Alttarimme on luista tehty

Azaghal can rightfully be called seniors within the Finnish black metal, although my feeling is that they have always been a bit overshadowed by some of their local peers. The official starting shot for their life as Azaghal was given in 1998, but before that the band had also been active for several years as Belfegor, so adding all together means an impressive time span of nearly three decades in which Narquath has spread his dark magic. In addition to a whole bunch of EPs and split releases, the Finns also have an impressive number of full-length albums to their credit. The brand new "Alttarimme on luista tehty" is full-length number twelve and like the two predecessors kept completely in Finnish when it comes to lyrics.

When "Alttarimme on luista tehty" pops out of the boxes for the first time, I first wondered if I had put in the correct album, because this is not exactly the sound I expect from a Finnish black metal band and certainly not how I remember Azaghal from their outstanding 2018 full length “Valo pohjoisesta”. After all, the guitars have a bit of that typical HM2 Swedish death metal sound, and some songs even remind of bands like Entrails in certain structures. Whether this is due to the arrival of new vocalist Thirteen (Scarecrow) who replaces veteran Niflungr, I do not know. Out of curiosity, I then made a direct comparison with "Valo pohjoisesta" and if listened to closely the heavy bass sound might have already hinted towards death metal, so maybe Narquath has already had this idea in mind and it comes to full bloom on the new work.

The music here is of course good, even great at times, but coming from such a highlight with their last outing overall this album still feels like a small step back. It's not that there isn't enough dynamics or variation, but it's only after several listens that I find that some songs like the angular and catchy song "Kultti", which gradually introduces some firm black metal riffs and that typical almost danceable Finnish melodicism or the melancholic closing "Seitsemän ihmisen irvikuvaa" stand out. Maybe this is partly due to Thirteen's somewhat monotonous rasping throat. Don’t get me wrong, this guy has some powerful pipes and the longer the record goes on the more I enjoy his delivery, but his approach reminds me a bit more of screamers which can be found on modern melodic death metal bands.

From the very beginning of the listening, we find ourselves bombarded by riffs and blast beats without frills or preamble, with good technical and compositional skills and a good dose of sonic assault. The listening proves to be very enjoyable for many stretches as the blood rushes through the veins. The opening staccato on the title tracks gets swept away by almost hysterical rhythms and razor-sharp beats, with some of the trademark melodic runs served in the background. Some fantastic soloing is embedded as well, making this a very promising start. The remaining tracks follow swiftly with some top notch guitar chords and intense shredding as well as hellish blasts and fantastic mid-tempo grooves. The production choices make the whole album ultimately powerful, if not a bit monotonous in the flip side.

Azaghal comes off tremendously powerful and almost on steroids on "Alttarimme on luista tehty" with a sound that is seriously different from what the Finns have shown in the past. As such, the record demands to be absorbed attentively because underneath the onslaught does hide detail and sense of melody. The guitar tone and the sequence of the chords are often addictive to the ears, and the drumming never strays from anchoring the rhythm section. It’s all done so precisely and with enthusiasm that the music - despite its grimness - brings a feeling of euphoria. The riffs build to a crescendo of hyper-speed down-picks and shreds, and the hints of melody shimmer through the blackened madness. So all in all a fantastic genre piece, but I hope that Azaghal bring back more of their freezing cold atmosphere the next time.