Published: July 26, 2017

Making its way to our office from Canada, today we have Finland’s one-man demolition squad Kval and its self-titled debut release. Originally releasing music under the moniker Khaossos, Kval’s sole member crafts some of the most misanthropically punishing Atmospheric Black Metal we have heard in a while. Evoking the raw elements of old-school Burzum and the bleakness of Mortualia, this is one heavy release.

After setting the moo...

Published: July 23, 2017

Il progetto finlandese Kval non è altro che la continuazione del monicker Khaossos, e questo primo disco omonimo non è altro che la riproposizione nuova di zecca e allungata del buon “vecchio” Kuolonkuu (uscì nel 2015). Il suo è un zanzaroso flusso elettrico costante, sorta di apoteosi del depressive black metal più famelico, blando e “trainante”, se vogliamo meno estremo nel risultato, ma pur sempre eccessivo su quelle fo...

Published: July 23, 2017

The sleeve notes usefully tell us that Kval’s debut album “includes slow, agonising material from 2013 to 2016”. This album was originally conceived in 2015 but under the mantle of Khaossos. Life, emptiness and chaos are what drives this one man atmospheric black metal project from Finland whose musical preferences and influences include Burzum and Forgotten Woods.

Eerie beginnings spawn a heightening level of tension. The musical imag...

Published: July 19, 2017

If any style can be said to capture the zeitgeist of black metal over the past few years – in the way that the Scandinavian second wave did in the mid-90’s, or symphonic did a few years after that – it would be atmospheric black metal. And as with any (relatively) popular style of music, there are a lot of dull, uninspired records being made that aim to be atmospheric and hypnotic, but simply end up feeling dull and boring...