There’s something fetid in the fields of Flanders as Belgian iconoclasts Ars Veneficium dig up their third album and successor to 2020 release ‘Usurpation Of The Seven.’ Founding members S and Ronarg have this time been joined by Flo Musil of Theotoxin who provides a brutal battering to proceedings and there are a couple of other noteworthy guests who we shall come to in turn, getting in on the action during the seven tracks here. This is hellish black metal without compromise and with no time for playing around with trends. Old-school, misanthropic and rampant in its rotten malaise. That said although revelling in its uncompromising delivery, it is highly melodic with it. Without further ado let’s embrace death in all its glorification.

Two things are the focus of attention on the album, the first is the melodic weaving lines of guitarist Ronarg. They are fired up on opener ‘Death Is Light’ and hardly let up for the duration as they sinuously snake forth and at a majestic presence to the otherwise brutal rage of things. The second is the scabrous rasping vocals of S. Pitched forth with an air of formidable rage they project hostile statements which leap out the speakers making the narrative at times clearly concise. Expect vociferous full-blooded yells decrying praise to “Satan” making things very clear that the band are ‘Eye To Eye With The Devil’ and have inked any doctrines with Lucifer in blood. Wind occasionally fills the gaps between tracks before the next Christ-crushing sermon hones in. Melodies are somewhat repeated but that simply enforces their strength. ‘De Glorie van Dood’ sees Nornagest of Enthroned not just writing the verse but bellowing out stately elongated roars over the top of things. Jubilant and swaggering, this balls out attack has lyrics delivered in both Dutch and French but the message, although bleak, is joyous in any language, “The glory of death, will triumph again!”

Romping away like the grim reaper gone genocidal with his scythe there’s hardly any let-up in velocity or wrath, not even the Cosmos is safe from this all-consuming obliteration. The one exception is the lumbering bass tones jangling away at the start of ‘Into The Void’ but it’s not long until a death belch rankly grunts forth and hell is unleashed once more. The clean vocal hollers added to this give the song added impetus. The intense melody lines do have a bit of a Swedish vibe about them and even if a mark of authenticity is not required ‘My Tomb Under The Stars’ has second guest Anders of Necrophobic on hand adding to the overall mayhem and mania.

This is solid stuff make no mistake. It’s an album guaranteed to keep the listener pumped up from beginning to end and by the last notes leave you feeling both tied in knots from the fretwork and breathless from the thrust of adrenaline it has left flowing through the veins. Be warned though it’s also pretty damned addictive and once confronted hard to stop putting on for repeated spins.

(8.5/10 Pete Woods)

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https://immortalfrostproductions1.bandcamp.com/album/the-lurking-shadow-of-death