Belfegor
““The Kingdom Of Glacial Palaces””
(Word War III)
I have no idea where WWIII came from but watch out, any band they have is top-notch death or black metal, and new Polish act Belfegor is out to prove them selves as a contenders in the underground. This three piece puts out great dark music that wanders all over the map of black metal, but focus their attack to raw brutal fast-paced straight ahead black with nothing too fancy. Bass and drums work relentlessly to pound out the non-stop aggression that carries few dramatic tempo changes, mostly jumping up in speed momentarily. Guitar work has little frivolity, mainly quickly strummed chords, and the odd solo here and there is remarkably un-spectacular. The use of keyboards is just as a layering effect. Simple. Direct. Uncomplicated. Vocals are demonic and witch-like, the higher throaty staple of “true” black metal. One might be put off by this black metal minimalism, but in fact the power of “The Kingdom Of Glacial Palaces” is that Belfegor uses all the normal parts so masterfully. Where as so many bands try and fail, to bring black metal in new directions, this albums suggests that there is still a lot more to be discovered from the exploration of this sub genre.
