Vintersorg – Vattenkrafternas Spel (2025) – Review

Vintersorg - Vattenkrafternas Spel - Album Cover

I reckon we’ll need a lamestream n00b list for 2025 as well. Vintersorg, the band around one Andreas Hedlund, has been active since 1996. That’s not quite a lifetime ago, unlike other bands out there. But it is a whopping three decades of faithful service to further the mighty metal lore. And they had an undeniable influence on Northern atmospherics in metal, no contest.

The band sometimes showed its colors at the RMR office tower, straight out of the Northern lights at the outer edges of our aural range. But they never quite made it onto the review … [...] Click to raid more!

…And Oceans – The Regeneration Itinerary (2025) – Review

...And Oceans - The Regeneration Itinerary - Album Cover

…And Oceans is a band that wasn’t for long stretches over the eons they served their fan base. The Finns started their lengthy career back in 1995 with a first demo, but lasted only until 2002 when Cypher released to some limited fan embrace. After that, only bits and pieces graced our soundscapes until they hit the circuit again in 2019 with an EP.1 The RMR crew took real notice of them only once As In Gardens, So In Tombs hit our turntables with a bang.

So, we weren’t quite sure if …And Oceans‘ songwriting process would take … [...] Click to raid more!

Jade – Mysteries of a Flowery Dream (2025) – Review

Jade - Mysteries of a Flowery Dream - Album Cover

Something doesn’t make sense here. The title of Jade‘s latest piece – Mysteries of a Flowery Dreamjust doesn’t sync with the primeval monster roaming a dystopian landscape on display. There ain’t nothing flowery here, no sense of relief. Instead, it talks about tribulation and fear. A tale akin to Lovecraftian nightmares and hints of Bloch’s De Vermis Mysteriis. Of proto-plasmic horrors still to come to this earth and harrow mankind.

Well, doesn’t that just sound like the present-day times on full display? A period full of uncertainties driven by dark forces, with a dead compass leading … [...] Click to raid more!

Alukta – Merok (2025) – Review

Alukta - Merok - Album Cover

Ah, yes. French Black Metal is on the menu again. And frankly, the RMR crew has a sweet spot for these folks. Bands like Seth or Corpus Diavolis dazzled us to no end and garnered raving reviews with access to our latest Top 10 to boot. Looks like the French unconsecrated grounds are fertile soil for those devilish shenanigans.

Then, someone opined that Alukta here move down the ritualistic lane. And that stopped the old geezers of the review desk cold in their tracks. French Black Metal with a ritualistic twist? Something like the terrible Darkend? No, it’s something … [...] Click to raid more!