"...with this opus, Wehrgoat and Gadolinite entice you to leave the trappings of a poisoned and devolved modern world... to walk again through times of old... to live within ancient warriors... to enter, once more, into the forest."In a release that was birthed within the dying gasp of 2022, underground masters Fog and Wehrgoat combined forces to summon one of the best split attacks the year did see – if you missed it, read our considerations of 'Into the Sarmation Forest / The Marching of Treemen' by CZARNOBOG / IMMORTAL FOREST and listen to the full stream below. Available now on CD via Astral Nightmare Productions and Elderblood Productions; more physical formats coming soon.
On this past 24th December 2022, Christmas Eve, a CD was released to piss on all the modern bullshit of the Christian rape of old traditions – a raw black metal split heralding a surge of primal, ancient energies from the earth and history of the ages. That split was Into the Sarmatian Forest / The Marching of Treemen, by longtime German pagan CZARNOBOG and the wild Taiwanese nature worship of IMMORTAL FOREST. Both names should be immediately familiar to those deeply initiated into the cult: Czarnobog being the already decade-old project of the prolific, Russian-born underground commander Wehrgoat (also of Moorgeist, Winterfullmoon, Weligor plus more you should be listening to if you aren’t) and Immortal Forest, a duo which began anonymously yet has since been unveiled as another project of the master FOG – here known as Gadolinite – who is also behind Inferno Requiem, Cetus and Grimblood, this time with Wehrgoat pulling double duty on the skins. What should also be immediately apparent, if you know those names, is that this split is very fucking good.
Taking the frontline in this march towards forgotten eras, Czarnobog wastes no time in setting a powerful tone with ‘Over Old Battlefields…’, an instrumental piece laden heavy with the honour and gravitas one of the titular ancient Sarmatians must have indeed felt when crossing the bloodstained plains of warfares past. For those unaware, the Sarmatians were a large confederation of ancient Eastern Iranian nomadic peoples of classical antiquity who dominated the Pontic Steppe from about the 3rd century BC to the 4th century AD, and the spirit of these times flows like lifesblood through the veins of these beautifully crafted songs. The title track ‘Into The Sarmatian Forest’ is magickal, Wehrgoat‘s raw guitar tone and riffs almost physically pulling your ancestral quintessence to the fore within. His vocal cadence and phrasing is epic – not in the sense of “epic black metal”, but visceral nocturnal demoncy delivered with an epic, impactful sense of purpose and power that alchemically melds in flawless fashion around the other elements of the composition. “Epic” is also a more than apt way to describe the twelve-minute ‘Thorns of Mystic Witchery’, whilst “hypnotic” and “soul-searing” would also do the trick for this agonized lunar trance. ‘Burial Mound Ritual’ is the final offering from Czarnobog‘s side, and despite the shorter runtime proves an equally vast experience to the previous track – yet completely and utterly different, as the rhythmic, droning ambience and repetitive melodies lull your consciousness to return to a primal state… death and rebirth… the alpha and omega… beginning and end of all things.
After that ritual altering of consciousness that Czarnobog leaves you with, Immortal Forest‘s side The Marching of Treemen roars to life; and with a truly impeccable opener in ‘Awakening of the Dark Presence’, immediately illustrates the true awesome potential that a well-done split release can have. The yearning, grand melodies that rise and fall in turbulent storm within the deliciously washed-out and raw production continue on in the same tone Czarnobog laid out, striking that same mark with lethal precision – yet, of course, stylistically all their own (as if one might expect anything less from the preternaturally talented Gadolinite). Delicate, ethereal synth shimmers beneath the excoriating rawness of the production, spiralling upwards in coruscating columns of heaving, breathing, vital animating force – the forest is stirring. The great black eyes are opening to the world… and it is awe-inspiring. If Immortal Forest‘s first track was an awakening, second track and side centrepiece ‘Gaze From Their Eyes’ tells a tale of increased intensity. Often insistent and even frantic, it boils the blood, notably containing a toe-tapping punkish spurt courtesy of Wehrgoat and is an overall varied experience, shifting betwixt many moods… and then, the final track. ‘The Marching of Treemen’ builds itself around a melody borne from the purity of night and the forest itself. Both of the respective cover arts for this split feature ancient warriors, and here (once again, similarly to the feeling conjured by Czarnobog) one can indeed feel the determination and unfailing primordial animus of these men, marching onwards – and, I should note, this is all done with nary a hint of “martial” sound as we know it. Instead, both sides of this split artfully utilise raw atmospherics, hints of otherworldly synth and supremely evocative songwriting to invoke these images and feelings within the listener.
In conclusion: a spellbinding and incredibly well-matched split which proves not only that these two men are ineffable titans of the underground, but also that when they combine their considerable strength, mastery and will into a shared objective, together they have the ability to conjure true magick and summon the spirits of old. Both sides of this split are made stronger by being arm-in-arm with the other, and that is the mark of victory. For just a moment, with this opus Into the Sarmatian Forest / The Marching of Treemen, Wehrgoat and Gadolinite entice you to leave the trappings of a poisoned and devolved modern world… to walk again through times of old… to live within ancient warriors… to enter, once more, into the forest. I highly suggest you do so.
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