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Album Review – Thron / Dust (2023)

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Behold the majestic fourth album by this unrelenting German Black Metal horde, explicating the undeniable fact that everything will turn to dust someday.

Forged in 2015 in the deep darkness of the Black Forest, a mountainous region in southwest Germany, bordering France, the unrelenting Black Metal horde Thron is back with a fantastic new opus, titled Dust, their fourth full-length album following up on their 2021 effort Pilgrim. Currently formed of Samca on vocals, PVIII and Raven Dust on the guitars, SXIII on bass and J on drums, the band incorporated new elements to their sound in Dust by going back to their very roots which lie in the early 80’s, when bands like Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and Mercyful Fate ruled the field, while at the same time taking inspiration from the 90’s when bands like Tiamat, Edge of Sanity and Sentenced expanded their horizons. This fusion of sounds, combined with serious dedication to the glorious Progressive Rock dinosaurs of the 70’s, the love for the dark extreme musical arts with blasting fury and aggressive vocals, the crisp recording at Black Halo Studios Rheinfelden, Chäuer Studios Bärn and RL Studios Freiburg, the first-class mixing and mastering by Christoph Brandes at Iguana Studios, and the sinister artwork by Khaos Diktator Design, turn Dust into a must-listen for admirers of the music by Dissection, Watain, Necrophobic, Unanimated and Tribulation, just to name a few.

The devilish guitars by PVIII and Raven Dust will send shivers down your spine in Dying In The Mud, kicking off the album on a beyond dark note with Samca gnarling nonstop in the name of Black Metal; and such talented German horde puts the pedal to the metal in Return…, delivering classic Black Metal spearheaded by the massive drums by J while the band’s guitar duo keeps firing sheer obscurity from their axes, sounding furious, insane and evil just the way we like it. SXIII adds his share of heaviness to the music through his bass lines in The True Belief, leaning towards Melodic Black Metal while Samca keeps vociferating manically, being therefore perfect for some vicious headbanging, whereas back to a more infernal mode the band will demolish our souls with The Golden Calf, once again showcasing a superb guitar job and demonic blast beats, not to mention its welcome breaks and variations. And not a single second of peace is offered to us all in Monologue, another straightforward, Stygian Black Metal extravaganza showcasing the usual demolishing drums by the infuriated J.

The intro in The Eve is certainly spine-chilling, and that sulfurous, demonic vibe grows in intensity before exploding into old school Black Metal with hints of Death Metal. Needless to say, Samca sounds utterly grim on vocals, whereas Into Oblivion is another very harmonious and piercing creation by Thron venturing through the realms of modern-day Melodic Black Metal where all riffs and solos are absolutely incendiary. More of their razor-edged riffs will penetrate deep inside our psyche in The Tyranny Of I, with J dictating the song’s venomous pace with his intricate but also violent beats; followed by Face Of Despair, darker and more demonic than its predecessors thanks to its hints of Doom Metal while remaining loyal to the band’s core essence, presenting another superb vocal performance by Samca and overflowing desperation, hatred and sulfur. Their second to last breath of blasphemy comes in the form of The Wrong God, with PVIII and Raven Dust cutting our skin deep with another flawless riff attack, while lastly the band still has time to fulminate our senses with Martyr, where J is bestial behind his drums supported by the rumbling bass by SXIII throughout the song’s almost seven minutes of pure Black Metal awesomeness.

In summary, Thron more than nailed it with the apocalyptic Dust, delivering a collection of eleven Black Metal anthems that will undoubtedly place it among the best Black Metal albums of the year. Furthermore, such sensational blast of extreme music made in Germany can be appreciated in all of its obscure glory on YouTube and on Spotify, and if you consider yourself a true servant of the underworld you should definitely purchase a copy of it from the Listenable Records’ BandCamp page or webstore, or by clicking HERE. Don’t forget to also follow the band on Facebook and on Instagram for news, tour dates and so on, keeping the fires of Black Metal burning bright until the very end. Because you know, as the band itself stated, everything will turn to dust someday.

Best moments of the album: Return…, The Golden Calf, The Eve and The Tyranny Of I.

Worst moments of the album: None.

Released in 2023 Listenable Records

Track listing
1. Dying In The Mud 5:08
2. Return… 4:52
3. The True Belief 4:06
4. The Golden Calf 6:13
5. Monologue 3:31
6. The Eve 5:52
7. Into Oblivion 3:58
8. The Tyranny Of I 5:42
9. Face Of Despair 4:20
10. The Wrong God 4:48
11. Martyr 6:55

Band members
Samca – vocals
PVIII – guitars
Raven Dust – guitars
SXIII – bass
J – drums

Album Review – Chotzä / Tüüfuswärk (2020)

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Succumb to the anti-social fusion of Black Metal and Black N’ Roll blasted by this infernal horde from Switzerland.

Formed as a side-project in 2011 in the city of Bern, on the German-speaking side of Switzerland, with the aim to create anti-social Black Metal and Black N’ Roll, the unstoppable and blasphemous unity known as Chotzä (which means “to vomit” in Swiss-German) is ready to take the world of heavy music by storm once again with their third full-length opus, entitled Tüüfuswärk, the follow-up to their previous installments Plump u Primitiv, released in 2014, and Bärner Bläck Metal Terror, released in 2017. Apart from their frantic and aggressive sonority, perhaps one of the main ingredients in the music by Chotzä is the fact that all of their songs are sung in “Bärndütsch”, which is one of many existing Swiss-German dialects, allowing the wicked music crafted by lead singer Szivilzs, guitarists Gruäbähung and Raven Dust, bassist Näbugring, pianist Leopold and drummer Cpt. Cunt to sound even more organic, visceral and austere than what they would ever sound in English, and as a fan of extreme music I must say their dialect blends extremely well with their vicious Black Metal.

Featuring guest vocalist Herr Morbid (also known as Ferdinando Marchisio) of Italian Black Metal band Forgotten Tomb, the opening track Dräck am Schtäckä (Vatikan Version) presents a wicked intro that quickly explodes into berserk, blasphemous extreme music led by the devilish roars by Szivilzs while Raven Dust and Gruäbähung cut our skin deep with their infernal riffage, followed by Schtächzähni, as fast and demonic as its predecessor, with Cpt. Cunt dictating the rhythm with his Punk Rock/Hardcore-infused beats while the guitars bring a welcome Thrash Metal twist to the overall result, not to mention how Näbugring keeps the atmosphere dense with his wicked bass lines. And blending old school Black Metal with the Rock N’ Roll blasted by bands like Motörhead, Misfits and Danzig we have Horrorotika, where the sound of guitars will pierce your mind mercilessly and the backing vocals provide an amazing support to Szivilzs in this ode to blasphemy, sex and horror.

In Sex, Suff & Satan, what starts in a sinister, introspective way morphs into a mid-tempo Symphonic Black Metal aria led by Leopold and his Stygian piano notes, also presenting slashing guitar solos and bringing some welcome elements from Gothic Rock and Doom Metal, whereas our beloved Swiss horde speeds things up and enhance their already insane level of rage in Fiesä, Fulä Fettsack, where Szivilizs barks the song’s cryptic lyrics manically while Cpt. Cunt keeps smashing his drums like a beast, resulting in another sensational fusion of the band’s core Black Metal with the most vicious form of Rock N’ Roll. And leaning towards a more classic version of Black Metal, especially due to Cpt. Cunt’s blast bats and fills, Süüchägott showcases the band’s dynamic guitar duo firing lancinating, hellish riffs for our total delight while Szivilzs continues with his demonic vociferations.

Abfau brings forward an onrush of darkened sounds, infernal screams and endless wrath, or in other words, it’s ruthless Black Metal infused with Doom Metal nuances, with Gruäbähung and Raven Dust once again crafting pulverizing riffs and solos; and Leopold comes ripping with his phantasmagorical keys in Ds Tanzgebei, a fun (and somewhat dancing) Black Metal extravaganza where all band members sound bestial and electrifying form start to finish, keeping the album at a high level of dementia. Then get ready for battle to the sound of Fotzä, smashing our heads with an avalanche of blackened sounds and sulfurous growls, while Cpt. Cunt gives a lesson in Black Metal drumming. And last but not least, we’re treated to the rebellious and dense title-track Tüüfuswärk with its eight minutes of extreme and vile sounds, where the band’s stringed trio keeps hammering their axes with tons of precision and violence, all spearheaded by Szivilzs and his trademark gnarls.

The gates to the underworld are open in Switzerland thanks to the incendiary music blasted by Chotzä in their newborn spawn Tüüfuswärk, and if you want to show your support to such demented Black Metal horde you can follow them on Facebook to know more about their music, their concerts and other nice-to-know details about the band, and purchase your copy of the album from Northern Fog Records (CD), Sturmglanz (vinyl) or Worship Tapes (cassette). It’s truly impressive how those Swiss metallers are capable of blending the most hellish elements form a myriad of styles like Black Metal, Rock N’ Roll and Hardcore without sounding confusing or disorganized; quite the contrary, the music by Chotzä is absolutely furious, cohesive and thrilling, just like what we can see in Tüüfuswärk, showing us all this six-piece horde of darkness will still haunt our soul for years to come with their dark-as-the-night creations.

Best moments of the album: Dräck am Schtäckä (Vatikan Version), Horrorotika and Fiesä, Fulä Fettsack.

Worst moments of the album: Sex, Suff & Satan.

Released in 2020 Northern Fog Records/Sturmglanz/Worship Tapes

Track listing
1. Dräck am Schtäckä (Vatikan Version) 3:44
2. Schtächzähni 5:59
3. Horrorotika 4:28
4. Sex, Suff & Satan 6:15
5. Fiesä, Fulä Fettsack 4:47
6. Süüchägott 2:48
7. Abfau 7:11
8. Ds Tanzgebei 5:07
9. Fotzä 5:56
10. Tüüfuswärk 8:06

Band members
Szivilizs – vocals
Raven Dust – guitars
Gruäbähung – guitars
Näbugring – bass
Leopold – piano
Cpt. Cunt – drums

Guest musician
Herr Morbid – vocals on “Dräck am Schtäckä (Vatikan Version)”