Le Simposiarca, September 11th, 2013 

In the atmospheric/ambient black metal scene I seldom encountered a band like Nychts. "And so we go..." in particular shows a refined ability of this musician to create epic and memorable passages throughout his compositions using myriads of effects to enhance the (almost) solemn impact that his music radiates.

Logically, the atmosphere is the reading key of the whole concept of Trähn, and every element found in this release aims to resuck the listener in a vortex of clean guitars, unique vocal styles, changes of pace and epic riffs (and he manage to do it Sir). In many cases, the major risk of a very long track like this is that the listener may easily get bored as shit (umhm.. Paysage d'Hiver?), but not this time because even though the song, arrived at 40 minutes, starts to seem unending, you won't be bothered about that; the problem would probably be that it actually ends! Trähn succeeded to create an immense opus without using a hell of a second of filler moments: the momentum's always at its peak, even in the rarefied intro full of ambience and distant percussion, always satisfying and never excessive. They manage to accompany the downfall of riffs and ambience giving to the whole tune a great concur.

Another highlight of this effort surely is the vocals; oh yes, the vocals. Seemingly otherworldly raspy noises melt in the hazy reverberation of the general musical section as much as the whispered screams of Trähn that remind me of Silencer and the SDBM vocal style in general, but much more personal and charismatic: simply great! Furthermore, the imperfect recording quality of this release comes out very coherent and fitting with the decadent mood of the whole experience, not being too prominent or redundant (in fact you can distinctively hear every instrument/effect without sticking your ear to the speakers). It's hard to list every element concerning both the vocals and the music (Children yelling, church bells, trumpets etc..) but I can say that every minute of "And so we go..." is thoughtful and nothing has been left at random.

Not having the lyrics (and not knowing if he's actually saying something) I can't tell what Trähn is screaming about (in a normal case It would bother me, since I give much more attention than anyone I know to the lyrics) but, in the end, I think this is one those cases where is the music itself to communicate and to create its own identity. This masterpiece contains everything I would expect from an atmospheric black metal band (and much more actually). I can be amazed by the solemnity of certain passages, scared by the alien vocals, find a somber comfort in the mood of the composition and so on.. Between dream and nightmare. 

This is probably the very essence of a Masterpiece: it has the ability to give you a magnitude of emotions and feelings never getting outdated or disappointing. It's the great merit of this musician: he managed to blend countless colors from his palette in order to paint a gloomy, yet majestic portrait. Neither Darkspace, Alrakis or Midnight Odyssey can top this, and so I'm glad to have discovered this stunning release. I hope you will be able to comprehend and enjoy it as I did.

Highlight: Every single minute, but if you want to try before listening the whole thing, I suggest you my personal favourite passage that is probably the one from 35.11 to 44.18. Try it if you want a general idea.

Le Simposiarca

Memnarch, April 26th, 2010 

When you hear the term 'Astral Black Metal', immediately bands such as Darkspace, Limbonic Art and Paysage D'Hiver would spring to mind. Whereas Darkspace are more akin to being stuck on a desolate space barge and drifting into a stellar oblivion, Nychts remind me more of 'Moon in the Scorpio' era Limbonic Art, a psychadelic acid trip through a dark velvet void flecked with millions of tiny flickering stars. Though I would use the term 'Black Metal' loosely for Nycht's side of the split, it is much more than simply Black Metal, for the musical focus where Nychts are concerned is not based around the guitar riffing or vocals, but rather the vast spatial atmosphere Trähn is creating with the synths.
The song begins with a slow meandering guitar lead but the most notable thing is the hollow synth sound that lingers about in the background, and only very slightly changing every now and again for the first half of the song. The guitar is not used in the traditional sense as you would expect in Black Metal, it is remarkably doomy and restrained, a slow dirge with a continual mystical lead over the top, as if it was carrying you through the gargantuan galactic ocean. The vocals are extremely sparse, and there are no apparent lyrics to the song, the vocals seem to be a mere isolated wail cropping up from time to time, as if they were coming from some damned soul in another dimension. The lack of lyrics just adds to the whole mystery of the 'journey'. Around the halfway mark, the first half of the song climaxes with a rather wild solo, and the song changes from a weightless journey into a freefall, capitulating into a serene reverie for a minute or two before the second half begins with an acoustic guitar playing a sorrowful and reflective melody, and then another despondent howl erupts from the depths before the slow, distorted guitar reappears but this time playing a rather majestic, almost militaristic riff, with the vocals intertwined with a large amount of echo on them which duly sees finish of this epic, twenty minute journey. It is remarkably original piece of music on this side of the split, a Black Metal Tangerine Dream is the best comparison I can come up with, with a significant amount of focus placed upon the ambience created by the synths and echoing guitar. Trähn has created a fantastic piece of work, a cosmic journey through the stars in a galaxy in which the nearest sun has long since burned out, and the only light is that emitted from distant stars. It's only one song, but if Nychts decide to release more material in future, they could easily be up there with Darkspace and Limbonic Art in exploring the final frontier.

Wedard are a band I am quite familiar with, but have always failed to grab my attention in the way so many others of their ilk can. Sternenfrost has a penchant for releasing a lot of his material on split EPs with other bands, but as is the case here, it usually just proceeds to prove how distinctly average Wedard's material is in comparison with the other band's material on the split. From the opening notes on 'Masochist', it's your plain old 'by the book' depressive Black Metal. The production is extremely condensed and the guitars and vocals are washed with excessive reverb and buried in the mix. The songs are fairly up-tempo, helped by the brisk drumming which is the best thing about Wedard, and always has been. Programmed or not, they are executed with fine professionalism, and help to shift the rather lack lustre music along and maintain some attention. One thing about the first song that is completely off setting are the numerous breaks that appear in the song, which I assume are there to break up certain 'movements' but only succeed in making the cd sound as if it's faulty or even gives the impression of an album sampler. That's not to say it's all as stimulating as watching grass grow though, 'Winter – My Final Chapter pt 1' starts with an exquisite, softly picked tune before morphing into a ferocious charge backed up by heavy blastbeats and turbulent guitar riffing, surprisingly similar to early Immortal, with a high pitched widdling lead guitar over the top. But again the song needlessly stops for another pointless interlude, cutting short the rather fantastic beginning, and leaves you just thinking to yourself.... “why?” before continuing with an off kilter lead guitar which sticks out like a sore thumb, and ruining what would otherwise be a great song. As with most DSBM bands, the biggest influences are drawn from Burzum, and again this is the case here, for the vocals are your average Varg like shriek, that is, when you can manage to hear them when they're not buried beneath ten tonnes of off key guitar work. The riffing is also heavily generic for most of these two songs, I can barely recall any riffs except for the first half of the second song.

If Wedard stuck to the faster, brutal style showcased on their second song then they could maybe begin to go places, but as it stands, it is otherwise bog standard Suicidal Black Metal, that so many other have done before, and produced better. Wedard will have their fans though that will like the material on this split, for it doesn't differ any from the rest of their back catalogue. It isn't bad as such, it is listenable, but why listen to this when I could easily just put on Nyktalgia instead who do it so much better?
You should still definitely pick up this split though if you can, if only for the shining piece of music displayed by Nychts though. This is highly original, trance inducing Black Ambient that needs to be heard.

Memnarch, March 19th, 2011 

Fresh off the back of the tremendous Let the Devil In released at the back end of last year, the ever industrious Shatraug returns with Mortualia this time, and teams up with Swiss stargazers Nychts who themselves have been on the receiving end of a fair bit of acclaim lately. If you've heard “Zwischen Leere und Nichts” off the split with Wedard then you should have a good idea as to what Nebelstern des Nichts sounds like, and when combined with Shatraug's ability and experience the foundations are there for something very unique. Each band has their own 'movements' of sorts, they don't play in unison as I first thought, but Nychts handle the first twenty minutes or so and the last five, while Mortualia take the reins for the middle, with each section entwined by sampling and ambient work handled by the mastermind behind Nychts, Trähn. 

Some brief electronic gibberish gets the ball rolling we're engulfed by Trähn's meandering guitar wash pierced by his wretched screams which I suspect wont be to everyone's taste, but when you're a Silencer fan I suppose you can pretty much stomach anything. I've yet to hear a metal band who can capture that astral sound anywhere near as good as Nychts, the way Trähn utilizes acoustic guitar, organs, piano and that Tangerine Dream like ambience is astounding, it's the same sort of sound present on Limbonic Art's Moon in the Scorpio but with more of an overall desolate and vacuous semblance with a massive funeral doom influence beneath it all. Some of the sounds and samples are just downright bizarre, emphasizing the sheer alien nature to Nychts music. Diverse doesn't even come close, hell we even get what appears to be a guest appearance from something that sounds suspiciously like Darth Vader at the nine minute mark. Trähn's vocals are strange, they aren't actually harsh in the typical black metal manner, more of a wailing scream submerged among the huge wall of spatial obscurity, creating an overall vibe that this track is one big acid trip through an astral wasteland gone horribly wrong. They've been described as 'musical jewelry' and in a way seems a very apt description, scintillating and absolutely enamoring. 

After an interlude of a few minutes of strange beeping and a heavily echoed bass drum the Mortualia section kicks in and is a lot more orthodox than Nychts contributions, the vocals are raw and vicious, unmistakably Shatraug, a lot of the focus is centered on the guitar riffs and colourful lead work which remains tasteful throughout. The drumming is another excellent aspect about this release, it's comparable to the way Summoning programmed their drums on their later work, focused centrally around building the atmosphere first rather than just a backbone for the music, the sound off the bass drum is vast, echoing in the background as if it were a bell tolling doom. The last five minutes where Nychts take over again are incredible, the culmination of the destitute guitar melodies and Trähn's lost vocals backed up by that huge drum sound along with the night like ambience and what even sounds like a backing choir is pure audacity, but absolutely genius. 

Ambitious would be one word, the concept of two bands performing alternating passages back and forth together throughout a forty minute song is something which as far as I'm aware has never been attempted before in black metal let alone metal itself. You'd expect something as elaborate as this to have some slight faults and potential conflicts and inconsistencies between both bands, but the execution and seamlessness with which it is performed and stellar arrangements which are truly astonishing. You can tell when each performer comes in and leaves again, but at the same time it doesn't sound as if it's two separate projects at all.

Bands like Darkspace etc take note, this is how it's supposed to be done. Atmospheric black metal which is as limitless as the universe itself, Nebelstern des Nichts is a terrifying journey into the undiscovered infinities of the cosmos; black metal which is utterly platonic and thoroughly engaging throughout every single minute of this release. The sooner Nychts release a full length album themselves the better. With Nebelstern des Nichts, these two black metal wizards unleash what could only be described as one of the finest attempts ever in the black metal genre at putting to record everything that is contained in the thought devouring wilderness of night's firmament. Essential.

S_Stormhammer, April 16th, 2012 

It took me awhile to appreciate this album, truth be told. After Jahreszeiten, I expected Ash to continue in that direction, specifically with how he constructed the song Herbst. But this is different, and not a beginner's album for the black metal enthusiast. With only 3 tracks actually pertaining to black metal and the rest ambient, at first I felt betrayed by Nargaroth. I would insomuch go out of my way to flame his act on the airwaves. However, after much time spent away, I picked the album back up and gave it another try, and this time got a completely different feeling from the first time I listened to it. 

This isn't even really a black metal album for Ash, but rather an experimental album with black metal influences. It starts out with these beautiful, sweeping violin interludes that, if expecting raw, unadulterated black metal hate, will leave you sorely disappointed. But all in all, a good intro for how he sets up the rest of the album. The next track is black metal, and nicely done too. It has various keys strategically placed to accent the guitars and Ash's vocals are raw and full of power, rather in the vein of classic Burzum, but with its own flair and style. 

The next several tracks took me awhile to understand, though looking on them now I can appreciate and understand the level of detail they have. Again, like I said, this is not a beginner's album, specifically during Journey Through My Cosmic Cells [The Negation of God]. When I first heard it, I instantly pressed the ff button to see what else this album had in store for me. It's almost like trance/ritual music, but not bad. It is definitely worth listening to if you're trying to unwind, as most ambient music is.

The next two tracks are beautiful and breathtaking. A Whisper Underneath the Bark of Old Trees is so full of emotion that when I encountered it this second time, it almost brought me to tears with how stunning and sorrowful it sounded. Raw distortion mixed with a beautifully done riff makes for the perfect mix of German black metal, and Nargaroth nailed it. Even more so with his next track, which is the title of the album. 

All in all, this album is not to be taken lightly. It has both good elements and bad, but in my opinion the good completely outweighs and even shatters the bad. I look on in interest for future Nargaroth releases, especially if Ash continues down this path with his contributions to black metal and even more of his dark ambient/trance releases.

Memnarch, April 1st, 2012 

Anyone even remotely into black metal will have come across Nargaroth at some point on their travels. Kanwulf’s stories and antics in the past are so infamous these days it’s easy to see why they’re a hugely polarizing band. For a guy whose head is lodged permanently up his own arse, surprisingly he still has a canny knack for creating some fantastic music. “Jahrezeiten” was a somewhat return to form after the rather mundane previous two efforts. But let’s face it, he’ll never make another “Herbstleyd”, that was an almost genre defining release, and Kanwulf has said as much himself. 

While “Spectral Visions of a Mental Warfare” is an exceptionally good release, their best in many years in fact, it’s sure to divide fans right across the spectrum. Why? Because this is very, very different to anything Nargaroth have done before. Basically anyone that’s looking for a straight up black metal album will be coming away very disappointed, for “Spectral...” is essentially a bizarre experiment comprised of one small part classic Nargaroth consumed by a wave dreamy ambience fuelled by what almost appears to be the electronic waves of Tangerine Dream and Vangelis of all people. Not your everyday black metal album then eh? Of course this will just further stoke the fires of Kanwulf’s critics, but if you take this not as a black metal album, but as an ambient piece in general, you’ll maybe begin to fully appreciate its majesty. 

The three ‘Metal’ tracks present here would be loosely tied into the ‘depressive-suicidal’ vein of black metal for want of a comparison but the guitar plays a distinctly reserved role anyway. Take ‘An Indifferent Cold in the Womb of Eve’, it appears to drift around dejectedly beneath the sea of synths and electronics, playing an effective role in creating an atmosphere of suspended desolation. Whether it’s the sub-oceanic minimal electronic journey of ‘Diving Among the Daughters of the Sea’ or the terrifying “A Whisper Underneath the Bark of Old trees” it’s hard to escape that feeling that we are but a an insignificant fleck of corrupt light in something altogether vast and complex beyond our own comprehension. 

These astral, ambient passages are just so fucking effective, and none more remarkable than in the duo of ‘Journey Through My Cosmic Cells – The Negation of God’ and the aforementioned ‘A Whisper...’, the former a pure electronic track that is so utterly chilled out, relaxing and arcane; a trip into an abyssal celestial void, drugged by repeating electronic pulses of the synthesizer. It could easily have walked right out of the eighties, probably just why I love it so much. ‘A Whisper...’ is arguably one of the greatest tracks Kanwulf has ever penned, and it’s a pity the rest of the album isn’t quite up to this standard, as some of it does have the tendency to drag a touch. It’s the most ‘black metal’ track on the album and it sounds suspiciously like he might just have been listening to Nychts and Mortualia's latest collaboration before writing this one. The marriage between the melancholic guitar work, Kanwulf’s sparse vocals and the empyreal soundscapes created is mesmerizing. Take the guitar line that comes in around 4:40, it’s just soul destroying. I cannot stress enough how beautiful and crushing this track is, transporting the listener to another consciousness where all dreams and aspirations are destroyed. 

Comparing it to the other notable ‘spacey’ black metal acts, it’s less suffocating and foreboding than Darkspace and not as harrowing as Nychts, it’s comparable to a star cloaked out of body trip through the endless forest of space, an attritional battle between sanity and insanity. Aesthetically it isn't black metal at all, the focal point isn’t centred on riffing and blasting drum work, it’s all about the atmosphere. It may be their least metal release yet, but it’s Kanwulf’s best composition in years. Nargaroth have never given two shits about what path they’re expected to take, we’re never going to get another “Herbstleyd”, but if he decides to stick to this route I’m more than happy.

CrimsonFloyd, April 13th, 2011 

Nargaroth can be such a frustrating band. In the late 90s, Nargaroth looked like a new and innovative band within the black metal scene. The debut, “Herbstleyd”, is a classic that integrates the stylistic qualities of Burzum and Graveland with Kanwulf’s own taste for epic melodies. However, it’s been a long, bumpy road since then. “Black Metal Ist Kreig” is extremely generic, offering nothing that hasn’t been done before and done better. The same goes for “Prosatanica Shooting Angels”. On the other hand, “Gelibte des Regens” is one of the most repetitive albums I have ever heard. It was like Kanwulf heard “Filosofem” and thought all he needed to do to create quality hypnotic black metal was repeat a riff for fifteen minutes straight. As anyone who has sat through the laborious title track can attest, it's not that easy. 

Still, there is something that always makes me come back to Nargaroth. I think it’s the fact that I always say to myself “well, it has potential”. For example, “Gelibte des Regens” does have some very nice riffs, they just don’t need to be repeated for fifteen minutes. Thus when I heard some of the ambient samples from the new album “Spectral Visions of Mental Warfare,” I figured it was worth a listen. As usual, there are promising elements and as usual, the whole the work misses the mark. 

The first thing one should know about “Spectral Visions…” is that there is really only about 25 minutes of black metal on an hour long album. The rest of music is dark ambient. Dark ambient can be great when done correctly. (In fact, Kanwulf produced an excellent piece of dark ambient on “Herbstleyd”). However, most of the ambient tracks are just awful. The opening piece “Odin's Weeping for Jördh” is the best of the bunch. It is lush, solemn and soulful. The main melody is quite beautiful and the ambient noises, though cliché (wolf, raven, and storm... the unholy trinity of black metal nature noises) create a powerful presence. 

The rest of the ambient pieces split into two categories. The first are the pieces that sound like they come off some new-age bargain bin CD. Listening to “Diving Among the Daughters of the Sea”, I clike some hippy chick should be telling me about the psychic power of dolphins while realigning my chakras. Second, there are the pseudo-techno songs. These are long, repetitive electronica tracks that are too slow to dance to but too boring to just sit and listen to. No one needs to waste their time listening to Kanwulf’s FruityLoops experimentation. 

On the other hand, the three black metal songs are good. Slow and solemn riffs are layered with lush keys and periodic screeches. If nothing else, Kanwulf deserves credit for having a good ear for a dramatic and moving melody. However, even here Kanwulf cannot let things be. The best riff of the entire album comes around the 4:30 mark of “A Whisper Underneath The Bark Of Old Trees”. It’s a sweeping, epic melody—expressing a controlled, reflective glory. But we don’t get to enjoy it. The entire three minute passage is overdubbed with audio of some German guy screaming, yelling and crying—in short, having a mental breakdown. Just what every amazing melody needs… a random overdub of a clip from a movie. The long, obnoxious clip ruins any potential the track has for repeat listening.

On the whole, “Spectral Visions of Mental Warfare” has its moments, but they are just too few and far between. It seems Kanwulf just cannot put together a good album without shooting himself in the foot. 

(Originally written for http://listenwell-nocturnal.blogspot.com/)

Norfrisianblackmetal, April 7th, 2011 

What the HELL was Ash thinking when he decided to record this album? Let's copy (steal?) some Burzum riffs, add some electro/dance and voila: Spectral Visions of Mental Warfare

The first song, 'Odin’s weeping for Jördh', sounds almost exactly like Burzum's 'Tomhet', where as 'An indifferent Cold in the Womb of Eve' immediately brings 'Rundtgåing Av Den Transcendentale Egenhetens Støtte/Rundgang Um Die Transzendentale Säule Der Singularität ' into your mind, Ash doesn't even try to cover it up! The next song, 'Diving among the Daughters of the Sea', is another ambient piece, it sounds almost the same as 'An indifferent Cold...' and it's Burzum all-over again. Odin’s weeping for Jördh - Part II, surprise surprise, sounds like Burzum. Yeah, really. It's a bit more like Daudi Baldrs/Hlidskjalf this time, but still Burzum

Okay, next song: 'Journey through my Cosmic Cells (The Negation of God)'. It starts with electro, not bad, but Nargaroth isn't VNV Nation, is it? I personally don't mind this kind of influences, but be warned, it's like the freaky stuff on Mayhem's 'Grand Declaration of War', you love it, or you hate it. 'A Whisper underneath the Bark of old Trees' and 'Spectral Visions of Mental Warfare' are actually black metal, very slowly, nice, hypnotising songs. 'March of the Tyrants' is another electro song. I like it, but I fully understand those who don't.

This is not, understatement, what I expected after Jahreszeiten and I am really disappointed to hear electro influences on a Nargaroth album.