Throcult "Stormbringer - Conjuration Of The Nighthorde" Enhanced CD

I guess it's somewhat surprising that one of Crash's best releases is one that really doesn't try anything different from the standard of its own genre- in this case, Throcult's second album, which is nothing more than typical, blast-heavy USBM through and through. Immediately and easily comparable to contemporaries like Kult ov Azazel, Throcult makes absolutely no effort to form any personality of their own or distinguish themselves from the USBM back, and as a result ends up making better music than most of them simply by concentrating on having faster blasts, better riffs, and sicker vocals than everyone else. And it works! It's not going to convince anyone who already despises this much-maligned variety of USBM, but there's certainly more than enough to sink one's teeth into if they're already a fan of this particular slice of blackness.
This is neatly in line with the rest of the norsecore style, heavily influenced by 'Panzer Division Marduk' and... well, other bands influenced by 'Panzer Division Marduk.' For the most part, this is highly typical music: blast beats and speedy, Dark Funeral-style tremolo riffs dominate the musical landscape with perpetually double-tracked vocals hissing around the edges of them. It's American black metal through and through, short on dynamics (apart from stereotypical sluggish arpeggiated sections) and long on fast, devilish music. Where Throcult moves a little bit away from the most typical tropes of the style are some of the more subtle, textured, melodic riffs which pop up on tracks like 'Blood of Thy Enemy,' which bring to mind, oddly enough, mildly folk-tinged black metal bands like Throndt in their triumphant, enthusiastic delivery. They're definitely not the dominant mode of riffing on this album, but they provide some much welcome variation to what's otherwise very one-dimensional music. At least they pull that dimension off well, though, with solid, powerful production, a good sense of pacing in songwriting, and solid instrumental and vocal performances all around.
About the only thing I could suggest to improve on this would be to bring out the melodic moments a little more frequently and maybe cut out a couple of the middle tracks- this does tend to drag given how simple the style is and the end of the album comes a bit later than it entirely should. Still, it does what it does well, not exactly reaching for the stars but getting off the ground a hell of a lot better than nearly anything else on Crash. Worth a look from USBM fans, though all others can likely skip it.

Official promo video: 

Sample:

Bonus Video: