplistic design, I do kind of miss that black background with the gold-embossing on the cover that was used for their EP, but nonetheless it is very much faithful to that style of medieval scripture and illustration that the band was going for. On the final note, the album production this time is much rawer and menacing than their EP, with the sound that successfully manages to point out the pure rage and organic feeling of their performance, nailing the spot completely. 

I was very surprised with this album how it turned out in the end, because after purchasing their Kolo Ognja I železa EP and listening it on repeat two years ago, I was not sure what to expect as a follow-up to that and I wasn’t even certain if it would ever come to happen. Luckily, the final result that is Slovo Meseca I Krvi is a wonderful black metal product that is faithful to their musical roots, which also succeeds in strengthening the foundation that Nadsvest successfully built back in 2019. I am not sure what I expected, but this one mean badass werewolf of an album certainly managed to exceed all my expectations. If you still haven’t taken the time to check out Nadsvest, then what the hell are you waiting for? Go check out their EP first and then make sure to immediately jump into this horrific thrill-ride that will sink its fangs in your neck on a full-moon night. 

Rating: 9.1 out of 10