My third favorite split of this year (first would be
Lose / Lose / Lose, and second
Dirtpill / Заводь / Zuboroth), this 4-way split delivers the best of occult-influenced bands I've heard so far.
Saturnalia Temple's song (
To Know) manages to sound even dirtier and obscure than their previous albums (specially UR), but enough to be a perfect mood-setter for this interesting release. Admittedly I'm not a fan of what they do, but at least I can say it might be of interest to those into the occult vibe of some recent doom metal bands (
Moss and
Dark Buddha Rising come to mind, for instance). Next we have
Nightbringer (
To Will), band already well-known in the orthodox black metal scene, with a song that I wouldn't really consider their best of their career, but at least goes along nicely with the concept. It does drag a bit, but this is normal with
Nightbringer.
Next song would be
To Dare by
Nihil Nocturne, a german black metal band with a long career, with this song being one of the main highlights of this split. The prize goes, however, to
Aluk Todolo with
To Keep Silent, one of their longest songs, in which the mood set by
Saturnalia Temple earlier in the album is improved by the syncopathed drumming and the heavy feedback that characterizes this band. It sounds as if it was recorded live, seeing as the production is not as good compared to their previous albums, although it doesn't affect at all their quality. Top quality release, as it's usual with
Ajna Offensive.
Download it here: [
V0]
Buy it directly from The Ajna Offensive here.
