Review by Felix on May 25, 2026.

It always strikes me as rather paradoxical that ice-cold black metal can be so fiery, so intense and so hot at the same time. But maybe it is the same with the "Sun of the Dead"? I guess this is the meaning of "Nekrohelios" and this is the name of a new load of inhuman, sinister art. By the way, it is supplied by Azaghal, one of the most consistent creators of Finnish black metal – and one of the best simultaneously. I don't say that each and every of their albums is a sonic paradise for fans of the subgenre, but they have more than enough fantastic stuff in their discography. So if I have to separate their material into solid to good on the one hand and (totally) great on the other hand, "Nekrohelios" falls under the second category. Therefore those of you who have realised the enormous value of previous albums such as "Nemesis" or "Omega" can stop reading and buy "Nekrohelios" blindly. Nevertheless, this very remarkable work is worth describing more detailed.

Very characteristic elements of the release are its production, the vocals and the omnipresent bestiality of the material. To start with the last one, Azaghal are definitely experts in the creation of totally hateful compositions, but they never forget to sprinkle in just the necessary amount of melody. The fanatic yet melodic guitar line that gains control at the beginning and the end of "Haava" shows this competence of the band impressively. Given this fact, Azaghal spread hate, hate and hate with every note they play and the harmonious choir at the beginning of "Saatana, Olen Miekkasi" remains nothing but a mockery. The misanthropic terror begins with the initial notes of "Elävän Kuoleman Tuhannet Kasvot", the first regular song after the intro which gives the album its name. I am almost sure that no fan of intense black metal will not fall in Satanic love with this track immediately. It is strict, merciless and devastating, in other words: a perfect opener. But don't think that "Nekrohelios" belongs to these dubious works that have nothing more to say after the first song. Already the directly following "Elysium" teaches us otherwise. Due to a few keyboard tones and nearly spheric background vocals, the song delivers one per cent more harmonies than the opener, but do not overestimate these differences. At the end of the day, it is another first class outburst of destructive negativity.

The background vocals build the bridge for the next dominating feature of the full-length. Mr. Thirteen was introduced with "Alttarimme On Luista Tehty". His voice kicked off the album – and for good reason. This guy seems to be a member of the rare species of natural born black metal vocalists. This population is usually found in Finland, if at all. Either way, his raw, demonic, imperious and evil announcing approach is not unique – how could it be, more than two decades after the start of the second wave of black metal? But it is an excellent example of a flawless performance at the microphone. And despite the horrifying basic tone of his vocals, it gets quickly obvious that Thirteen's voice does not lack charisma. I don't know if I would be able to pick him out from a crowd of ten similar Finnish loudmouths. But I know for sure that he does his job brilliantly. With that said, we can take a look at the production. "Nekrohelios" sounds brutal and dense, relentless and impactful. What more do you need to know? Azaghal were not interested in stupid sound gimmicks or highly individual experiments. Both in terms of material and mix they have stayed true to themselves. I wish more bands would consider this maxim.

"Nekrohelios" focuses on brutality without ignoring spiritual elements. Moreover, it embodies the murderous strength of black metal every second. It is not the first album which comes that close to the core of the fascinating genre. But that is not a criticism of this work; rather, it speaks to the successes of the global black metal community over the past few decades. However, even glorious scenes need a new impulse from time to time in order to stay vital and vigorous. This is precisely what "Nekrohelios" delivers. Its wild, ferocious and dynamic compositions have the power to catapult you into another world for 43 minutes – a horrible, maybe frightening yet breathtakingly exciting one. If I had to find fault with anything here, the only thing that springs to mind is a slightly odd, primitive guitar line which pops up now and then in "Juuret". From this follows that this devastator (enjoy the martial "hey hey" shouts in its middle) deserves only a 9 out of 10, but come on, nobody's perfect. All I can say is that "Nekrohelios" marks an almost dramatic improvement after the already strong "Alttarimme..". This means nothing less than that it has a good chance of becoming "my" black metal album of the year – and it is already a new landmark of the genre.

Rating: 9.6 out of 10