I’ve written about this sort of stuff before, but generally the bands I review do two things, 1) they try to invent something completely new by meshing 2 or more genres (sometimes this works wonderfully, other times it is a tragedy) or they try to perfect a genre that already exists, Idolatry’s latest release In Nomine Mortis does the latter, and we’re very thankful for it.
The vocals are black, the drums are black, the guitars are black and if the bass was any blacker, it would be blue. Idolatry has perfected modern black metal with this release. A sweet spot between low hi-fi recording and the polished releases of today has been found in In Nomine Mortis, and the result is probably the easiest listening black metal album I have ever heard.
And I get that that could be seen as a negative by some, but I mean it in a purely positive sense.
This is the type of release that you could give to someone and say, ‘check out this black metal band’ and no matter how kult they are, they’ll never disagree on the genre and great execution.
The whole thing smacks of a band that knows what they’re doing and what they want. Perhaps a challenge to the home of black metal will be made by these Canadians? The song structures are beautifully constructed, with a variety to keep the listener engaged. The vocal performance is blood-curdling, and the guitars are airy and fluid.
There are some great nods to the masters of black metal while still trying to push the boundaries ever so slightly. It’s a great sweet spot for this type of band, but I do get the sense that they’re trying their best to distil black metal to see if they can come up with a darker colour. Suitable for those who don’t drink coffee because it isn’t black enough.
Release Year: 2019
Label: Humanity’s Plague Prod
Category: Album
Country: Canada
Reviewed by Liam Frost-Camilleri
