Tag Archives: kiev

Album Review – Mental Torment / ego:genesis (2021)

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This amazing Ukrainian doom horde returns from the underworld with over 50 minutes of music covering the catharsis that a person goes through in a moment of despair and hopelessness.

3.5rating

mental-torment-ego-genesis-2021Forged in the fires of Kiev, Ukraine back in 2009, the Stygian Death and Doom Metal entity known as Mental Torment returned from the ashes like a dark phoenix in 2020 after a five-year hiatus to crush us all once again with their undisputed Funeral Doom Metal, resulting now in 2021 in their sophomore effort titled ego:genesis. Bringing to our avid ears over 50 minutes of doom split into seven distinct tracks, ego:genesis covers the catharsis that a person goes through in a moment of despair and hopelessness, searching for answers to eternal questions, resisting the inevitable and final acceptance of their fate, all carefully brought into being by Roman Sagajdachnyj on vocals, Anatolii Doroshenko and Mykhailo Chuha on the guitars, Andrii Avramets on bass, Yaroslav Mosiievsky on keyboards and Artur Myrvoda on drums, being therefore highly recommended for fans of the music by October Tide, Paradise Lost, Anathema, Katatonia and Swallow the Sun, among other torchbearers of pure doom.

The gentle, melancholic keys by Yaroslav kick off the eight-minute aria Acceptance, already showcasing the band’s passion for doomed and obscure music, before Artur begins hammering his drums with tons of anger. Needless to say, fans of bands like  Paradise Lost and My Dying Bride will certainly love it. And the strident and piercing guitars by Anatolii and Mykhailo set the tone in the sluggish and grim New Days Old Wounds, accompanied by the thunderous bass by Andrii and, therefore, offering Roman all he needs to vociferate and roar in the best Doom Metal way possible; whereas Yaroslav strikes again with his sinister keys in Untitled, before the music explodes into a slow and heavy-as-hell fusion of Death and Doom Metal spearheaded by the classic drums by Artur while the growls by Roman get more anguished and desperate as the music progresses.

Even heavier and more demonic than its predecessors, the multi-layered Conclusion will crush your damned soul mercilessly to the sound of the vicious guttural by Roman and the crisp guitars by Anatolii and Mykhailo while Andrii keeps smashing his bass flawlessly, and more of their delicate but at the same time caustic Funeral Doom Metal is offered to us all in The River, with the gruesome roaring by Roman generating a Stygian paradox with the whimsical piano notes by Yaroslav. Then keeping the album as doomed and infernal as possible, the band once again slams our heads with their boisterous music in Black, with Roman taking the lead once again with his deep growling while his bandmates add a touch of progressiveness to the overall result, followed by the closing tune Oblivion, an instrumental outro where the band’s guitar duo delivers a stunning stringed performance supported by the stylish beats by Artur, blackening the skies one last time for our total delight.

mental-torment-2021If you love funereal and melodic Doom Metal from the bottom of your damned heart, you should definitely start following Mental Torment on Facebook, on Instagram and on VKontakte for news, tour dates and other nice-to-know details about such awesome Ukrainian band, and also subscribe to their YouTube channel for more of their eerie and captivating music. And above all that, of course, let’s show our utmost support to those talented metallers by purchasing their fantastic new album from their own BandCamp page or Facebook webstore, as well as from the Metallug Music Facebook webstore soon. In the end, Mental Torment did a beautiful job turning our darkest emotions and feelings such as despair, hopelessness, fear and anger into cohesive and thrilling music, leaving us all eager for more of their music in the coming years and, consequently, keeping the fires of Ukrainian doom burning brighter than ever.

Best moments of the album: Acceptance and Conclusion.

Worst moments of the album: None.

Released in 2021 Metallurg Music

Track listing 
1. Acceptance 8:15
2. New Days Old Wounds 7:19
3. Untitled 7:21
4. Conclusion 7:34
5. The River 7:48
6. Black 7:01
7. Oblivion 5:54

Band members
Roman Sagajdachnyj – vocals
Anatolii Doroshenko – guitars
Mykhailo Chuha – guitars
Andrii Avramets – bass
Yaroslav Mosiievsky – keyboards
Artur Myrvoda – drums

Album Review – Morkesagn / Where The Darkness Never Ends (2015)

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These ruthless Ukrainian metallers will take you where the darkness never ends to the sound of their raw and aggressive Black Metal.

Rating4

frontDo you want to know where the darkness never ends? Based on the cataclysmic music brought forth by Ukrainian Black Metal act Morkesagn in their debut full-length release Where The Darkness Never Ends, I should say it’s definitely the city of Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. Those corpse-painted metallers are capable of blending the most refined techniques found in heavy music with the infernal aggressiveness of raw Black Metal, resulting in a must-have album for fans of Emperor, Dissection, Satyricon and early Norwegian Black Metal.

Morkesagn, whose name was taken from the Norwegian language and means “Dark Legends”, was formed in the year of 2013 in Kiev by lead vocalist, guitarist, composer and songwriter Ekvil, and although there have been significant changes to the band’s lineup since then, their music surely evolved to a much more robust and lancinating form. Add to that the content of their lyrics, based mostly on the mythology of Greece and partly on Scandinavian mythology, and there you have one of the most promising bands hailing from Eastern Europe in recent years.

Dungeons, with its smooth and sinister intro suddenly exploding into over 8 minutes of darkness and sulfur in the form of brutal Black Metal led by the demonic growls by Ekvil, presents lots of melodic elements and a somber atmosphere which end up preventing it from being too crude; whereas primeval drums set the tone for the infernal opus Heart of Darkness, the first of their three “hearts”, where Ekvil and Farn burst undistilled Black Metal riffs and solos while Lev Kurgansky (the session drummer for the album) is an unstoppable demon behind his drums.

IMG_5457-Edit_newThe following “heart”, entitled Heart of Poison, starts as very obscure and heavy Doom Metal before becoming a venomous blast of the blackest form of Extreme Metal you can think of. In addition, the devilish way Ekvil declaims the lyrics is at the same time threatening and captivating, enhancing the song’s morbidity. Heart of Flame, the third and last “heart”, will lacerate your soul with its burning Black Metal inflamed by the traditional blast beats and fills by Lev, as well as the piercing riffs by Ekvil and Farn, solidifying this complex tune full of variations as if there were three or four songs in one.

And there’s no place to hide from their blasphemous metal music, as you’ll notice in the solid and vile tune Temple, where beautiful guitar lines flourish amidst sheer carnage, and the rumbling bass lines by Heydvald simply confirm darkness will prevail after all is said and done. Finally, as hazardous as a frostbite we have Frost, an amazing “tribute” to Norwegian Black Metal that lives up to the tradition of Scandinavian extreme music, from its cold name to its hypnotizing rhythm, darkening our minds before the ominous instrumental outro Throne of Doom brings this enraged album to an end.

In conclusion, Morkesagn can undoubtedly take you on a tenebrous journey through the forbidding world of Black Metal aboard the skeleton ship portrayed in the album art of Where The Darkness Never Ends, which can be purchased at the band’s official BandCamp page. It’s just a matter of knowing if you’re brave enough to face the band’s grim musicality and, above all things, if you’re willing to accept infinite darkness into your heart.

Best moments of the album: Heart of Darkness and Heart of Flame.

Worst moments of the album: None.

Released in 2015 Farn Black Productions

Track listing
1. Dungeons 8:20
2. Heart Of Darkness 7:19
3. Heart Of Poison 7:07
4. Heart Of Flame 7:15
5. Temple 7:31
6. Frost 4:43
7. Throne Of Doom 2:57

Band members
Ekvil – vocals, guitars
Farn – guitars
Heydvald – bass
Heisenbeard – drums

Guest musician
Lev Kurgansky – drums (session musician)