Grimm's Journey - Promo 1999

Grimm's Journey - Promo 1999
1) Intergalactic Cadillac
2) Epsilon A
3) Subcreator's World Spin

Mediafire / Zippyshare

Let's do another CD promo though this one is ripped from a cassette dub. Grimm's Journey from Finland, have you ever heard about them? No? Well, they did at least this promo back in '99, played at Sararock in '00 and have recorded an EP titled "The Carrion Game" according to their Myspace. Some of the members also played in Sotajumala which I presume is a bit better known band. At least in Finland. I ripped this from one of the tapes brother Grev lent me back some months ago, thanks for humouring my curiosity!

Three songs, first two fairly long at almost six minutes each and last one a bit shorter, very melodic "death" metal. As the strange songtitles probably give away this is melodeath of the sort our neighbours in Sweden peddled after mid-90's, think In Flames around "The Jester Race" or so (probably, I don't really listen to 'em) and ...other similar things, maybe Dark Tranquillity of that era... no I actually listened to them every now and then and it's not like DT at all. Ugh, this is not my genre. I'll just say it's like blending In Flames, Children of Bodom and a handful of random late 90's melodeath bands together. I don't really like this. Well, it's better than the EP on Myspace which is mellowed down dull sort of stuff. Like slightly later In Flames crossed with all those Finnish bands I kept ignoring all those years, festivals and drinking sessions at poorly chosen locations. My, that was enthusiastic. Ok, so this isn't that bad, the vocalist does decently harsh voice and there are some nice moments. You know, instead of struggling to find something to say here I could be watching Urara Meirochou which is exactly what I'm going to do!

Infinite Black - Promo MMXIV

Infinite Black - Promo MMXIV promo 2013
1) Trance Like Void
2) Before the Gates
3) Insidious
4) Cloak and Sword
5) Outro

Yandex / 4shared

As promised on the Nefandus 'zine post the other day, here's some music sent by The Unnamed and unusually we start with a practically fresh item, the most recent promo of Infinite Black dating to 2013 and titled "Promo MMXIV" ...or as seen on the M-A entry "Promo 2013" which makes me believe there were two editions of it and this'd probably be the second. Ripped from the original CD I was sent and encouraged to share, scans of the cardboard cover thingy are included.

I actually feel kind of stupid for posting the latest release now but it's too late for regrets. Compared to for example the oldest material ('95 reh/demo) this is of course much better production-, musicianship- and songwriting-wise but still identifiable as same band. While the debut recording was characterized by high banshee-like shrieks supported by grunts this is mainly lead by hoarse half-yell half-roar voice with very variable support vocals and the thin-yet-sort-of-submerged rehearsal sound is replaced by a strong but not overpolished studio production. And while the old songs had a plenty of variation within they had certain clumsiness to it while here similarily complex structures stand firm. Experience shows I suppose. Then again this is naturally not as wild as young lads' playing is but I still think I enjoy (for change!) the more recent Infinite Black material best. The music moves mainly in moderate speeds, with the first song being most aggressive of the bunch. Generally it's very atmospheric and keeps slowing down towards the end of the recording. More of a menacing aura than violent warlike ruckus one might expect from Aussie metal. These four songs plus outro last just under twenty minutes and could easily be released as a minialbum as it is. Good stuff, hopefully there will eventually be an album out!

Svantevith - The Return of the Ancient Slav promo '96

Svantevith - The Return of the Ancient Slav promo 1996
1) Intro
2) Te Svantevith Laudeamus
3) Te Svantevith... /Reprise/
4) 966
5) Smutek i rozpacz
6) Outro

Sendspace / Sampo

...or "Thr Return of the Ancient Slav" as our Slavonic heroes manage to misspell the title in not one but two places. That aside, I know there were rips of this floating in the bleak cybervoid before but at least the one I had saved was not of very stellar master elite quality so when I came across my copy of the tape I decided to rip it and post the result as it turned out ok. "It" being the sole promo tape of the Polish project Svantevith featuring Lord Smrtan of Nirnaeth fame, also responsible for keyboards, programming and similar pursuits in Themgoroth and Eblis. Cover scans included.

Yes, this is a synth project like you probably guessed, and in the particular vein Poles were fond of: bombastic Slavonic pagan ambient with touches of both neoclassical and pagan black metal. Latter mainly represented by the surprisingly savage raw vocals and scarcely deployed guitar. There are certainly some elements of dungeon synth present as well but I think this is quite differently oriented. Adding the tag still as the music may appeal to fans of that category. Side A could be considered the main or title part and consists of a lengthy intro, ten minute plus epos Te Svantevith Laudeamus and a short instrumental reprise piece. Side B opens with the aggressive 966 which is the most metal song of the bunch with constant fervent vocals, martial percussion, abundant background shrieks and occasional electric guitar support. This is a long track, almost seven minutes, but has a lot going on. Smutek i rozpacz which follows has music credited to Azhubham Haani (well, spelled Aazhubham... here). The band? Is this a cover? It's a bleak affair led by the shriekier voice, guitar strumming and quite mellow synth. I don't recognize this as any of the A.H. songs right now, let's leave that to experts. A lonely piano opens the almost five minute outro track that soon adds more elements in and developes epic character. Interesting thing, not quite metal nor purely ambient either. Reminds me a bit of the December's Fire album, though I seem to like this more. Could be due my strong preference of D.F. demos over the full length. I recommend you take a listen if you like dramatic synth stuff and don't mind a Slavonic pagan metal flair to it.

Kraina Wiecznego Mrozu - Ziemia ojców demo I '98

Kraina Wiecznego Mrozu - Ziemia ojców demo I 1998
1) Pruskie leśne królestwo
2) Nigdy mu się nie poddam
3) Wojna
4) Ziemia ojców

RGhost / Yandex

I think I owe you folks some black metal and this item is a bit overdue, I was supposed to post it pretty much right after me and sister Borderline finished the discussion over at her blog. If you actually took time to skim through the conversation in the comments and the update note on the write up, excellent - you know what's going on and why! If not, I suppose I'll tl;dr even though I really don't want to: this is an early version/first edition of Polish pagan black metal band Kraina Wiecznego Mrozu's demo "Ziemia ojców" which was re-released, possibly remastered or mixed or something but at least expanded (sound effects, acoustics et all added) by Reakcjonista Magazine in 1999. That is the version you see on M-A and has also been ripped and posted on Dorosłe Dzieci blog. The split by Werewolf Promotion was also based on this version of the recording but he messed the tracklisting up as told by sis B. I've not added a cover image for this since I do not have it and I'm not sure if it had one different from the '99 version. Would obviously appreciate a scan. Interestingly the title of the second track comes in two variations: Nigdy mu się nie poddam and Nigdy mu się nie poddać and both can be correct as first one translates "I will never give up" and second flavour "Never give up" so one is more of a statement while second one would be advice. I went with the version on the tracklisting I got.

Ok, so if you're already familiar with the other version it's the same four tracks but in different order and slightly more stripped down, the interludes and special effects are missing as well as some acoustics. This is roughly two minutes shorter in all. If you are new to the band, good since it's probably better to first hear this rougher take and then the extended one. Generally the sound here is rawer and somewhat more clear and audible than on the split. Music is Polish pagan black metal, of the slightly crude and almost primitive sort with patriotic flair. It's quite METAL too, just check out the very heavy metal break on the second song, halfway through or a little later. It's one of those things that on certain days you dislike and on others adore. Today is strongly the latter. I like the honest enthusiasm you can clearly feel (especially on this version) complimenting the earnest and frantic playing style. Recommended for folks into Polish black metal, pagan black metal and raw screaming coupled with youthfully eager musicianship. Next time again something Finnish. Unless you absolutely want something else, then it will probably be old US stuff. Or a 'zine.

Malitiae - My Inner Blasphemy promo '96 -REPOST-

Malitiae - My Inner Blasphemy promo 1996
1) Goathead (Intro)
2) Förintelsens tron
3) Baphometh

Mega / RGhost

Haven't I seen this before, you may ask? Justified, because last month I already posted the second Malitiae tape... or so we thought! Fortunately our Lord Azazel Djinn happened to visit and delivered an actual rip of "My Inner Blasphemy" promo and my reseach revealed the mistaken item to be half of the Demo I by L.A.D.'s other project Conjured to Baphometh! We remain uncertain how Ronan's mistake came to be, I wager he simply had ripped the wrong side of a cassette that had both. Anyways, everything was sorted out in the end so let's move onto the proper promo shall we?

The structure is similar to what we had before: an intro of almost two minutes, a slightly longer song and a bit shorter one. However, we're dealing with black metal instead of some form of ambient and there are vocals. Which make it easy to ascertain that this time we have the correct recording. Sound is fairly good and clear, despite the very low bitrate of the rip. I suppose it does not make a grand difference for this kind of a primitive recording. It's more obviously a continuation to "Azazel" demo but more coherent and less all over the place. Very rough comparison (and suitably impressive namedrop) would be old Absurd meets old Puissance ...and Woods of Infinity in general, W.o.I. definitely! Now that I listen to it without the initial shock I kind of enjoy it. Kiitos, Lord Azazel Djinn ja kaivetaan loputkin kalmot esiin joku kaunis päivä! Recommended. No, really!

Malitiae - My Inner Blasphemy promo '96

Malitiae - My Inner Blasphemy promo 1996
1) Goathead (Intro)
2) Förintelsens tron
3) Baphometh

links deleted as it wasn't correct item!

More contributions follow, this is Malitiae from Sweden, loved by a few, dreaded by a couple more and unknown to vast majority. Not devotees of the Coven though! This is the second tape, of which Lord Azazel Djinn himself commented: "About the other tapes, the second one was in many ways worse (though completely different), whereas the two following ones were standard black metal." Thanks for the chance to hear it go to my collaborateur, the man who originally ripped and scanned this, monsieur Ronan of Psychopathological zine and my lovely assistant not doing a magic show my collaboratrice, the good sister Borderline who forwarded the rip to me and acquired permission to feature it here. Merci beaucoup! Hvala vam puno!

Ok, enough banter, let's move to business: three songs, first being an intro and two "regular" ones, total a bit under ten minutes. Good sound but unfortunately Ronan has ripped it at slightly too loud volume so it sounds a bit more abrasive and broken than it should. This is fully intrumental and resembles most fellow Swedes Landscape and actually a bit Emglev too, now that I listen to the second song while typing this. This might pass as metal, ambient/black metal of some sort perhaps, if one is feeling generous, with the percussion and all. Third track not so much, it's basically keyboards on the background and piano that is beaten played like percussion on the forefront. At the end of the day I can't agree with the artist's assessment of this being worse of the two early demos. And now I'm really curious to hear how he progressed on the stardard black metal demos III & IV! Not obviously for everyone but much easier to recommend than the first effort.

UPDATE: Lord Azazel Djinn sent me his rip of this promo and it's not the one I got from Borderline who got it from Ronan!!! Almost same running time but different material! It has vocals and sounds more like a continuation of "Azazel" demo, I'll probably upload it here as soon as I get some sort of clearence what the hell the item Ronan had ripped is then, as he had provided scans I wonder if he somehow managed to do wrong side of the tape or what ever else may have occurred. Damn it! Now I wonder if it could be a Conjured to Baphometh recording, also by L.A.D. and in that vein.

UPDATE II: Yup, it's partial Conjured to Baphometh demo, not "My Inner Blasphemy" and links are removed. I will make a repost with Lord A.D.'s sending, stay tuned! And eventually CtB demo too.

Funeral Frost - Studio Tape 14.10.95

Funeral Frost - Studio Tape 14th October 1995
1) Far Beyond the Raven Star
2) Queen of Frost

Yandex / RGhost

Happy Cirno day everyone! I had originally planned to do another thing but as that got delayed I decided to delay it further and post instead something more appropriate to the date (more musicwise than numerically this time) and turns out it is again Swedish material; here's Funeral Frost with a very short and pretty obscure recording from fall '95. Brother Grev had gotten this from who knows where (well, he might) back in tape trading days and eventually dubbed it to me already two years ago. Sheesh, time flies! Recorded between their Demo 2 (early summer '95) and the only album "Queen of Frost" (January '96 - that cover art!) I suppose this thing was dubbed to people they were in touch with to showcase new material. I've no idea if there was a cover or not, most likely the latter option. There was an "official advance tape" of four songs from the album sessions sent around in early '96 which had one but then again it was sent as a promo to various 'zines and such.

Let's discuss the content, as mentioned both songs are (ok, were) new and would later be recorded for the album as well. Far Beyond the Raven Star is the longer one, and actually the longest on the album's black metal part too, at just over four minutes while the future title track is a short under two minute mark burst. The sound is good, definitely more of a demo sound than rehearsal, not as cold and raw as the album version and as the percussion is lower some elements like the synth are actually more audible. Musically these two tracks cover pretty much their whole repertoire as ...Raven Star is a slower, more atmospheric piece while Queen... represents the fast, ferocious and brief segment though it does have a slow atmospheric break too. If you're into old, cold and northern black metal but not familiar with Funeral Frost by now this might be a decent place to start with. At least it does not take too much of your time! Those in the knowing should also check out these versions as they sound different enough to merit the effort.

Mord Umysłu - Promo '98

Mord Umysłu - Promo tape 1998
1) I
2) II

Rusfolder / Sendspace

Ok, more slightly unusual stuff and again we are in Poland. Looks like a pattern has emerged, I should probably break it as soon as possible before it binds me. But let's not discuss that, let's rather talk about this sending I got already months ago, thanks to the sender, but hesitated to post due lack of information. This is an obscure 1998 recording by Mord Umysłu which roughly translates as murder of mind, or maybe mental murder? Something along those lines anyways. It was a project, most likely an one-shot, by Aro who is best known from Perunwit though he did have a host of other projects as well. Many of them with very limited discography when compared to Perunwit I should mention. There's not really much info about this two song tape on the internets, just passing mentions of the band on Metal Archives and this entry, in Polish, on a blog written by Zuchu666 who used to contribute on the venerated Raf666underground blog. RIP, it strongly seems.

Where was I? Yeah, that entry, it had a download link too but that's expired so I've been unable to compare. It seems extremely unlikely these would not be same recording though different rips certainly. The recording itself consists of two untitled (probably, no-one at least seems to know the titles!) tracks and runs for a bit over ten minutes. Music is... pretty hard to describe with a simple neat term, let's try dark ambient metal, how's that? Way more ambient than metal, mind you. While Perunwit is very folky stuff this isn't that sort of thing at all. The sound is good, quite mellow and floaty, better than on older Perunwit tapes so it might be a studio recording. Most likely just a result of better equipment and experience. Vocals are in Polish and gravelly sort of half-singing half-snarling with slight variation thrown in. Keys and effects are omnipresent and it has a slightly dreamlike quality to it, whatever-wave touches. To toss a very misleading comparison, let's say My Angel-era Arcturus meets late-90s Christ Agony. No, it's not really like that, I had a better one in mind but it got away. Still, an interesting tape, I should ask Zuchu to reupload that other rip so I could compare quality. Oh yeah, no cover as this probably didn't have one, Z speculated it was never "properly" released, just dubbed to people.

Adversary - Promo '94

Adversary - Promo 1994
1) Intro: Into the Fog
2) Slave to Eternity

Yandex / Zippyshare

No-one seemed to have much to say as to what direction the next post(s) should head so I decided to slap here another old, short Israeli black metal item. Remember Dalmerot's Kingdom I posted a few years ago? Oh, actually six years ago. Time flies. Anyways, this is the pre-DK band Adversary with their very short '94 promo tape, just an intro and one song. I haven't heard the '94 demo which appears to feature versions of this material so can't make comparisons. This was, as you probably guessed already, another tape traded item and I've no idea if there was some form of cover made. Most likely not, this seems an item just dubbed to some folks they were in touch with.

The intro is a brief atmospheric synth piece, possibly (read: most likely) borrowed from some soundtrack or other, considering how different it sounds to synth on the proper recording. The main course is black metal with very, apparently typically to several other bm bands of the time and region, prominent and slightly distracting percussion, quite tastefully executed moodful synth-driven breaks and crunchy-sounding guitars. Pretty much a more primitive version of the Dalmerot's Kingdom material. The vocals are also kind of lost among other ruckus but seem your usual raspy screeches with decent enough execution. Some of the shifts feel a bit jarring and the song ends kind of... soon? Like if it was an abbreviated version. Well, at least they don't overstay their welcome. The part near the end with whispered vocals brings something to my mind but what, can't quite put my finger on it! Recommended to those dedicated to exploration of the more exotic scenes, fans of old proto-sympho black metal and obviously those who enjoy Dalmerot's Kingdom.

Grimoire - With Blackstorms We Come... promo '94

Grimoire - With Blackstorms We Come... promo October 1994
1) Conjuration
2) Beyond Eternal Nights

Mega / Rusfolder

The weather has taken a pleasant turn to slightly cooler but I still wanted to keep up with the southern summer campaign for at least a bit longer. Today we have, to counterbalance some of the recent posts, some Israeli material from my vaults. Grimoire from Herzelia was active for a few years around the mid-90's, releasing a demo, an album and this promo tape here. Their name popped up with slightly surprising frequency in fanzines and tape trader lists, considering the rather limited discography. Most of that was probably due novelty factor and I guess they were quite active with correspondence and such. I didn't have covers for this but fortunately there were pretty good scans on Discogs, thanks to user ateshu.

There are two quite long songs here and the first one was also featured on their demo "In the Darkwoods Sovreignity" which as an aside I'm not very fond of. I disliked the sound on it, guitars are way too subdued. The sound here is rougher than on the demo but also more to my liking, the instruments are in better balance and guitar more prominent, percussion less in your face. Bass is notably audible here (on the demo also). Okay, I admit the faster sections do get messy but that's a minor issue, of course your mileage may vary here. Songwriting is quite elaborate for a debut release, there are no synths here yet but several atmospheric passages which do well enough without them. Things do not always flow very fluently but that is to be expected, a few errors give demo and rehearsal recordings character. Some slightly oriental tones can be heard on the second song, but not to the extent of the album which was pretty much sympho black with Middle East melodies.

That's enough for this time, should next post continue with the theme of summer heat and southern sounds or is it time to cool down with some freezing northern noise? Or perhaps as a more neutral option something from Central(-ish) Europe? Cast your vote and it might actually matter!

Rotting Christ - Promo Rehearsal '89

Rotting Christ - Promo Rehearsal 1989
1) Holyness Lamentation
2) Feast of the Grand Whore
3) Fortress of Cremation
4) De Vermis Mysteriis
5) Outro

Yandex / Sendspace

The voices tell me to continue the Southern Summer Heat Special and we move back to the end of 80's with this sending of master Fenrirsson. Certainly closer in sound and spirit to FNI than R88, this is the rehearal promo for studio demo by Rotting Christ, sent around by master Sakis in the summer of '89. In the end that demo was scrapped/re-envisioned and the result was "Satanas Tedeum" released in the fall same year. There were no proper covers for this one, just dubbed tapes with handwritten tracklistings and I didn't feel like whipping up a mock one so we're devoid of decorations today.

I've seen other rip(s) of this float around the inter nets but since Fenrirsson's rip is of decent quality and has the track divisions made unlike the other versions (which are only three tracks, lumping 1+2 and 4+5 together) I wanted to feature it. Not to mention his tape perished soon after the rip was made. Curse the frailty of cassettes! Spite! Wrath! Dissatisfaction! Right, back to music. This is a short tape, eight minutes roughly, and highly similar to how "Satanas Tedeum" turned out. Plodding abyssic black/death metal. Except when they speed up to grind speeds, for old times sakes I suppose, like on Fortress of Cremation. If you enjoy old school blackened metal of death with rehearsal sound be sure to pick this up. However, if you're only familiar with RC's more recent, bombastic output (like "Κατά τον δαίμονα εαυτού" the other year or the latest album "Rituals") or the melodic, quasi-gothic late mid-90's phase you might not be very pleased with the primitiveness here.

PS: Looks like they're touring quite a bit this year. Go have a look if you're nearby, I've always enjoyed seeing them perform live.

Morrigan - Plague, Waste & Death advance tape 2001

Morrigan - Plague, Waste & Death unmastered advance tape 2001
1) Plague, Waste & Death
2) This Bitch Will Burn at Night
3) In Memoriam
4) The Arrival of Dana
5) Straight War
6) Requiem
7) Ashes to Ashes, Lust to Lust
8) Where the Angels Keep Silence

Mediafire / 4shared

It was my birthday and to celebrate I decided to go and post this sending of comrade LKS I was slightly uncertain about. Thanks to our collaborator as usual! This is Morrigan, continuation of one of my favourite bands Mayhemic Truth, and an advance tape for their debut album from '01. You might recall the Mayhemic Truth rehearsal I posted not that long ago? Well, this rip was sent in the same time and I hesitated slightly to post this as it is not really that different from the final album, unmastered so the sound has a little variation and pauses between the songs are notably longer. Please note the Blizzard advance tape seen on the cover scan above is not included here!!

If you've heard the album, this is all familiar grounds then. Very minor differences. In case you haven't or are completely unfamiliar with the band I guess you could just as well start with this. Morrigan play black metal very much influenced by Bathory (both main eras) and actually The Arrival of Dana is a reworking of A Fine Day to Die made in tribute to Quorthon. The songs roughly divide into fast paced old school black metal tracks and more midtempo or slow epic songs which feature clean choirs while the main vocal is otherwise a mostly unintelligible (the fast bits) black metal rasp/squak. I've already stated my preference for the more epic tracks but both sides are essential parts of the whole. Recommended for fellow Morrigan/Mayhemic Truth enthusiasts as well as those curious to find out more or on the look for Bathory replacements. We will resume our regular programming after this, with Brazilian material as voted.

Swastika - Natur und Hass adv. 1998

Swastika - Natur und Hass advance tape 1998
1) Pflug (1996)
2) Eichenlaub (1998)

Mediafire / Zippyshare

German black metal today and a contribution by comrade LKS, thanks for the rip und scan! This is Swastika and their '98 promo/advance tape "Natur und Hass" - not to be mixed with the demo tape "Natur & Hass" which might've ended up being the debut CD the cover here advertises. Both of these songs appear there too. And I have a nagging suspicion this just might be nsbm but it's reeeeally hard to say without seeing the lyrics and there are no controversial symbols, statements or whathaveyou on the covers. Well, except advertising the CD that was never released but that's not what we're after.

Two songs of very, very raw black metal. Buzzing, pulsating frantic guitar mess, hysterical and cacophonic screaming passes for vocals and a robotic drum machine pounds away without the slightest attempt at passing as human. Second track is even worse and more alien, everything sounds distant, muffled and vocals are some sort of singing/chanting/humming. Brilliant and I'd love to hear the full demo! Brings Ecclesia Satani to mind. Definitely not for everyone but I'm sure certain parties will be delighted.

Everyone, let's get interactive again and vote where next to conquer!
1. France. Get me a '95 vintage from my rehearsal cellar, Jacques! - 0
2. How can you even plan to conquer anything in Europe and not steamroll over Poland? - 4
3. Descend into the land below the sea level and uncover ancient Nederlands cults. - 1½
4. Storm the beaches of the United Kingdom, with recent-ish material. - 0
5. Bring war for change to the American soil, mid-90's blackness is the agenda. - 2
6. Set the jungle ablaze with old Brazilian black/death metal. - 2½
7. Stay in Germania for...? - 0
Ok, voting is done and a winner is Poland, Brazil finishing as second and USA third.

Annwn - Promo-tape 1995

Annwn - Promo-Tape 1995
1) The Canticle - Part I (In a Forest of Shadows)
2) Midnight Ellapse
3) One Night on Raven Wings
4) The Dead Are Just... Sleeping!!!
5) In Cold Winter Darkness

Reuploaded

I have a bit of catching up to do so without further ado, this is Annwn of Portugal whom the Metal Archives labels as "atmospheric doom/black metal" which at least on this tape is poppycock. The music is dark ambient/dungeon synth with some sparingly used vocals, reminds me actually quite a bit of the Balam/Laïlheb ‎ demos, especially the last track though generally not as obscure and morbidly tenebrous. Despite the name, not Celtic or in general folky either! Thanks to the contributor who sent me the rip, no covers though so we must make do with pitiful MA image.

Five tracks for 22+ minutes, so on the average quite typical metal song playtimes and nothing drags on for too long or ends abruptly. Sound is good and instrumentation is keyboards, guitar, possibly bass and like mentioned, some voices. It's a bit on the fence but I'll go ahead and call it dungeon synth rather than say black ambient which it does resemble too, it's obviously more about moods, atmospheres and such like things rather than rituals, invocations, séance or celebration of evil, though the last track begs to differ. I had forgotten about it, but looks like the hilariously titled The Dead Are Just... Sleeping!!! (which is also another standout track) was featured on the "Southern Assault vol.1" compilation CD. Though the running time listed on the cover there does not match what I have here at all... must examine further, perhaps it's a shorter version? Enough of that, this is pretty good and I wonder if the second (?) demo "The Canticle - part II" mentioned on the Archives page would be metal or more in the same vein. As usual, if you find yourself in possession of that tape get in touch with me!

Akhkharu - Advance Tracks '96

Akhkharu - Advance Tracks 1996
1) Vengeance Summoned Forth
2) Psychotic Hallucinations
3) Temple of the Whore

Mediafire / Sendspace

Ok, one more advance tape. This is the Akhkharu that released "Poisoned Dreams" and an advance tape of three songs dating to 1996 which in the end were never officially released. Naturally no cover either, Joe Rood just dubbed these tracks to his contacts, inluding my contributor. Thanks for sending this as well as other items!

Compared to the '95 demo these three tracks show advancement, things seem less haphazard and random as they used to. Keyboard is the main instrument and fortunately the various less than impressive vocal experiments are more subdued here. Or so I thought... There's still more than I care for, mind you, but it actually fits pretty well on the first song. All seems to be better but then the second track comes along. Sure enough it starts quite decent with oddly wobbly bouncy synth and a sample but soon gets stranger, more unhinged and eventually crosses the line to just inane. And the voices strike back with the son of a vengeance's return. Such an annoying thing to listen to! Third track is more melodic and, somewhat unfortunately, vocal driven. It does sound much better after the previous fiasco and most of the time the voices stay within reason but the pathetic moans and effect-laden screeches/hisses I could really do without. I suppose these were to be the last recordings of this Akhkharu, wonder if third time would've been the charm as they were getting better here. Not good, mind you, but better certainly. If you liked "Poisoned Dreams" seek help or grab this too and cope your very own way!

Runemagic - Fullmoon Sodomy adv. tape '92

Runemagic - Fullmoon Sodomy advance tape for EP 1992/93
1) Fullmoon Sodomy
2) Desecration of the White Christ
3) In Remembrance

Yandex / 4shared

Inspired by the advance section of the Exstinctio Sensus 'zine posted the other day I decided to do one here at the Coven too since I do have quite a few advance tapes ripped. First we have Runemagic of Sweden again, I posted their live tape just last month. See that post for crapload of background information on both the band and these recordings. Long story short, had ripped this as an unidentified tape B-side, got a revelation and remembered what it was, we're here. I've no proper cover for this version so used the Swedish tape version from M.A.

I believe this was sent as advance tape for 7"EP (the Polish bootleg version I suppose) but it is really just the demo recording with nothing done to it, except one song (Nocturnal Creation) being left out, most likely due timing constraints. Note that the Metal Archives tracklisting for the demo, or more like the song lengths therein, are incorrect. The source tape must've been this same which makes me wonder if the demo was ever actually released complete? That tracklisting divides In Remembrance into two and tries to pass off its second, keyboard part as Nocturnal Creation which as we learn from the quite recent Bandcamp release is actually 7+ minute song. Or perhaps the contributor had a dub of this and cover of the Chaos Productions version which was complete but circulated less? Who knows, I don't. Old era Runemagic in general seems to be more unknown than I expected.

This was supposed to be short but seems like this band drives me to ramble more than usual. Ok, contents quickly: sound is pretty murky but definitely much cleaner than the live tape, a little stuffy and with prominent low end. A lot of it has to do with tape wear obviously. Title track is a long one, over seven and half minutes, bouncy brisk midtempo effort with some breaks and changes in pace. Very good black metal rasp, grating and drawling at appropriate times. Robert "Reaper" Pehrsson was also responsible for the vocals on the first two Deathwitch albums as well as presently in Death Breath and some other projects in very different vein. I'm digressing again!!! Ugh, yeah so Desecration of the White Christ is a fast paced, shorter song in old school black metal vein and was reused for Deathwitch later and In Remembrance is another shortish piece divided into two parts; slower and epic metal half and a synth part that reminds me of vintage horror movies. Good stuff and I really like his voice, I just wish I had a slightly better rip or even better the Chaos Prods tape itself. If you have it, get in touch, rich rewards await. And I want the rehearsal tapes too. Very much recommended!

Yggdrasil - The Renaissance of the Norse Horde promo '94

Yggdrasil - The Renaissance of the Norse Horde promo 1994
1) The Renaissance of the Norse Horde

RGhost / Yandex

Remember when I wrote in the last post: "...with room for an obscure filler track, maybe I should post such next..."? Well, I decided to do just that, seeing that master Fenrirsson had sent me a very appropriate item with the Bestial Warlust rip the other month! Right, this is the mysterious, curious, cryptic, enigmatic, wrapped in mystery, veiled in secrecy and shrouded in obscurity Yggdrasil of Denmark and what appears to be their only recording, a one-song promo tape from '94. Ok, they're not that esoteric and I used mystery twice, there's a Metal Archives entry after all but hardly any proper information. Even the Danish trader comrade of F knew nothing else about them. Obviously no cover, logo or band pic, and any or all would be welcome.

So it's kvlt and obskvre but is it any good? Yeah, not bad at all! Raw, decent sound, mostly fast paced Scandinavian-style black metal with some melodies, aggressive black metal rasps and compact playtime of under four minutes and even slight variation though delicious repetition is prominent. I wonder if in some tomb, ruin or catacomb another recording might lurk buried by dust and bones? For now it's really a one-hit wonder and worth checking out, there's not that much vintage Danish black metal about.

Interferhon - Ritual Phenomena promo 1999

Interferhon - Ritual Phenomena promo tape 1999
1) Sepulchral Howl
2) Nocturnal Monument
3) Ambassador of Necrosis
4) Wicca of Hayagriva (Hayagriva cover)

Reuploaded

Let us not waste time, there is catching up to do for last month. This is another contribution, this time from comrade Morbid Chanter and it is another obscure-ish Malaysian tape, the 1999 promo by Interferhon. Which again features a really neat, very endearing hand-drawn cover. I love the effort put to these, no computer copy paste there! Music and sound are quite ok too, the rip is a little bit louder than necessary, again, but it's not bad with the band's rehearsal demo-like sound. Don't let that scare you, it sounds quite clean and good with most instruments easily distinguishable and all that warm 'n' fuzzy goodness. Slight tape wear is audible from time to time, but it's slight enough to "add to ambiance" rather than ruin the listening experience.

Four songs, three of which are their own and last one a cover of Hayagriva whom I must admit were totally unknown to me before this recording. A bit surprising actually, seeing how many releases they've churned out since '93 till 2012. I think I should track down their older tapes too. But! Back to this item at hand, it's quite melodic and almost completely midtempo black metal with a certain peculiarily Eastern feel to it which I might just be imagining due knowing their origin. So much for "reviewing" this either. I'll just add that the start to third song "Ambassador of Necrosis" is kinda awesome, with just the drums and then joined by guitar strokes and eventually the rest. Nice groove throughout the rest of the song, too. There's a bit clumsier part later which still manages to have its own crooked charm. Good stuff. Not very grim and most likely not very trve either (see the thanks lists) but amuses me. Recommended for fans of the exotic but not too adventurous metal.

Finntroll - Rivfader promo 1998

Finntroll - Rivfader promo 1998
1) Intro (Hoterop)
2) Vätteanda
3) Rivfader (Pt. 1)
4) Den svarta älgens blot
5) Midnattens vidunder
6) Outro (Stigen)

Zippyshare / Depositfiles

I decided to post another of Henri's sendings that kinda fits a Friday night, this is by now (in)famous Finntroll and their '98 tape "Rivfader" which you may note I have here labeled as promo. This is because the covers mention the first demo coming soon so I presume this was considered a promo tape at the time of release. It ended up being their only cassette after all since Spinefarm signed them right after this was released. Or soon after, I can't remember. Thanks to Henu for the rip and cover scan!

I suppose almost everyone, well at least everyone Finnish and familiar with Finnish metal, has some sort of idea and/or opinion of Finntroll and their music but on this demo they (the late Somnium and Herra Sysi as duo) perform music that might be best called pagan black metal with folk touches, the infamous humppa-parts are really present mostly on the title track (pt. 1) and the outro while the rest is pretty typical pagan/forest/folky black metal and at times actually quite grim. I think originally the more noticeable gimmick was the all-Swedish lyrics rather than the humppa-thing (which did attract attention too, for sure). So even if you are allergic to their later antics and popularity you might want check out this demo. Unless you hate this sort of metal in general with passion in which case I guess you need to wait for the next post. Others may party on in the woods with drunken trolls, spirits and if in Finland, mosquitoes. Me, I'm off to work.

Behexen - Support the War Against Christianity promo '99

Behexen - Support the War Against Christianity promo 1999
1) Intro
2) Sota valon jumalaa vastaan
3) Black Storm of Satans Glory
4) Baphomet's Call
5) Christ Forever Die

Rusfolder / Depositfiles

I just realised I don't have much time to post stuff this week so better get off my ass and leave something interesting here. Back to Finnish black metal, this is Behexen and most readers probably know them. You might even remember my old, old post of their "first" demo, released under the name Lords of the Left Hand. They made two demos more after changing the name and before this promo tape which features an intro and four tracks of which three would be re-recorded for the debut album and one apparently remained unused. I got a dub of this recording from a trader not that long ago, as well as copy of the cover which interestingly enough had no tracklisting! Fortunately he got it from the band so we have titles here. Thanks!

So most of the content is familiar except the (short, I originally had it and "Sota..." together but if it's separately mentioned on the tracklisting I separate it) intro and the third track "Black Storm..." which caused me no small amount of headache trying to identify until I got the correct tracklisting. I'm pretty sure they didn't re-use the song later, but could of course be wrong too. Sound is, naturally, rawer and less polished than on the album (not that that would've been a sophisticated, sparkly and squicky-clean thing either!) but very listenable and good at least in my opinion. The vocals are rather dominant and guitars most of the time somewhat subdued. But enough said really, you're going to download this no matter what I write if you're a fan of Behexen, Finnish black metal or dig rare old recordings.

Oh yeah and you have to be really stupid to buy the suddenly, miraculously appearing copies that will no doubt be for sale at Discogs and Ebay very soon.