There’s one thing Black Sites do expertly well. And that is producing easily accessible, somewhat traditional modern metal. Their offering is – of course – not all that simply explained, but you get my drift. We’ll be exploring what’s there and what isn’t a bit further down.
Already Untrue and The Promised Land? gave us a good taste of what the folks over at Black Sites dispensed of that very medicine. Now, here’s a new piece on the chopping block. Mark Sugar‘s gang of merry men have been at it again. So, let’s push the play button on our very own jukebox and find out what For Eternity holds in store for this cranky crew. Heroes or followers. It’s complicated.
Well, hells bells. It is déjà-vu all over again. Not the songs, mind you. But our feeling that we can’t get into the record. Looks like this here crew really needs some rust and grime to draw some blood to really start focusing on a choice piece like this one. And For Eternity will refuse that challenge. With Black Sites, it is like walking into a festival and being drawn in by those alluring rock sounds. Only to find that the fare is too slick for their own good. Good for the moment, which makes you forget to dig deeper and uncover some crust-laden gems that are surely lurking somewhere. Meaning, old Black Sites-ish stereotypes duly confirmed all over again.
And indeed so. For Eternity runs like the well-engineered machine that it is. There is uncanny precision in everything. The pace, the arrangement, the seamless switch from melody to harmony, effortless changes of tempi, the momentous build that suddenly awakes you from a dream state into harsh reality (Giving Up The Ghost), the switches from one mood to the other. All of that comes in measured bits and pieces with not an inch to spare. You won’t be able to detect any fat in between the numerous moods and flavors. And on top of it all sits Sugar‘s Ozzy-esque whine, garnished with riffs that feel like a cocktail of Black Sabbath and Dio. That is Heavy Metal reinvented without the need for extensive screaming about the soundscape.
The RMR crew loved the variation on For Eternity. To simply stick a Heavy Metal pin in it would not give the album credit. Often, you get that tasty heavy/prog/melancholy/post metal mix, all in one simple serving (When It Calls, for instance). But speaking of melancholy, Black Sites suddenly swerve into Doom Metal proper, somewhat akin to biggies such as Paradise Lost (Unanswered For Eternity). Progressive Metal gained in importance on this piece. Not in the sense of challenging any dyed-in-the-wool prog outfit. But the sudden burst of proggy licks and riffs really got our attention.
And this led to a lot of head-scratching over at the review desk. The grouchy geezers wondered as to how so much slickness could remain unchallenged for such a long time. Until we discovered that Dan Swanö had his capable hands on the mix ‘n’ master buttons. So, there’s that. For Eternity is produced to a fine point. There’s not one gelled hair out of place. Everything is arranged to a fine point, and this, on a record that loves its style changes and frequent switches of mood and flavor.
Ultimately, For Eternity didn’t boast any new stringent change of direction of their music. Or any stirring change at all. If anything, Black Sites refined their art to deliver neatly honed yet easily accessible mix of traditionally-minded melancholy Heavy and Progressive Metal. Meaty, refined and written in a deliberate and no-nonsense manner. And this proves the point that even in music you can travel down the very same road a number of times and still produce great metal. You just need to know how and Black Sites is one of them in the know.
Record Rating: 8/10 | Label: Self-Released | Web: Official Band Site
Release Date: 17 July 2026