HINSIDES, “Under Betlehems brinnande stjarna”
By Octopi Mills
The hornets in the bucket sound of yore opens it up like a nest of furry hell. The sound,artwork and photos lend an old school sound that would make Bill Schnooblen's beetled brow look like an old bat logo from the early 90s. Vocals are of the typical “possessed by Goetic demons” style and the music has a good tinny sound lost to people who want to record in studios and miss out on the basement sound where spiders hide. Old keyboards are thrown in to lend a mystical sound but never seem to get too operatic or handsy. I must say, this is a surprising listen and sounds unique at times. And sure enough, when I think I hear one of my favorite old bands, SAMHAIN, I do because they are covering the song "Macabre".
This is a pleasant surprise and well done, and this is something I say sincerely. Though it is under 30 minutes of an album, it has a good sound like the old early Scandinavian days of black metal; the icy, thin, frosty guitar sound and the production values and atmosphere, lending to the universal idea of going out to the woods in a cape for a night out in the countryside.