Review by Felix on April 20, 2025.

For me, the eighties are the golden decade of metal and the decade of my youth. Bad enough when you consider that the year is 2025. For some younger fans, especially those who love this genre called black metal, the real classics were published in the nineties and everyone who has ever lend an ear to “De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas” understands their position as well. Okay, Isvind’s first full-length “Dark Waters Stir” has not much in common with albums the scene calls the classic ones, but it takes the audience back in time and back to the roots. In a nutshell: Oslo, 1996. Unfortunately, to listen to this work is more ambivalent than expected.

Isvind’s debut stood out in all catalogues printed at the time due to its white design. That’s not the only unusual component. The digipak comes without a booklet and delivers almost no information but the song titles. But let us leave these side aspects behind. “Ulv! Ulv!”, the first regular track after the intro, blows the typical Norwegian cold into the room. It reminds me a bit of “Svartalvheim”, the first album of Ancient, although it presents a harsher and rawer style of the genre. But the feeling is as nineties as possible and I guess that’s the connecting element. Gorgoroth and Darkthrone have been a source of inspiration for Isvind as well, not only in terms of style, but also with regard to the production. It is dull, it is rumbling, it is not differentiated. During the high-speed parts, the mix appears additionally blurred and nearly opaque; the drums are nothing but a distant knocking in the background. This technical execution makes the album to a foggy experience. That’s cool during the first songs, but as the album progresses, I cannot suppress the suspicion that the lack of any nuances plays a part in the fact that a certain monotony is spreading. Or is that just down to the song material, which perhaps doesn't meet the highest standards?

As is so often the case, the truth is probably once again in the middle. I'm sorry if that sounds a bit boring, but that's just the way it is. “Stille sjel” illustrates the little dilemma of the album. The opulently constructed song houses some exciting parts which feature high velocity, straight rhythms, raging guitars, and grim curses of the lead vocalist. But all in all, the track cannot fully justify its length of nearly seven minutes and the odd production as well as a few less convincing, relatively mild part,s contribute to this not absolutely convincing result. Another naturally born representative of the album, the title track with its bombastic playtime of ten minutes, also does not manage to make my day. It is partly repetitive and it lacks outstanding moments. Not to mention the lame, sorry: atmospheric outro, before the more or less hidden track shows up. Separated from the rest by some a few minutes of silence, it is almost a pity that it is not a regular part of the album, because its contours are pretty clear and the main guitar line is not so bad. Nevertheless, the vocals suck and the ending of the song is as unspectacular as the entire work. Even Oslo 1996 did not deliver only unclouded happiness.

Rating: 5.7 out of 10

Review by Felix on June 30, 2020.

Is there anything more stupid than thinking about Christmas at the end of June? Surely not. Yet I have heard that Santa Claus is living in Finland, exactly in Rovaniemi. Well, I fear it’s a tough surrounding for the dude with the red clothes, because his neighborhood does not really like to practice Christianity. Instead, the people around him love to forge and play frosty black anthems. Hex Inferi, another Finnish solo artist, writes the next chapter of Suomi black metal. Isn’t it great to see how the never-ending story gets longer and longer? Moreover, isn’t it only logical in view of the omnipresent aggression in the land of the thousand lakes that Santa Claus only dares to leave his house once a year?

Under the banner of Kryptamok, Hex Inferi keeps firing full blast over the entire playtime of 38 minutes. It’s typically Finnish, because the output sounds violent, triumphant, pretty icy, occasionally melancholic and very determined. Wrapped in a sound of opaque obscurity, the material reflects both the musical integrity and the almost patriotic attitude of the Finnish-singing lone fighter. His songs present compositional creativity as well as the will to offer black metal without the smallest additives from any other genre. The extremely raw vocals echo over the Northern ground, the intriguing, genre-immanent melody fragments avoid useless bombast and the rhythm section knows to vary the tempo in an effective and dynamic way. The dramatic beginning of 'Rottien Reformaatio' (Santa doesn’t like this title) goes hand in hand with the vehemence of the following sequences and the atmospheric yet powerful instrumental sequence crowns the track impressively. Hex Inferi adds some dark Viking choirs (without sounding embarrassing) and the song reveals an enormous depth. But don’t get me wrong, this is just one highlight of an album whose protagonist hates mediocrity. True black metal maniacs will also understand the furious opener, 'Susien Ӓitee' or 'Pymeiden Tyranni' as a call to close ranks. It doesn’t matter whether or not the songs have a hymnal touch or an affinity for brutality. They are all convincing and as cold as a Lappish winter night.

What do you say? You would prefer to hate the compact, homogeneous and vigorous album? I am sorry to inform you that I cannot deliver good arguments for your position. Yes, you’re right, obviously Verisaarna does not “take the next step” concerning the evolution of (Suomi) black metal. But honestly speaking, I am pretty happy with the form that Kryptamok’s (and my) kind of black metal shows. It’s uncompromising, it’s sinister and competently arranged – what more do you want? Okay, maybe you are one of these guys who say to a cute girl “your lips are erotic, your eyes are beautiful, and your t**s are fascinating, but sorry, I’ve already seen all these things before in a comparable design”, but I am different. I can endure to see such things on several occasions. Additionally, I cannot get enough of authentic black metal and the ever-fertile Finnish scene enriches my metallic existence. Maybe even Santa Claus likes to listen to this music secretly.

Rating: 8.6 out of 10