Precambrian "Tectonics" CD

members of Hate Forest, Drudkh & Dark Ages!!!

I've written quite a few reviews in the past, but this is the first time I felt compelled to instantly write one as soon as I finished an album. I can't recommend this album highly enough. As a fan of classic Norwegian black metal, this has everything I could hope for in one album and more. Immersive icy atmosphere, raw noisy production, blistering speed, harsh rasping vocals, dark evil riffs, it really is a masterclass in how to do black metal right. One of my favourite aspects was how the tracks would suddenly cut out at the end mid-note without warning. It reminded my of some of the tracks on Transylvanian Hunger, and really added to the raw nature of listening experience.
The vocals were also a highlight, switching between classic black metal rasps comparable to Gorgoroth's 'Under The Sign of Hell' and some distorted, sludgy/death metal bellows that kept things interesting and added to the overall heaviness. As far as the music goes, this is definitely in the realm of droning black metal like early Drudkh('Forgotten Legends'), Burzum ('Hvis Lyset Tar Oss') and Darkthrone ('Transylvanian Hunger'), so lots of repetition and very little progression (each song has only a couple riffs even given the longer track lengths), but the occasional tempo shifts keep things constantly engaging and it never becomes too meditative. This style is mixed with the speed and intensity of early Immortal ('Pure Holocaust') and the dark, evil sound of Gorgoroth (their first 3 albums); and even with all these comparisons, it managed to sound incredibly original and has a very distinct character I can't say I've found replicated exactly by any other band.
This album has zero filler. It does not let up from the moment it starts, and clocking in at just under half an hour it's very re-listenable. All the tracks flow very well together, none straying far from the core sound of the album but also never getting boring. To produce a black metal album that sounds simultaneously so fresh and new while also sounding like it could have been released in the height of the 2nd wave of black metal is really an amazing achievement, and I really hope that in time this gets the recognition it deserves. If you aren't already a fan of raw, harsh black metal then this album wont do anything to persuade you; but if you are, this is a truly flawless example that the genre is still just as alive as it ever was.

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