This is a 25th anniversary compilation album from this German black metal group who appear to now be the ‘soul’ domain of Lord Esgaroth. According to the big rant in the CD booklet though the cards are on the table for them and he is not a happy chappie in the slightest. The reason why? Well the music he holds dear has been infiltrated by rock star behaviour and what he calls “the Norwegian incest.” “Fuck you all,” he states directing his wrath at all the ridiculous posturing within the scene and those who dilute the music making what was once unique and special more sociable and a mere trend. The threat is given that Suffering Souls will possibly make one last album and that is it, finito for them. Typically, I got to things rather late having not heard of them before and put this on expecting that the music would be true and kvlt, well after what he has said it could not be anything else really could it? Another thing I will say is that attention must be made to the ghoulish promo photos of The Lord all white clothed and blood spattered holding some sort of mutant baby, covered in gore and barbed wire, heart ripped out and held aloft. Seems rather attention seeking and posturing to me but damn eye catching too. Anyway, let’s get to the music…

There have been various band members along the way and this is not all a solo affair. For the first 5 tracks we go back to 1998 demo ‘When Silence Cries Eternally.’ These numbers start with swirling synths on intro ‘The Source Of Blasphemy” and batter into raw and unbridled misanthropic blackness. It’s typical demo material but actually a cut above the origins of many a band, actually sounding punishing and forceful on tracks such as ‘Beyond The Nocturnal Gates Of Uncertainty.” Feudal and hellish we get trembling riffs and biscuit tin and saucepan munitions from the clattering percussion. As for the vocals they are gravid, bloody-thirsty rasps that occasionally border on the utterly preposterous and the roughness of it all certainly delivers what is expected. Kvlt, this very much is and peppered with some eerie and sombre synths it has plenty of gruesome atmospheres and some surprisingly strong morbid melody as we twist and turn ‘Into The Cryptic Forest Of Enchantment.’

It’s when we reach the material from debut EP 1999’s ‘Cries Of Silence’ though that things leap up tenfold in both style and substance. Despite the title track of this being on both recordings they are miles apart and the band have taken their raw sound and hugely emphasised the symphonic elements making it all sound absolutely fantastic. A majestic and grandiose romp through misty forests as the original cover-art suggests there is no denying that this is exactly the sort of music someone dedicated to true black metal art should be making. It’s invigorating and feral taking the listener back to the source of it all and it has the nostalgia, romanticism and violence one would yearn for. This version of ‘Cries Of Silence’ is actually one of the best black metal tracks I have heard in many a bloody moon. Seamlessly following it with a near neo-classical flourish ‘In The Essence Of Sin’ is equally formidable and if you discovered this EP back in the day it must have really blown off the cobwebs and made you sit up and listen. Following this a couple of obscure rarities are included a previously unreleased ‘Dark Angels Of The Funeral Abyss’ being particularly catchy as the artist channels inner Mozart and plays it in a baroque and crazed fashion gibbering like a madman all the way. Unfortunately, the one misfire is a live track at the end which with levels up to the max sounds appalling and has had me skipping on repeated plays. That said I enjoyed this a hell of a lot more than I expected to and will now have to try and hear the 4 full length studio albums in their entirety and hope that a new recording surfaces before Lord Esgaroth slinks off into the darkness forevermore.

(8/10 Pete Woods)

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