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Hades Almighty | website | facebook |
Released on June 3, 2016 via Season of Mist / Dark Essence Records
As of lately, Drudkh has been releasing material in split EPs with other bands, and of course, Drudkh needs no introduction to metal fans the world over. Though enshrouded in mystery, the band has amassed a loyal following across the world at this late stage of its career. Perhaps due to the band members’ preference for their music taking precedence over their collective identities and personalities, the legendary Russian pagan black metal collective has been reluctant to do any interviews or promotional activity, and lately they have been content to release small bursts of quality music in collaboration with vaunted acts in the black metal scene for years now. They are in the midst of a transition phase, and their contributions to this split, entitled, One Who Talks With The Fog, are clear-cut, straight-forward black metal songs that recall a hint of earlier Drudkh albums and a hint of their last two full-lengths, Eternal Turn of the Wheel and Handful of Stars, bringing with them an emphasis on heavier riffs, a pronounced attempt at varying the tempos, all while utilizing some of their old trademark pagan folk atmospherics.
Hades Almighty has had a long, storied career dating back to the inception of black metal in the early nineties. While hailing from Norway like many scene veterans in black metal, Hades Almighty do have a sound of their own that cannot simply be shoed in with the likes of Norwegian black metal bands like Emperor and Mayhem. Their style is more suitably slower in tempo, blasting only sporadically in the tracks they contribute in this split EP. And while Drudkh has been steadily releasing material since the advent of debut full-length album, Microcosmos, Hades Almighty has been on an extended hiatus since 2014, and the music on Pyre Era, Black! is the band’s first material to surface since then.
As mentioned, Drudkh still play some epic main riffs, but these two songs on the split don’t just blast end-to-end, or use the signature mid-tempo riff in between blasts. The tempos switch more frequently, particularly for track two, ‘Fiery Serpent’, which still uses a folk-influenced staccato string section and plenty of rung notes that can be tied back to the band’s earlier recordings. Nary does track one, ‘Golden Horse’, utilize two main tempos throughout its runtime. The song sees a morphing main riff and sections that loop until the song ends.
Sadly, this approach can wear down the listener after repeat listens. Hearing the song once allows the listener to hear more than a couple of instances of the riffs used, therefore making this split release a stronger priority for long-time fans of the band. Casual listens for the Split EP are typically short-lived due to the repetitiousness.
But that’s not to say Drudkh’s contributions here are weak. It was perhaps a better idea for the band to vary the riffs a little more for both songs, especially as the repeated riffs play throughout eight plus minutes for each track.
Hades Almighty doesn’t play short songs either, but the songs certainly don’t last as long or feature plenty of Drudkh’s repetitive use of riffs in a tiresome way. The riffs off their three tracks are much simpler, hardly utilizing tremolo riffs with the slower tempos employed. The band’s music almost sounds like blackened doom to me, using plenty of rung notes and few tremolo riffs, to the pace of slower beats and epic, sustained screams.
Vocalist Ask Ty is the winner in Hades Almighty’s side of the split. His vocals are quite impressive, and considering that he is debuting for Hades Almighty as its new vocalist after long-time member Janto left the band, his inclusion into the band’s ranks bodes well for the band’s style.
Wind noises yield to heavy downpicks and rock strumming on Hades Almighty’s first contribution here, entitled ‘Pyre Era Black!’. The tremolo riffs come in later as one part of a dual guitar attack together with the main riff. The use of chanting in the background is a nice touch. Their newest material after more than a decade, Hades Almighty doesn’t sound outdated, playing a style and boasting the sort of quality that sounds refreshing.
Track four, ‘Funeral Storm’, also uses a sampled intro. Heavy metal plays somewhat of an influence on Hades Almighty’s songwriting, without galloping riffs or tempos that are trademarks of early power metal. The band certainly picks up the pace occasionally, but only for so long and for so much, that listeners who enjoy second- wave-influenced black metal may find the three tracks wanting of energy, so it is important to note that Hades Almighty has in my memory, played similarly in the past, and may seek to do so in the future as well. So, if slower black metal was never your thing, it is best to move on.
Otherwise, this is a good effort by both bands. Drudkh makes up for repetition by playing vastly superior riffs, however utilized too repetitively. Hades Almighty, on the other hand, injects some new life to an older style that is not entirely out-of-place in spite of the fact that the band has not released material in so long. Perhaps a collector’s piece for fans of both bands, the split is polarizing for some casual listeners who crave slightly more modern black metal elements. If you’re dying to know what these two veteran bands are up to these days, this split is a good pick-up. Else, know that many black metal practitioners in the underground can surpass this split in listening enjoyment. It might be obvious to most fans that Drudkh has seen better days, while Hades Almighty sounds re-invigorated after a long absence. If you hasten to hear why, listen to some of this.
