Split limited to 500 copies.
Released on Christmas day in 2015, this split brings Russian trio Drama together with the Finnish five piece Perdition Winds. The album features only three tracks, two from Drama and one from Perdition Winds, yet still manages to clock in at twenty-seven minutes. Both bands offer a fine performance of winding, somewhat progressively tinged black metal. While neither band really breaks the mold as far as black metal goes, they each offer an interesting take on the genre.
Though they split up right around the time this was released, Drama really brought some hope to the Russian black metal scene. A lot of bands in the Russian scene tend to approach black metal in one of two ways; either a very clinical adherence to raw orthodox black metal or some form of genre-bending avant-garde blackened metal. Drama eschews both in favor of complex, trem-driven riffing patterns and a slightly meandering, almost psychedelic vibe to the song writing. While there is a bit of orthodoxy to the riffing at times, it’s filled with tight hooks and melodic tailing harmonies. The employ of unrelenting black metal mixed with cold grooves and harmonies reminds one of Mgła at times, though the layering of melodic trem riffs during “Create Your Death” bear Nachtmystium vibes. The two tracks are fantastic examples transcending the standard sound without losing the darkness that makes black metal what it is.
Finland’s Perdition Winds released their debut album in 2014, Aura of Suffering, which displayed a bleak and dissonant approach via staunch orthodox riffing and dispiriting atmospherics. It was a decent effort, but it seemed largely inconsistent, perhaps due to the overlong songs that meandered far too much for their own good. Regardless, Perdition Winds is back again, this time with a thirteen minute track titled “Cult of Kain”. While I laud the band’s efforts of opening their stride for such a hefty longplayer, it still suffers from the same syndrome as the tracks on their full length. There’s not really enough interesting stuff going on within the song to justify the thirteen minute playtime. The riffing is sticks with orthodox trem riffing, with a few minor hooks and melodies mixed in, with raspy growled vocals and a solid rhythm section. While it’s done in a similar fashion to their full length and bears the same flaws, I must admit that I like this track a little better than anything on the album. It seems Perdition Winds are making strides, but they still have further to go to be a strong contender in a crowded scene.
While both bands bring an interesting take on the black metal, Drama wins the day with their forward thinking blend of somewhat progressively charged black metal. It’s unfortunate the band chose to call it quits, but it’s a fine pair of tracks to bow out with. Perdition Winds is showing marked improvements to their drawn out sound, but they haven’t quite captured the magic, as it were. Regardless, it’s a fine split album that shows off two bands that shun convention convincingly.
Sample:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPKXOrhIPMM&t=1146s
