Blut Aus Nord - 777 Sect(s) (2011) [Candlelight] // Grade: A

With their sound bouncing and reverberating all over the place in the last few years, it’s hard to determine where this band is taking their unique approach to black metal next. Maybe that’s a by-product of the genre dying out, or at least changing scope. Bands that take it seriously are often led down the path of mockery to the original intent of a cold and essentially compressed, low-fi genre. Gone are the compressed vocals and distorted sounds and now all that remains are the few lone acts who consistently nail down the feel by using their own experimentation with cross-genres. That’s where Blut Aus Nord’s new album, 777 Sect(s) comes into play. It’s clearly black metal but it’s a redefinition of said genre.

777 Sect(s) may just be the most significant black metal release in years. Its cold and cavernous feel creates the same depressed and compressed sound made popular by the early Norwegian acts. From their 2009 release, Memoria Vetusta II: Dialogue… and into their more recent EP, What Once Was… Liber I, the French band effortlessly turn the dials of the apocalypse with one finger. Each track is entitled “Epitome” and they range from 1-6 offering a solid 45-minute experience.

This experience is at times, violent and abusive and at other moments, tranquil and dark: like in “Epitome 2″. There’s no better way to describe it other than a cacophonous cathedral choir. It’s clearly evil but without being overly dramatic or relying on stage antics. Blue Aus Nord creates the sounds of the gods and these gods don’t sing, they howl. “Epitome 1″ and “Epitome 3″ are perfect examples of that. Even with “Epitome 4″ and Epitome 5″ delivering the same sound, the album isn’t as unbearable as you’d think. There’s a underlying, rhythmic flow and through a few key signifying riffs, it’s cohesive.

To end the work, 777 Sect(s) Blut Aus Nord delivers with “Epitome 6″, a 7-minute long composition that fails to disappoint. How do they do it? Each release this band gets better and better. The experience of each album is different but the sound is unified. You listen to a Blue Aus Nord song and you know it’s them. 777 Sect(s) is highly recommended. One of the best black metal albums of 2011 so far.

- Prolly