Review:
I don't understand it. It wasn't but a few months ago that every time I was given a Metal Blade record I was unfortunate enough to be cursed to listen and review the newest heap of garbage that was trying to pass itself off as a good metal record. I was getting a clone of bands like WhiteChapel, Suicide Silence, All Shall Perish, or whatever the flavor of the week deathcore band signed to the label. It was really getting pathetic. What happened to the days where genre giants like Cannibal Corpse, Slayer, and Manowar were running the show? Just when I was about to give up the label completely (at least when it came to their newer acts) I got my hands on a new batch of recently released or soon to be released records that reinstalled some of my faith in the label.
Insert Valkyrja from Sweden and their newest release The Invocation Of Demise. Now I'm not the foremost expert on all things Black Metal but I would have to say this is about as "true" and "kvlt" as it gets. The album is pissed, heavy and blasphemous. It doesn't have the raw production that B.M enthusiasts crave but I find it to be the perfect balance between raw and quality. When the music is fast it's relentless. It's not near as chaotic as Marduk's Panzer Division but it definitely holds it own. The slower tracks on the record are still heavy and contain an eeriness that reminds me a lot of something Mayhem's Freezing Moon.
Like I stated previously, my knowledge on Black Metal is very limited but of all the newer BM bands that I've gotten the chance to hear this reminds me a lot of Watain. There may be a million other bands that are exactly the same as Valkyrja or better comparisons but excuse my ignorance on the genre. But regardless of short-comings I will say that if you hate Jesus and like your Metal like your coffee (black and bitter) then you will dig this record. It may not be the best black metal album in the history of the genre but I find it to be quite a good listen.
While writing this review i looked at their current roster and it's not nearly as bad as i thought it was. The problem is most of their most recent releases has been by all their shittier bands.
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