Transylvanian Dreams

If you're a fan of old school black metal’s icy chill, typical of early Mayhem and Darkthrone, this is the disc for you.

There are two (pun intended) schools of thought about newer black metal: bands should either stick to the Norwegian necro-slush style of "Deathcrush" and "Transilvanian Hunger", or they should move on. Mayhem moved on and look where it got them. Darkthrone didn't, and ...

Tymah (or Tuman, if 'Tymah' is indeed in Cyrillic script) attempt to capture the old school sound without apology or compromise and they do so brilliantly. The guitars emulate the arctic edge of Darkthrone and the vocals pay homage to the breathless gasp of Mayhem's greatest vocalist, Dead. The drummer is more in the Fenriz rather than the Hellhammer style, with more emphasis on the beat than the embellishment, and propels the music superbly. The wind-tunnel tone of the classic Pytten recording style is retained, with some additional – and welcome – bottom end kick.

By the time the six-track album kicks into the fourth (and title) tune, the band is well and truly in the zone. These Hungarians capture the snowstorm whiteout of the best of the Norwegians and are not afraid to stretch out in the Burzum style to maximize the texture rather than cop out to guitar solos and vocal hooks.

It’s impossible to fault this album, hence the 100 mark. The best of this old-school style takes you to a special, almost meditative zone, and Tymah do it as well as their predecessors. I’ll leave it to the hacks who will inevitably bicker and argue over the old/new and homage/copycat issues. At least a score of 100 will keep the album’s average up high where it belongs.