Review Summary: Drink Kool Aid, Hail Satan.
Nokturnal Hellstorm is a name that resonates with the very essence of black metal. The witchy cackles, the sharp, rapid plucking of frosty trems and the ever present, never ending barrage of blast beats that beat us over the skull like a baton wielded by beelzebub himself, all of these wonderful traits worm their way into
Dominance and Persecution. It is worth noting that this does not make for anything particularly original, but this doesn't take away from the ferocity of a formula that has been tried and tested when the musicians behind the kit are simply this ***ing
wicked.
It is evident immediately, when the Castlevania synths give way to the scathing battle cry of "Oppression". I mean this quite honestly when I say the warlike wail had my pants soiled, and while it may have resulted in a foul and irredeemable pair of Levi Strauss, it is worth the damage and then some, for my friends, the onslaught has only just begun. Through the likes of "Rot Baron" or "Scourge Saints" your skin will be flayed thoroughly with unyielding gritty riffs and the occasional guitar sweep, while your bones are rattled and rustled and rombled (?) by a well abused kick pedal. This album is 0-100 with close to no respite or change in fury or attitude, save for the desperate and disorienting first half of "The Thirst That Cannot be Quenched ", a sound that is much more pained and morose than it is bludgeoning (although even this transitions back into a very fierce old-school black metal wave of scaling tremolos and barks).
Nokturnal Hellstorm operates firmly within black metals confines with nods given to some of minimally less conventional acts (aka, any black metal band with a synth in at least 3 of their songs). At times I find myself looking for bands like this more these days-bands that show that passion alone can instill unbridled energy into the base template of a genre. It's this passion that drives
Dominance and Persecution. It is a love for all things that make the genre often gloriously corny, but ultimately fun and full of life. So I implore you, fellow riff brethren, light up your 50 cent Walmart frankincense, swirl red wine in your plastic goblet ominously for an excessive amount of time and please, jam Nokturnal Hellstorm.
). And this being said I of course own their last two..
