Thursday, September 8, 2011

Noctem - Oblivion (2011)


Noctem is a band from Spain that according to Metallum plays Black/Death/Thrash metal. I would call it semi-technical black metal with death influences, maybe some thrash as well. By semi-tech I mean in the same vein that Decapitated is semi-tech death: there is a lot of technicality involved in the songs, but not so much with the time signatures and crazy song structures. (I'm not comparing them to Decapitated)

Noctem is definitely a black metal band with their very black image and lyrics. The riffs are shreddy and black, yet still memorable and melodic. There are enough variation to the riffs and structure of the songs to make you want to hear them again. Some of the solos are actually really great and sound quite original and fit perfectly with the atmosphere. The production is super clean, and it sounds professional. The drums are excellent, with those black metal patented triggered jesus'-rectum-impaling bass drums. Double pedaling is used a lot, and to great success. There are blast beats too of course, but the double pedals are rarely left alone for more than a minute. I feel that the fast, shreddy riffs work better with this kind of recipe. And the vocals are no push over either, I like them a lot. I can't really say who they remind me of, but they sound really good.

A great effort at making black metal more melodic and, for me, more interesting. I'm not so well versed in the black metal genre, but to me it sounds original and I recommend it to anyone who likes extreme metal.