:: The Black - Alongside Death

The Black

Some underground black metal acts have risen from the depths of obscurity to become well known long after they disbanded. But some just remain unearthed. And if there’s one act that fits the latter, it’s Swedish act The Black. Although once featuring within their ranks the late Dissection vocalist/guitarist Jon Nödtveidt and emerging with their debut full-length effort ‘The Priest Of Satan’ in 1994, The Black didn’t quite have the same influence or earn the critical acclaim of so many other acts of the same era. But despite their lack of recognition throughout the years, drummer Make ‘The Black’ Pesonen decided to once again resurrect The Black. And with the addition of new members, vocalist/guitarist D. Forn Bragman and bassist Andreas Jonsson, The Black are back after a fifteen year absence with ‘Alongside Death’. So just how different is The Black after so many years away. The answer - not much. Although the production is a little cleaner, and the song writing a little more memorable, they still remain true to their original sound for the most part, with ‘Alongside Death’ a cold, harsh and traditional Swedish black metal release through and through. Both ‘On The Descent To Hell’ and ‘Death’s Crown’ are pure blasting efforts, with speeding riffs, cascading relentless drums and Bragman possessed screeching vocals making for one blasphemous noise. While a hint of melody can be heard throughout the songs, the trio still manage to produce an uncompromisingly harrowing noise, with the listener thrown headlong into truly chaotic traditional sounding black metal terrain. The tempo is slowed down considerably for ‘A Contract Written In Ashes’ and ‘Dead Seed’ (which is by far the most melodic and memorable effort on the album), while on ‘Fleshless’, a hint of death ‘n’ roll can be heard within the riffs and brief solo. ‘Death Throes’ once again steps up the pace with its thundering drum presence and buzzing riffs, while the title track ‘Alongside Death’ bring the album to a close in the same harsh and speed like manner as the opening duo of tracks. As an old school death metal release, ‘Alongside Death’ is enjoyable for what it is, and nothing more. The Black certainly hasn’t created a new classic for the genre, but they’ve more than produced a credible and solid release. And after so many years away, that’s all you could possibly expect from a band such as The Black.