Third offering from Ars Veneficium.
Four years after their last album, S. (vocals, Hammerstorm) and Ronarg (guitar/composition, Antzaat, Bloedmaan) call on Flo Musil (drums, Agrypnie, Avgrum, Demersus ad Nihilum, Theotoxin, Schirenc plays Pungent Stench…) to create The Lurking Shadow of Death, released by Immortal Frost Productions.
We begin with Death is Light’s ominous intro, which transforms into a pitiless oppressive rhythm where ranting adds a not inconsiderable touch of menace. The relentless infernal flow is interrupted by a few brief moments of floating, but it picks up again almost immediately, rushing us towards the martial Eye to Eye with the Devil, which offers a rawer sound without denying its heady melodies. The atmosphere remains tense as the musicians unleash their instruments at a frantic pace until the final moments, which flow naturally into De Glorie van Dood, where the band welcomes Nornagest (Enthroned) for a few howls in French, creating a captivating vocal duality. While S. is just as wild as ever, the guest offers more majestic tones, which will mark the riffs as on One with the Cosmos, the following composition where the harmonics sometimes become more hypnotic and the vocalist unveils some striking passages. The sound becomes more aggressive on the final, but Into the Void offers us a moment’s respite before sinking us into its misty darkness, where the riffs develop an oppressive climate, sometimes coupled with a touch of Old School or more piercing vocals. Anders Strokirk (Necrophobic) joins the band to accentuate the unhealthy side of My Tomb under the Stars, but the composition remains extremely effective and offers regular eruptions of fury to anchor itself in pure violence. Pale Image of I brings the album to a close, developing the dissonant aspect of Black Metal, while offering sharp riffs that contrast with the melodies and mysterious vocal parts, but in the end we join the whispers and then the silence.
With The Lurking Shadow of Death, Ars Veneficium lifts the veil on their visceral devastating compositions, which don’t fail to soak up the entire spectrum of Black Metal, whether raw and aggressive or more soaring.
90/100