Opus Blasphematum

This treat of a split EP sees two rare holdouts of straightforward quality black metal of the last decade join forces and reaffirm their intent. Canada’s Délétère, who serve up another three tracks of energetic and uplifting melodicism, and Germany’s Sarkrista, displaying their more traditionally minded brand of blasphemous black metal.

Délétère’s take on the style is on the positive side, working fast paced punky rhythms into stirring folk orientated lead melodies that are at once uplifting and melancholic in equal measure. The sorrowful undertone to their style of melody means that this music avoids the pitfall of being overly cheesy or clownish given the fact that this is relatively uplifting as far as black metal is concerned. The result is more cathartic than it is upbeat.

There is no perfunctory intro or crescendo like build slapped onto the start of this EP, Délétère simply explode out of the gate with lightning fast blast-beats and high end tremolo picked lead melodies. These are accompanied by tight rhythm guitars that offer simple but agreeable counterpoint, working out melodic narratives with an eye on the long form. Despite the intensity of the delivery, the cadential centre of these pieces is so well thought out that we never grow tired of the cavalcade of sonic information thrown at us.

Vocals are a little more unhinged than the tight musical foundation that sit upon. This offers a neat contrast between the tight yet enthusiastic formalism of the music itself and the intoxicated passion of the human voice as it rides the waves of energy. As if mimicking the different paces found in the rhythms of nature – the immediate passing of the seasons and animalistic activity alongside the deeper processes of earth and climate – the melodic style of Délétère is wonderfully cyclical, with each element going on its own journey only to link up with the rest of the music further down the line. This is the chief reason why – despite the intensity – this music never grows overwhelming.

Sarkrista take a much blunter approach which many may find a little on the generic side, but as far as garden variety black metal goes this is still above par. Although their approach to the style will hold few surprises – tremolo picked riffs, a wall of blast-beats, blasphemous lyrics – they do take a long form approach to melody that means each track feels like an undeniably cohesive piece. These tracks are compact, efficient, and direct, unlike some more bloated works in this area that come across as several tracks stitched together with little in the way of connecting themes.

Sarkrista work bouncy rhythms beneath highly melodic lead guitar work. These tend to settle on a theme or refrain with subtle variations that are unpicked as the track progresses. Not so much a collection of riffs played in sequence as it is a series of subtly different iterations on the same theme.

Although this template is altered little across the four tracks Sarkrista have committed to this EP, the formula never seems to grow tired. The reason for this is the energy and efficiency of the compositions. There is no excess fat on this music, it is lean and direct, meaning that one’s ear is drawn solely to the melody as it gradually evolves over the track. This is a kind of repetition by the back door, whereby we are receiving the same or very similar information from start to end, but we still feel like we have progressed from point A to point B after the experience.

On the whole this EP is a treat for anyone that considers themselves a serious fan of modern black metal. This is not so much an assessment of where the genre is in 2021 as it is a reminder of the creative spaces still available within these relatively traditional approaches to the form. A form that takes a more direct approach, eschewing heavy keyboard use and overworked atmospheres but still manages to deliver a deeply escapist experience all the same.

Originally published at Hate Meditations