It did not take long after the final Nifelheim gig that Per “Hellbutcher” Gustavsson started thinking about his next band. He had fronted Nifelheim for more than 30 years (alongside his bassist twin Erik “Tyrant” Gustavsson) and was not going to be away from black metal for long as he formed a new band with guitarists Necrophiliac (also of Mordant) and Iron Beast, bassist Eld and drummer Martin ‘Devastator’ Axenrot (Bloodbath, Opeth, Nifelheim). He had been in other bands alongside the one he is most well-known for, but now was the time to put his name out there front and centre.
All those involved have been around the black metal scene for decades, while Hellbutcher and Necrophiliac have known each other since the early Nineties and are so attuned that the guitarist wrote “Inferno’s Rage” in keeping with the rest of the album and Hellbutcher added the lyrics later. Overall, this album shows classic influences from Venom, Bathory, Iron Maiden, Exciter, Motörhead, Mercyful Fate etc, but while Hellbutcher is singing the praises of the band of being the best thing he has ever done and that this outfit will soon surpass previous achievements, one must say that while some tracks are full-on evil there are plenty of others where it is just one section or another as opposed to the complete song. There are eight numbers coming in at just over 33 minutes in length and there are times when the influences just blend together, and we get a NWOBHM outfit with gruff vocals as opposed to something truly black metal. I lived through the first iteration, and still have plenty of obscure 7” singles and albums to prove it, but while they may be channelling the Venom of that period, there is nothing like the same impact or bite. The result is an album which is interesting and shows promise, but it will be interesting to see if this is a band which stays together and becomes something more potent or if Hellbutcher again becomes a singer as opposed to a band.
Rating: 6/10
