Review by Felix on August 30, 2021.

After tons of albums and – even more crucial – many powerful legions of very good albums, it has become a rare joy for me to discover a new work that really excites me. However, it is part of the fascination of metal music that it still happens from time to time. Craven Idol’s third longplayer has given me this special form of happiness. I confess with shame that I do not know the previous releases of this competent unit, but I can guarantee that Forked Tongues is able to stand on its own feet excellently. This is not to say that Craven Idol’s music sounds absolutely individual. Deströyer 666 is enthroned at the top of the “similar artists” list and that’s almost logic as soon as 'The Wrath Of Typhon' sets in. Well, I did not think that the song sounds like D 666. Honestly speaking, I thought this is D 666, because the main riff seems to be stolen from a warslut. And that’s not all – the entire design of the track with its intensive, triumphant vibrations makes me feel that I am the wargod (or at least his pet, his brother-in-law's nephew or whatever). Anyway, the striking similarity is limited to this song, even though the melody of 'Deify The Stormgod' also has some deströying vibes.

Yet it goes without saying that the dudes from London do not copy the approach of the Australian brothers in spirit. 'Even The Demons…', for instance, marches to a different drummer. After the first 45 seconds, its strictly driving guitars send me a short shower of crust down my spine. The intensity is getting higher and higher, not only due to the partly insane velocity the drummer delivers. The song is like a series of bombs exploding in rapid succession, but fortunately these bombs do not kill innocent people. Thus, I don’t think that the men with the long beards, the turban on the head and the modern firearms like this albums. Good thing, because I don’t want to have much in common with them. By the way, I am sure they speak with forked tongues and this exceptionally intelligently made transition brings me to the rabid yet elegant, excellently flowing title track. It marks an outburst of an unbelievable mix of hatred, energy and violence. Last but not least, it houses the most surprising break of the album, because a center heavy part emerges out of the blue and the demonic “Uh! Ah!” emphasize its dangerous appearance additionally. Due to this unexpected twist, the listener almost gets two songs in one. Very decent double strike!

The production – what can I say? To me the album sounds flawless in terms of the mix. There is so much violence in it, so much brutality, so much pressure and so much inner strength that I cannot find the smallest detail to grumble about. The opener 'Venomous Rites' does not belong to the absolute highlights of this work, but it’s remarkable that the production manages its breathtaking speed and insane density without revealing signs of blur. Therefore it’s just logical that the result is always outstanding as soon as the brilliant sound meets a perfect composition. If you have doubts, you are invited to the 'Iron Age Of Devastation' – this track lives up to its title. Okay, it does not focus on total devastation, but its adventurous riffing presents pure steel and so the “iron age” does not remain an empty promise.

Ferocity and fury, anger and hate – all these words can be used to describe the infernal yet well-structured material. From my point of view, the thrashing elements dominate, among other things due to the fact that the powerful vocals do not sound like the nagging or screaming of a typical black metal vocalist. Nevertheless, the atmosphere of the release proves evidence Craven Idol also love the black form of musical aggression. At the end of the day, Forked Tongues is just a melting pot of extreme metal. The two monuments at the end of the tracklist add the final touch to this work while giving room to some epic moments without ignoring the rule of violent intensity and neckbreaking speed. Instead, they offer intriguing combinations of heroic and devastating sequences.

Finally, the lyrical concept deals with Greek mythology. Stormgods play an important role and nobody can deny that they take their sponsorship for this monster of an album seriously. Enough written. Forked Tongues is one of the best albums in 2021 so far, even though I always confuse the cover with the one from Hexorcist. But my personal problems aside, the listener gets two great songs at the beginning, two great songs at the end and three perfect eruptions of aggression in the center of the album. Love this release or be blown away by the stormgods.

Rating: 9.3 out of 10

Review by Fernando on February 9, 2021.

Do you remember Danzig? The tall dude who came to fame thanks to The Misfits, his acclaimed solo career in the 90’s and then making terrible cover albums and the movie “Verotika”. If yes, then you might ask what does Glenn Danzig have to do with this band called Black Totem? Well, for starters, Danzig has had a very significant influence in a lot of metal and punk, and this band is an example of that.

Black Totem is a Finnish band that play what’s basically an amalgamation of deathrock, blues, punk, doom metal and black metal, with a not subtle influence from good ole’ Danzig through the vocal work of “Spit Poison”. Black Totem is now releasing album number two, appropriately titled II: Shapeshifting and to be released by Svart Records. Also, I brought up Danzig earlier because the first thing that I noticed that might not be a good selling point is how reminiscent Spit Poison’s vocals are of the old rock icon (since Danzig is one of those voices you either love or hate) and its so distinct you can tell when someone was inspired by him. That being said I do have to admit that Spit Poison does have a thundering voice and it suits the music perfectly, the additional vocals of bassist “Wera Wolf” (get it?), also may give it that extra layer of personality to make it distinct.

Which finally brings us to the music and this is where Black Totem truly shines like a bonfire in the night. They’ve created some truly wicked tunes with enough grit and filth to impress black metal fans but with all the rock swagger and punk attitude to be accessible, and that’s because underneath all the fuzz and distortion of the guitars and bass, the riffs and hook are very catchy and downright infectious. The band switches from pure Motörhead moshing to some horror punk grooves, and as a whole the album is a fun ride from beginning to end, which aided by the brief but meaty runtime of 30 minutes. The guitars and bass truly shine here and the drums while not terribly complex do have an authentic primitive quality that serves as the backbone for the riffs and solos.

It's truly a shame this album came in early 2021 because it is a perfect Halloween soundtrack. My final observation is that while this band does make use of past convention from all the styles and genres they incorporate, they do so with such confidence and passion that you don’t care about the Danzig and Death SS similarities. Overall Black Totem have made a rocking good time of an album with spooky vibes and that’s an alright thing in my book.

Best tracks: 'The Devil', 'Bloodstained Owl', 'Dead Meat'

Rating: 7.7 out of 10