It’s a vibe. A black metal vibe.
Black metal. Death metal. Poisonous Metal. Naming one’s album with any word followed by the word metal is an extremely bold move. It is guaranteed to be met immediately with objectivity, and curiosity from listeners and fans alike. Fortunately, Blestemat is an extremely bold two-man black metal project from Sweden who have produced what is a surefire deep cut debut for years to come.
“Curses’ Revenge” begins with some gritty feedback and some underlying riffage before blasting full bore black metal and a classic “AAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGHHHH!” from the vocals to kick the track off. It isn’t until literal minutes into the song that they finally slow up the chaos to break into a slow, catchy breakdown which crescendos into an even faster finale. The band has mentioned influences from Watain, Malign, and Ofermod, but there are certainly plenty of other black metal greats they pulled from too. “Blestemata” immediately harkens back to Bathory’s “Under The Sign of the Black Mark” in terms of capturing black metal essence in song format. The perfect mix of dark clean guitar parts pair perfectly with the more traditional black metal blasts, riffs, and vocals.
“Rebellious Webbed Wings” is another track which again carries some sonic resemblance to “Under The Sign…” but this time with some sharper, grittier guitar melodies played to a swing beat. It’s also worth noting that none of these tracks ever overstay their welcome. No over-intros, no droning on of outros; the songs feel appropriate in length for the style of music that’s being produced. Even the interlude, which delivers an organ being played over a crackling fire for roughly 30 seconds is enough to hook and draw the listener in to the painted sonic sounds of black metal. No cheese detected.
We are welcomed back after the interlude to the fastest track on the album: “Glowing Earth.” This song continues to showcase the band’s prowess with not only black metal, but also hardcore when it comes to the breakdown in the song’s closing. (See Sheer Terror and Celtic Frost. IKYKWIM). Followed by “I Am His Light,” we are brought full circle for the finale. A little bit of everything from each song on the EP is display here. Black metal for the sake of black metal, performed well, and not so audible that it will make your friends and family say “Wow, that’s a hip new groovy song you got there!”
Anyways, this cassette EP from Blestemat is a gatekeeping tool. Go buy the cassette from this link RIGHT NOW since it’s only limited to 150 copies. Seriously! Then when your mates come over, they’ll be like “Whoa, what is this?!” And you can be like “Oh that? That is my Blestemat EP cassette. Real black metal.”
See?! Now you’re the friend who is recommending good black metal music. | Chad Killion
