While most people would argue that “black metal” was founded by bands like Venom, Bathory, and Mercyful Fate, the scene didn’t really become what it is without the creation of Norwegian black metal. Which, in turn, people will argue was founded by Mayhem, Burzum, Darkthrone, Immortal, and the like. But people forget acts like Ulver, Urgehal, Satyricon, and Gorgoroth (and others) that helped form the genre. If you know Grier, you know how much Urgehal and Gorgoroth mean to his youthful, black metal development. They are also home to two of his favorite black metal raspers of all time: Trond Bråthen (Trondr Nefas) and Kristian Eivind Espedal (Gaahl), respectively. Before Gaahl made his mark on Gorgoroth classics like Twilight of the Idols – In Conspiracy with Satan and Ad Majorem Sathanas Gloriam, he already had his own band: Trelldom.

Trelldom doesn’t get enough love. But Angry Metal Guy knew what was up when he went back in time to explore easily one of the genre’s greatest hits: Til et annet…. This record is a fucking masterpiece that shows a side of Gaahl you might not know. Those who have followed him throughout his various exploits know full well that Gaahl is a weird guy with some of the creepiest fucking vocals on the planet. But Trelldom’s trilogy of albums from 1992 to 2007 was untouchable. Fast forward to 2024, and the band returns with …By the Shadows…, an even weirder concoction of songs than ever before. Taking a darker direction with a new lineup of legends, …By the Shadows… represented an impressive comeback for the band, rebranded into something more diverse and heartfelt than before. Right on the coattails of that album comes this year’s …By the Word…. And it’s everything you’d expect from a follow-up.

Returning with the mighty Stian Kårstad (ex-Djerv, ex-Gaahls Wyrd, ex-God Seed) and kit powerhouse Kenneth Kapstad (Thorns, Goat the Head, ex-God Seed, and a billion other bands), Gaahl rounds out his lineup with practitioners of the bass, saxophone, clarinet, organ, Dobro guitar, bass harmonica, mandolin, Shankar guitar, and even the fucking Optigan to deliver one of the most unique records of his life. “When This Was Young” opens the record with proggy bass and drums, matching perfectly with Gaahl’s soothing cleans. When the chuggery kicks in, Kapstad’s drums let loose, showing off his impressive skills and giving the song (A) Senile Animal-era Melvins vibes. As it progresses, the effects intensify, melding themselves into the guitars and creating unnecessary madness throughout.

But the opener might be the “chillest” song on the record. By “I Speak Forgotten Voices,” you’ll know that …By the Word… is far more unhinged than its predecessor. The overlapping effects, unsettling vocals, and relentless, pounding drums remove any peace …By the Shadows… might have had. But it’s the mindfucking back-to-back closers, “The Word – Choose to Vanish” and “In There Outside,” that show just how far Trelldom has pushed their sound. Chock-full of all those different instruments mentioned before, “The Word – Choose to Vanish” doesn’t so much add layers as mold everything into the most grotesque monster I’ve heard in a long time. And when you think you’ve heard everything you could from Trelldom, “In There Outside” proves to be one of the more diverse on the album. Throwing you off immediately, the whining woodwinds are replaced with yet another alteration of Gaahl’s vox as the song builds on itself over and over again, resulting in more orchestral qualities than any other track.

…By the Word… is batshit crazy and cerebrally damaging. Where …By the Shadows… at least had moments of relief, this new record does not. Beyond the weird combination of guitars, saxophone, and clarinet screaming at you from all directions, it’s the bass and drums that cause the most damage. Mixed far too the front, the drums, in particular, are ear-shattering. That sounds negative, but it does a hell of a job keeping you off balance. Specifically, when it comes to the devastating “Folding the Mind.” It’s almost as if the band decided it was time to let Kapstad off the leash. …By the Word… is an interesting album that pushes beyond anything the band has done before. It can never be Til et annet… but that’s OK because they aren’t going for it. This new era is worth exploring and …By the Word… is a new benchmark.

Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Prophecy Productions
Websites: trelldom.bandcamp.com | trelldom.no | facebook.com/trelldom1992
Releases Worldwide: May 29th, 2026

Sicarius hit the ground raging in 2017 when the Californian black metal upstarts released their scathingly vicious debut album, Serenade of Slitting Throats, which captured the metal heart of AMG’s Diabolus in Muzaka, earning a coveted 4.0. Sicarius’s sophomore effort, 2020’s God of Dead Roots, didn’t fare as well; the band, adjusting to the departure of founding guitarist Argyris, ultimately turned in a less visceral, more workmanlike product. Then, when original drummer Brandon Zackay left to focus on his career in Whitechapel, and the other members exited, both voluntarily and not, Sicarius ostensibly died, leaving God of Dead Roots an unanticipated swan song. Fast forward to 2024, when Argyris reunited with original bassist Carnage and joined forces with new vocalist Akéfalos and session drummer Levi Xvl to begin recording a third album, Nex, which, after six long years, has arrived to reintroduce this risen phoenix iteration of Sicarius to the masses.

Sicarius the resurrected doesn’t sound much different than Sicarius the dead. Nex adheres to the same modern black metal formula as its predecessors, maintaining channels of influence drawn from Dissection, Dark Funeral, Urgehal, and, despite Mick Kenney’s departure from the booth, Anaal Nathrakh. In keeping with their monikers’ Latin translation, Sicarius brings an assassin’s cache of weaponry to bear. Argyris sounds rejuvenated and lethal, his armory of blistering riffage (“Cold Death,” “No Witnesses”), chaotically tremolodic leads (“Nex”), and nifty solo work (“Crashing Into the Abyss”) on full display.1 Newcomer Akéfalos adds a layer of frigidity to Nex’s surgical, cold-steel across a warm-throat sound, his icy, high-pitched screeches a mix of Abbath and Hat from early Gorgoroth, while his low-bellied growls are reminiscent of Rotting Christ. Nex has the sound of a band pissed, Sicarius attempting to bury the remnants of what was for something altogether more destructive.

Nex by Sicarius

There’s no doubt Sicarius is exceptionally capable of speed, but for my money, I connected most with Nex’s melodies and mixed paces. Beginning with a brooding, tremoloed guitar melody, “Opened Obsidian Gateways” uses Sargeistian levels of repetition to drive its earwormy chord progressions home, a variation employed during the verses and identically replicated during the bridge before sliding into a nice, mid-song chug section and then back again. Simple yet effective, the song’s a highlight as I found myself humming the melody randomly throughout the day. Also noteworthy are the slow-moving melodic chords of “Banshee,” which gave off Dissection vibes, and the mid-paced marcher “The Hunger We Cannot Sate,” as it gallops along in true Watain fashion, instigating black-n-roll levels of head bobbery over its 5:24 runtime. There’s a lot of musical nuance woven into the details of Nex; my many play-throughs tell me as much, which makes it all the more disappointing that it’s so hard to hear them.

“With a (t)reble yell she cried, NO more, more, more.” I’ve taken some slight liberties with Mr. Idol’s classic lyric to illustrate Nex’s most glaring flaw: a thin, imbalanced mix. Nex sounds much louder than its DR score might suggest. Serenade of Slitting Throats, for instance, with a DR lower than Nex’s, sounds light years warmer because Kenney was able to give Serenade’s lower tones some weight. Nex is nearly devoid of low end, completely negating anything Carnage is doing on bass and robbing much of Levi Xvl’s bass drum work of power, making for an extremely exhausting experience. I had to break my focused listening sessions up, in fact, because trying to listen through all 44:10 of Nex’s runtime left me so audially spent that I was reaching for aspirin. Whether this was a deliberate choice, I don’t know. It sure lends Sicarius an icier-than-thou edge, as much black metal of this ilk is known for, but it really robbed a large portion of my enjoyment, which sucks because, in bite-sized pieces, Nex is actually a pretty decent album.

Sicarius has returned with a vengeance and a we’re-not-fucking-around attitude, as evidenced in no small part by that brutally distinctive cover art. Alongside other bands like Impious Throne, Unholy Altar and Wuldorgast, Sicarius is bringing a sense of menace back to the US black metal scene. Nex is an album worth spinning, despite being hampered by a production that makes it too tiring to listen to in a single sitting, which left me to score it thusly. Still, I’ll be keeping my eyes and ears peeled for the next outing.

Rating: 2.5/5.0
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: 320kbps mp3
Label: Adirondack Black Mass | Bandcamp (album)
Websites: Bandcamp | Instagram
Releases Worldwide: April 10th, 2026

Goatcraft Torment, by Urgehal.

https://agoniarecords.bandcamp.com/album/goatcraft-torment

#GoatcraftTorment #Urgehal #BlackMetal #SatanicBlackMetal