Progressing in their own unique interpretation of desolation, this cryptic Atmospheric Black Metal entity from Belarus are unleashing upon humanity their second revelation.

Hailing from the Belarusian capital Minsk, Khandra (or Хандра), the Russian word for “melancholy”, are an Atmospheric Black Metal duo comprised of vocalist LDZMR (Vladimir Borodulin) and multi-instrumentalist DMTR (Dmitry Romanovsky) who sparked a bit of interest with their 2017 debut two-song EP All Is of No Avail. Progressing in their own unique interpretation of desolation, those two cryptic entities holed themselves up in the winter of 2018 to invoke and expel their second revelation, a somber and malevolent four-track EP entitled There is No Division Outside Existence, and they had a few interesting comments about their newborn spawn. “The concept of the project is the flaw and inability of consciousness to reflect the boundlessness of the nothingness in the frames of reality that (reality) only exists within and in the sanity. It is a sort of an attempt of exceeding the limits of imagination, which makes the lyrics unavailable for criticism from the point of view of logical thinking. The musical vessel here is a result of expression that has no bonds with any personal emotion of social nature.”

Ominous sounds rising from the pits of hell ignite the atmospheric and menacing intro titled Into the Absolute Nothingness, before demonic, austere waves invades our ears in Decaying into the Ascended, where Dmitry shows no mercy for his stringed weapons, delivering cutting riffs and thunderous bass lines while Vladimir gnarls like a true creature from the underworld. Put differently, it’s a very melodic and electrifying hybrid of old school Black Metal with contemporary Atmospheric Black Metal, with its hellish blast beats adding an extra touch of aggressiveness to the overall musicality, ending in a tribal and visceral way. And the duo continues to fire their Stygian sounds and vociferations in the title-track There is No Division Outside Existence, another infernal creation where the crisp and metallic sounds of the guitar together with the rumbling bass roars create the perfect atmosphere for Vladimir to growl and bark rabidly. And lastly we have Progressing in Desolation, offering the listener almost nine minutes of the darkest form of Atmospheric Black Metal you can think of, spiced up with Doom Metal nuances and the creepy, harsh vocalizations by Vladimir. Moreover, Dmitry is truly infernal with his phantasmagorical guitar, not to mention how well they move from an enraged sonic havoc to more harmonious and mesmerizing lines and then back, with the music remaining dense and strident until its lugubrious grand finale and, therefore, being highly recommended for lovers of the darkest side of metal.

In a nutshell, Khandra are more than just your regular metal band, and There Is No Division Outside Existence, available for a full listen on YouTube and on Spotify, and on sales from their own BandCamp, from the Redefining Darkness Records’ BandCamp, from the Possession Productions’ BandCamp, from iTunes or from Amazon, is the ultimate representation of what the duo is capable of and how deep they can crawl inside your mind. Because, in the end, Khandra are a musical manifestation that can only be illuminated through experience, and all you have to do is listen and absorb.

Best moments of the album: Decaying into the Ascended.

Worst moments of the album: None.

Released in 2018 Redefining Darkness Records

Track listing    
1. Into the Absolute Nothingness 3:27
2. Decaying into the Ascended 7:44
3. There is No Division Outside Existence 5:59
4. Progressing in Desolation 8:31

Band members
Vladimir Borodulin – vocals
Dmitry Romanovsky – guitars, bass