Review by Jeger on June 3, 2025.

I do love a good Black Metal mystery group. Germany's Empeiria - a duo whose identities are unknown. It's their music that does the speaking, and with their latest release, Empeiria has chosen to explore themes related to existential dread, renewal and realization. Gnosis? Could be. We all know what it is to traverse life's woeful paths; those treacherous avenues where doubt looms and the promise of a brighter day is but a faded whisper. But if we continue down further, we reach a position of deeper understanding. Further still into the realm of self-actualization will we find ourselves if we are brave enough, wise enough. So many of us waste our lives. We toil away for things we think we want or need, and when they come, where's the fulfillment? Nowhere to be found, because we're living a delusion! A perpetual spinning of the wheel that takes us nowhere, and then? Death so absolute… A life wasted. On June 6, Empeiria will release The Ascent: Szenen Der Katharsis via Vendetta.

π and η - harbingers of renewal, as opposed to what is the depressive norm when it comes to Black Metal existentialism - are not just projecting a unique conceptual vision for the genre, but they're also displaying Black Metal savvy that is tethered to Scandinavian tradition: cold, brutal, dark and accursedly melodic. Another brilliant acquisition for Vendetta. And as the seconds begin to unravel, it's to the sound of a frigid winter tempest; a penetrating gale set to ominous chants during the opener, "I". Followed by the momentum of a masterfully campaigned onslaught; redolent to the current Azaghal era in "II". Air-tight yet delightfully unpredictable, epically composed yet perspirant of a rosy sense of familiarity all the same.

Time - perceived as linear, but factually revolutionary - a cruel spell upon us all that circles back over the dread of our existence with all new, but intimate pain every other day it seems. The suffering may be packaged differently but it hits all the same vulnerable spots. If we do what we've always done, we'll get what we've always had. The Ascent: Szenen Der Katharsis is about breaking the cycle, an awakening, an epiphany that kindles a new way of thinking and of living until the flames of enlightenment completely engulf our being; burning away the costume; exposing new skin. And while "IV" plays out, it's to Inquisition-level ferocity, only choppier, deadlier… Coming out of our existential coma now; awakened to the sound of primitive chants that are backdropped by Rotting Christ-like theatrics.

Production quality for The Ascent: Szenen Der Katharsis is something to behold - a stark actualization of all phases: defined and clear, but reckless and haphazard. You can hear fingers sliding over guitar strings. It's like you're right there in the studio. Whoever engineered this record spent little time smoothing out the rough parts. A nice balance of crispness and rawness is what we have here.

Recognizable now is our transition. Left in the past is our self of old. "VII" - an acoustic intro to signal the tranquil experience to come. We've finally realized the captive nature of yesteryear and are now embracing the promise of a substantial future. A deeply contemplative sense of liberation washes over us now in these closing minutes of what has been a transformative experience. A blaze of glory midway through as tremolos wail and double-bass currents rumble. An almost medieval vibe saturates the soundscape as more gentle acoustic arrangements unfold. Hope? Renewal? Scarcely traversed concepts within the scope of Black Metal, but Empeiria pulls it off, and The Ascent: Szenen Der Katharsis is an accomplishment to be proud of.

Rating: 8.7 out of 10

Review by Alex on November 22, 2018.

The first thing that came to mind whilst playing Hissing’s debut full length record is Portal. Permanent Destitution sounds like a meatier more vibrant version of the aforementioned band; you can hear the swarming distortion of Portal and a tad bit of technical guitar and drum playing, which when combined creates a warped leitmotif. Hissing is not a copycat band, yes the influences of Portal are easily heard; however, there are other styles thrown into the mix such as sludge and doom metal. Being my first introduction, upon discovery I immediately thought death-core, I really don’t know why or perhaps it’s because I’m familiar with Italy’s Hiss From the Moat which started as a death-core band, either way, Hissing turned out to be something different. The band plays such that the direction of the rhythm is very difficult to predict if any exists. I consider their style to be a very relentless, abrasive, technical formula of black and death metal with the minimal incorporation of death/doom metal. Having heard bands play within the same vein as Hissing, I spent most listens scavenging for things that I could attribute to the band as not necessarily original but distinctive and integral to their identity. 

Because Permanent Destitution is so loud and chaotic sounding, it was almost impossible to discern what was it Hissing offered that separates them from Portal and the likes of. After about 6 consecutive listens it occurred to me that Hissing’s atmosphere does not build it remains the same throughout the playtime of Permanent Destitution. To some that’s a bad thing and to others that’s a good thing, although within the compositions lies much talent to be heard, with it brings the burden of audible diversity. Here’s the problem, the music does have many alternating sections enough for a semi technical label, but the amount of distortion becomes distracting at times. This gives the music an exhausting feeling, bearing in mind it is probably what the band was aiming to achieve by implementing the effect; however, they should have toned it down a bit so the music could breathe. Permanent Destitution is not harmed to the extreme of boredom but does sound a bit monotonous sometimes. The first track, “Backwards Descent” is a great opener, the technicality is introduced early on along with the cloud of chaos created by the effect pedals. Moving into later installments I got the feeling as though the technical aspect of Hissing’s playing began to fade gradually. When compared to “Backwards Descent”, “Pablum Abundance”, “Eulogy in Squalor”, etc did not exhibit as much technicality as I assume they would have. To some extent this creates the feeling of deterioration musically by stripping away the complex segments thus leaving the foundation of the rhythm to take precedence over select sections. “Eulogy in Squalor” which is definitely my favorite piece on the record, it's a well organized track that showcases all facets of Hissing’s playing techniques. There’s the death, doom, technicality and crazed distortion unified to deliver a memorable piece. “Cascading Failures” took a pause from the aggressive style and substituted it with slower death/doom-esque sections, there is little to no technicality on the track, but the music is played with feeling, enough to portray the idea of structural retro-gradation. Judging by the title of the opening track, It would be safe to assume that the songs following “Backwards Descent” were intentionally designed to reflect disintegration, as if mimicking de-evolution or from biological advancement to a continuously regressive fetal posture mentally and physically.

Although being very similar to Portal, Hissing’s Permanent Destitution has one thing that differentiates them and that’s the meaty bass and production. I like that element, thus said, I’ve started developing an inclination towards Hissing therefore a vinyl purchase is imminent. Regardless of the minor faults of Permanent Destitution, fans of Portal, Impetuous Ritual, etc will enjoy this piece of work. It’s a sincere effort aimed at delivering sonic entropy; an effort which saw a successful outcome.

Irrecoverable phases in atrophy:

• "Backwards Descent"
• "Eulogy in Squalor"
• "Perdurance"

Rating: 7.6 out of 10