Chhinnamasta - Vajra Sarpa (2016)

The debut EP from India's Chhinnamasta comes as a mixture of raw black metal and atmospheric effects and although it does sound rather grim and evil, it is lyrically based on Hindu mysteries, metaphysics and cosmology. It also worth noting that the band use what we'd saw is the swastika in their logo. However, the meaning here is not at all the meaning attributed to it by Hitler and the Nazi regime. Since you have the Library Of Alexandria 2.0 at your fingertips, I suggest you research the original meaning of the symbol before Hitler appropriated it, much like several other things in his regime. The Nazis were obsessed with the occult and with speaking to a race of alien beings known as the Vril society, so there were a lot of symbols and ideas used from various belief systems in order to create his empire. It would be fascinating if it wasn't insanity. The band is a two-piece, with Chakravartin Vladcult performing the vocals, guitars, bass and keyboard compositions that you see here (I will warn you that this record is more keyboard and atmosphere-laden than it is based in black metal) along with Khaos Illuminant performing the drums. It's not a very long record, mainly sandwiching one lengthy black metal piece (In Search Of A Primal Light) right in the middle of two lighter soundscapes. As I said, the raw black metal feeling that one wants from the band, they'll get - but only for the duration of that one track. Vladkult has a near bloodcurdling scream that he utilizies, sounding quite pained and working rather well with the familiar tremolos in the piece. It's nothing new in that regard, but the mood created by the keyboards and effects here are well worth mentioning. I actually found more in those areas than I did the black metal, because it came off as something I've already heard done to death as it is. I still feel that there's something here however, and would recommend that you give it a listen. Not too shabby, gentlemen.

(3 Tracks, 20:00)

7/10

Moloch/Gurthang - Split (2016)

This is a split between two atmospheric acts, the first one being Moloch from the Ukraine and the other being Gurthang from Poland. Both acts love to use keyboard synths, which is why I deliberately used the term atmospheric, and these synths help to demonstrate a style of atmosphere that I find a bit uneasy.

Here we have something that is the opposite of a meditation with Moloch's opener “Das Uralte Verweilt Dazwischen” which leaves to bring in a vocal influenced piece with spoken word and harsh vocal influence called “Unendlichkeit” which adds in slight guitar drones to accent it's increasingly morose atmosphere. Moloch can't be described as a happy rock act, and the music here is certainly not something for those at the top of their day. If you're feeling a little low, maybe you'll want to give this one a listen. It is certainly depressive, with not even one hint of a drum. It's very ahrd to even consider this a brand of metal, as it seems to want to incorporate industrial bits towards the end.

When we come to the only track offered from Gurthang, we find something that closely resembles black metal a bit more than Moloch did, which might have been the intention there. Gurthang differ, because they actually feature drumming and well, black metal. Their frontman is a bit stronger as well. The lyrics are all in Polish, but the feeling is there. Oddly enough on the only cut we have here, (Of Decay and Solitude) there still remains a spoken word portion like with the latter Moloch track. I tend to prefer this act a little better as far as black metal is concerned and feel that something very grim and awesome could come out of this. It's a bit short though, the band really doesn't kick into high gear until the end, even though drone seems to be a major factor here as well. We'll just have to see how these gentlemen perform in the future as to where the band's next step will be. So far, it's quite promising.

All in all, there are two different styles by which black metal has been referenced here. Moloch seem to want to go into a more industrial or synth-based style, while Gurthang seem more committed to the occult style, even though I don't believe the lyrical matter is that of the occult – it just has much in common with that nearly ritualistic style performed by similar bands. Both acts are worth a listen, so do go ahead and pick it up.

(3 Tracks, 8:00)

7/10

Entropia - Ufonaut (2016)

Of the several acts with the name Entropia out there, (I found about seven on Metal Archives) this Polish five-piece creates a style of music that is considered “black/sludge/post” even though I'd certainly throw in experimental and electronic. With the exception of guitarist Kuba Colta, these guys have been together since the very beginnings back in 2007. Most interestingly about the band is their use of both a keyboardist (Damian Dudek) as well as a sampler (Michal Dziedzic) that makes for a pretty interesting mix of progressive sludge riffs and slightly spacial electronic elements. Sometimes the bass (Marek Cenkar) and strong drumming (Patryk Budzowski) can completely drown out the electronic elements, but that's to be expected with a sound as thick as the one I'm witnessing here. Entropia utilize vocals (Cenkar and Dziedzic) but they're often not necessary as this is the kind of record that is so textually superior that it doesn't even need working verses or a chorus. Ufonaut is an experiment in the very sense of the word, it is an atmosphere and it draws you in fairly quickly from it's out of the box and rather bizarre approach to something that I can't even call black metal. Other than Budzowski's occasional use of blast beats, there's very little here that I can even consider to be black metal – at all. I mean, if you're hearing black metal in some areas, that's fine; but I feel that with this release the act have become something far more than just black metal. There are very few acts that I just want to sit down and enjoy on a musical level like these gentlemen have delivered, and even if some of the leads and electronic bits have a rough time peering out from the thick sludge of it all, I still want to open my ears up to what I can discern as a rather potent and memorable sound. Why no one else really gave a damn about this one, I'll never know. I guess there were other things going on in January, like best of lists and whatnot.

That being said, anyone who purchases this record is in for a trip. It might sound cruel that I could literally care less about the vocal or lyrical element of this album, but I just consider Cenkar's screams to be part of the music and they don't have any bearing on the rest of the performance. Even when these guys utilize djent riffs I don't feel that I mind, because they're actually using the riffs in a style that focuses on more than just those damn riffs. Again, I feel that these guys have a few mixing issues but it could very well be my laptop speakers and you might be able to discern other things on your first listen. Ufonaut is definitely the kind of listen that I'd want to experience more than once, and at forty-three minutes you're not really devoting an awful lot of your time to it. Just don't go expecting anything familiar in terms of classic black metal and you'll be alright. I did hear some tremolos here and there and felt some nihilism in the vocals, but I wouldn't compare this to anyone else out there in the black metal scene. With some exceptions, I still stand behind my earlier observations and feel that it is very hard to consider an act like Entropia to be black metal unless they're trying very hard for that style. It's a shame that this one had to wait for so long, but I mean to cover as many of the older releases that stood out as I can. It's quite obvious that Entropia did and I'm really not in a hurry for them to release another one. They don't really have anything else that they need to prove after this sophomore and I think you'll agree that the material here on Ufonaut is good enough. Entropia are a good band and this a good album. That's a pretty simplistic description, but the album itself is most certainly not. Please give it a listen and experience it for yourself. I really hope that this one isn't too hard to find, considering that there are so many bands with similar monikers. Perhaps these Polish mad scientists will one day become the definitive version of that moniker, as this record definitely feels promising enough for them to do so.

(7 Tracks, 43:00)

8/10