Nocturnal Evil - Seven Rituals of Hell demo '08

Nocturnal Evil - Seven Rituals of Hell demo #4 2008
1) Prelude (The Sinister Apparition)
2) Black Past
3) Child Sacrifice
4) Necronomicon Exmortes
5) Dark Ascention
6) Necrofetish
7) Entering the Occult Dimention

Yandex / Sampo

The people who know me might be aware of my fondness to complete cycles, patterns and such as much as I can. Which leads us to today's suspiciously modern release (2008! that was practically yesterday!), another demo by the Argentinian bestial Beherit-metal unit Nocturnal Evil. I posted the previous effort here, same source et al. Four years passed between this and the third demo, a surprisingly long time actually. A glance at the covers is already telling even the casual layman observer that not much seems to have changed in that time. Same primitive look, same sort of jaggedy scripting, disarmingly crude artwork. The demo is dedicated to master Conscicide who had followed the freezing moon in August the same year, so it is similarily quasi-topical as the last post where the old Dutch scene was mentioned.

Are we to expect Bestial Summoning-worship then this time? Naaah, not really though one might argue some shades could be seen if you squeeze your eyes tight and believe real hard, with all your heart! It's in similar elder Tireheb-praising way as the demo #3 but with better, or at least louder, sound. All songs are very compact again so the total of Seven Rituals barely crosses the ten minute mark. No cover songs this time, or if there are I've missed them. Oh and Prelude... is an intro, Necronomicon Exmortes sort of interlude (Evil Dead sample as expected) and Entering... the outro. I find myself enjoying the proceedings much better this time around, is it the improvement overall or the old different day, different mood - issue remains to be seen. Similar recommendations as on the entry for the previous demo but a bit more enthusiastically! Do your best, Nocturnal-kun! Everyone, let's support Nocturnal Evil~♥ ...ok not that much enthusiasm. I think I need some sleep.

Nocturnal Evil - Altar of Sodomy demo 2004

Nocturnal Evil - Altar of Sodomy demo #3 2004
1) Intro - Procreation of Evil
2) Black Apocalypse
3) Altar of Sodomy
4) Outro - Unholy Worship
5) Penetrator Hammer (Beherit cover)

Sendspace / Mediafire

Another "modern" release today (post-2000) though it sounds very much like Beherit circa '90 which I suppose is the point too. This is Argentina's Nocturnal Evil and the third demo from '04, limited to 66 copies like they all seemed to have been. It's not ripped from an original tape but from a dub I got from a trader with copy of the cover which I scanned, thanks for that!

Intro, outro, two original (well, not really original to be honest) tracks and a Beherit cover, all on the short side so the total running time is around eight minutes. As the band name and cover track give away, this is pretty much a "tribute" band in similar way Finnish Black Feast was. Sound is slightly muffled, a little distant and fuzzy as if recorded with a soft, fluffy towel wrapped around the... whatever was used to record this, let's say microphone. Every element however is easily and clearly distinguishable from one another and the whisper/growl-hybrid vocals are readily audible though indecipherable. On paper it has all the elements necessary for me to like this but I don't seem to feel very enthusiastic about it. Kinda good Beherit-worship, grab it if you've fondness for such and generally neo-old school bestial stuff à la NWN!/Iron Bonehead/similar operators. When out vynil?!

Riding Hellwards: Volume 1 (1999)

Various Artists - Riding Hellwards: Volume 1 compilation tape 1999
1) Moonsorrow - Taistelu Pohjolasta
2) Thorax Serpenti - Hatred Souls (rehearsal)
3) Pandemia - Created Again
4) Nazgul - Celtic Lands
5) Shadowbreed - Path in the Dark
6) Baphomet - Crucifixion
7) Thoronath - Kristet blod
8) Katassamalass - Masticated Human Flesh
9) Svartkrist - Into the Abyss (live)
10) Atavism - Cemetary Cannibalism
11) Impuro - Orgia
12) Diamatregon - Throne to Eternity
13) Bilskirnir - For the Return of Paganism (rehearsal)
14) Demon Realm - Hammer of Hate
15) Unholy Archangel - Foronis
16) Prejudice - Perpetual Pain
17) Grimoria - A Great Sacrifice
18) Gorewinter - Buried by Night
19) Baxaxa - Thorn of Steel

Depositfiles / Rusfolder

I haven't done compilation tapes for a while and since master Sorvali's contributions included these too, I decided to upload this Belgian one today. Thanks to Henri again for the rip and scans! I don't know if more volumes of Riding Hellwards were released, but this one here came with an A4 newsletter and includes almost 90 minutes of mostly black metal bands. To my delight, it also includes a number of domestic bands besides the international cast.

The newsletter is a single A4 sheet, with print on both sides so I suppose I should say two pages. It contains interviews with Black Witchery, Funeral Rites and Moonsorrow, these are all quite short, especially Funeral Rites which is also pretty thin on the information side too. The other two are a better read. As for the main dish, the compilation itself, the sound is good and quite consistent, no extremely drastic volume leaps here. Music ranges from the epic heathen metal of Moonsorrow to raw and fast material like Baphomet to brutal death metal of Katassamalass and bestial blasting of Unholy Archangel. Prejudice's distrubingly modern metal sounding track also stands out like a sort thumb. Quite a varied selection of tracks despite having a black metal focus and several first time listens too. I'm going to need another listen and take some notes, there are a few bands I must inspect further.