Review Alkerdeel - Morinde on Alternative Matter

I have heard some pretty decent bands from Belgium, acts like Enthroned, Lycanthropy’s Spell to name but a few. First time I have ever heard of Alkerdeel who are bound to release their second full-length titled  “Morinde” this coming year.  The band has been categorized as raw sludge/black metal and that to me is just another rubbish combination of two sub-genres and saying, “I have no idea what I am talking about”, but that’s just my opinion. Moving on, this band has something unique about them. This to me is something similar to that of IXXI and what they accomplished with their album titled “Assorted Armaments” to some extent. The band is a four-piece band and their music can only be described as pretty unique.
I’s not a surprise that Alkerdeel is very focused on the atmosphere that their music creates. It is very slow and dreary, almost soulless, but that is kind of the beauty of it. It has that raw black metal element to it in various areas of each song that does liven it but that tad. This is very applicable to the second track, which is titled “Hessepikn”. It starts off very slow and rather labored with what sounds like memoirs in the dark. This does tend to last for three quarters of the song before breaking into a black metal like rampage, and would you believe if I told you, a solo, yes ladies and gentleman a solo, ever so slightly and short but a solo nonetheless to end the track.  This only being the second track makes it rather exciting to listen to the next track, as you’re not sure what to expect.
The third track on the album is titled “Horsesaw” which is played at a higher tempo and sure more aggressive in terms of the song structure as you are blasted with some intense riffs and power slides across the fret board. It does tend to fall into the same trap of going into a too relaxed riff and then it goes back to full tilt and finishes strongly. The last song is pretty much similar to the very first song and is titled “Winterteens” and is about 13 minutes long. In my personal opinion this tempo suits their atmosphere and playing stile a lot more that the frantic short black metal inferno that is “Hessepikn”. “Winterteens” starts off very slow and then breaks into a very slow almost doom like rhythm with the bass and drums complementing each other. It does get a bit static with some feedback, which adds to the over all doom feel of it. The track has some strange melodies and combinations of the instruments are like nothing I have heard before, the bass also being very prominent which is always a plus in my book The best track on the album in my opinion. It does have the fast paced double bass drums and the classic simple black metal riffs. The vocal style does compliment the over all style of this track very well. This eruption of pace and brutality kicks in around the 9 minute 35 second mark and is truly amazing.
Looking at the album as whole, it consists of 4 tracks, but manages to still weigh in at just less than 42 minutes thanks to two massive tracks at the start and end of the album. This does end off the album strongly and has a classic feel about it. This very obscure black metal from Belgium and if you like bands in the vein of IXXI, Shining and Lycanthropy’s spell I would definitely recommend this album. It is rather weird but I do like ‘em weird.

http://alternativematter.net/reviews/alkerdeel-morinde

CHVE / Nate Hall - split 7"

chve. she never left from jeroen mylle on Vimeo.

In March/April we will release a split 7" with Neurot recording artists CHVE (Colin H. Van Eeckhout of Amenra, Kingdom, Sembler Deah, ...) and Nate Hall (US Apallachia / former US Christmas).
Both frontmen now write their own solo work, ranging from dark folk to psych blues rock.
This release will be their first solo songs to be set free into the world.
The CHVE side will feature his minimal folk song "She never left", and Nate Halls side features a song premier from his upcoming solo album 'A Great River' set to be released on Neurot records in May.

Alkerdeel - Morinde pre-order

No better way to start off the apocalyptical year 2012 than with the unleashing of ALKERDEEL's second full album 'Morinde' upon this world.
After a few successful demo's/EP'S, these Belgians are pushing up the ante. It's clear ALKERDEEL has progressed quite a bit since the release of 'Luizig'. Although the familiar elements are still present - raw sludge/doom infused with filthy black metal - the compositions have matured and gained more depth. The lo-fi approach of the previous albums made room for a more thoughtful recording process, making it sound perhaps more accessible but also allows the sound to reveal all its sluggish nuances. But rest assured, ALKERDEEL remains ALKERDEEL: a mean putrid steamroller that takes no prisoners!

You can pre-order Morinde now. Besides the regular cd and (colored) vinyl version, there is also a diehard edition in a wooden box holding an exclusive clear vinyl, cd, exclusive t-shirt, giant poster, exclusive sew on patch, exclusive button and band pictures, limited to 100 copies. Packages with t-shirt, girly or hooded sweater also available.

Check it out here: Alkerdeel pre-order page
Vinyl is co-released with At War With False Noise