Triumph of Spears

With a title Triumph of Spears and a cover artwork as that, it is hardly surprising what kind of black metal would be performed. You could see it coming. Something akin to Dimmu Borgir would hardly fit this first impression that one would get, right? The question remains, though, "What does the listener get with the recording?". Well, raw and unpolished music. No compromises whatsoever and no balancing at all. Stuff right out of the rehearsal room and maybe even straight from/into a tape recorder.

There we are then, a noisy incomprehensible mess with some glimpses of black metal and a far too long opening sample; nearly 2:45 minutes. Once this endless/tiring/unnecessary thing is over, noisy guitars and drums unleash barrage after barrage, while some hollow black metal screams in the background create some kind of contrast. A lot of distortion, a lot of noise and a bit of chaos. Occasional blasts, then some slower passages -- a bit of everything. Tempestarii offer a music from a cauldron that can only be brewed in the depths of the black metal scene.

Well, one can hardly expect to find a large audience for this type of music. It is from a peculiar scene of the black metal genre and it is another example of to what levels music can be brought. The performance is consistent in regard to its own merits, but may leave a lot of be desired for a lot of people. This has also to do with the music itself, because it does come over as a coherent set of sounds and styles. Rather, the lack of transparency gives the impression as if certain aspects of the music would become an undecipherable mess now and then. Accordingly, the basis for the music appears to vanish and only certain sounds remain... for some reason or another.

Definitely not for everyone ...