Black Metal is dead, long live Black Metal. Those of you that think that the genre has popped its clogs must have a carrot in one ear, a parsnip in the other and an Ann Summers special up your arse. Quite apart from those that re-invent the wheel, there are others that have successfully raised the dead and in the case of VINTERTHRON the corpse is more than just twitching.

Hailing from Rio, this band celebrate the product of colder climes, it's a veritable Mardi Grim. Despite the awful title, this début should satisfy anyone with a pulse and at times, those without. It's hard not to be enthused by the effusive rush of this album, sparking energies bolt throughout as tremolo picking provides a frozen flicker to the driving rhythm. Drawing heavily on the Nordic knights, this is a homage rather than the lazy use of a template, much like bearded folk lovingly recreate old motorbikes and steam trains, VINTERTHRON craft a venerable collection of tracks that demonstrate what you can do with the form. Mindful that many crash and burn when trying to capture the sound, this lot deserve some praise.

It's hard to pin point but there is something in the work that subtly incorporates local conditions into “Reign Ov Opposites,” you can never wholly escape the land that made you and so there are brief glimpses of South America in these songs, elements of “Wormkind Destruction” more than hint at it. VINTERTHRON also use melody in a way that traps you under ice but also teases you with bright winter sun shining through the blue hue. It's these melodies that grab you by the gonads and drag you along, resistance is futile. The composition is such that this music is so accessible that you might as well call it wheelchair friendly, that's not to say that the album is lightweight, it gallops around well into the extreme, it's just that it's virtually impossible not to get swept along by the zeal of it all.

Whilst the predominant pace has an urgency to it, the dynamics are varied enough to incorporate less frantic sections that often borrow some Thrash tendencies and there are also one or two Death Metal embellishments. The vast majority of the album is blacker than a pit moggy though and the band seem to have no desire to fuck with the formula they've created, one that bubbles with dry ice. As well as the infectiousness of the lead guitar, there is also the persuasive pummel of the drums which bound along with bravado, avoiding out and out hyperblast but still racked up to rapid and better for it. The bass also rumbles along loud and clear, it shuns the idea of being a bit player and greatly assists in the feeling of unstoppability and even adds atmosphere when pace slows, it gives additional voice to the more sedate parts of “The New Light.”

The flow of this album evokes greased rails and polished ice, it veritably slides along, seemingly without friction. There are harsher elements, the rhythm guitar has a rawness to it and counterpoints the melody perfectly and the vocals have the archetypal Black Metal snarl, there can be no criticism of that though because they are spat out with conviction and like everything else on this album, forged from devotion to the form.

Those of you that want something exciting and new may miss the point of this one, bless your little hearts. Those of you that just want something exciting can dive right in and relish the rush.

(Online March 25, 2009)