Vampirska – Vermilion Apparition Frozen in Chimera Twilight

Vampirska

Vermilion Apparition Frozen in Chimera Twilight

by Will Travers at 06 April 2022, 10:36 PM

The Black Metal scene is awash with swathes of up and comers. Being a bit of a niche genre, there are often groups that will sit on the underground circuit, releasing music to their unapologetic die hard fans, and get the odd cult show or festival slot here and there. It’s a strange genre to be a part of because many don’t break through the ceiling, sure there are the BEHEMOTH, WATAIN and WINTERFYLLETH’s of the world that helped to change the commercial success of Black Metal, but what of the younger members of the genre? What are they doing to keep it all alive?

Well, today I have the American outfit, VAMPIRSKA and their newest release “Vermilion Apparitions Frozen In Chimera Twilight”, a six track album spanning about 30 minutes and full of what has been dubbed as Raw Black Metal, so really I think we had best get stuck in and see what the craic is!

Opening is “Dreamblack: Drowning In Anhedonia” and it really is an atmospheric track, unsettling and full of ambience. It sets the tone and helps me to settle in for the rest of the record. However, “Midnight: An Illusive Vision Into The Boundless Sky Mourning Stars With Prominent Eyes” was a bit more of what I expected. The intense and deep wall of music crashing against my headphones, wave after wave full of emotion and feeling. And it really is quite the intense listen, but if you cut through it all, and really listen to what is being put out you can’t just hear the music but you can feel it resonate deep within you, and honestly I found it somewhat moving!

“Pareidolia: The Bringer Of Poison & Toxic Passion” is a bit more of an aggressive track. The pace has increased and so with it has that feeling of pain and anguish that moves through the music. But there are flashes of something else occasionally too, stripped back sections and a slight lowering of the intensity shows a much more vulnerable side to the music. However, this in turn then compounds the effects of moving from the gentler sections back into the full throttle ones, a fantastically used effect. The final track “The Vampyric Condition: Romanticism & Mystique Masked By An Empty Face… To Never Be Seen Again…” (try saying that when you’re drunk!) is an eight and a half minute impenetrable wall. But again, the musical layering and tracking really does need to be appreciated here, as the music flows together, and the running guitars in the background work in tandem with the vocals to create this wonderful atmosphere that has been present throughout the record.

Overall, I thought that this was fantastic. I was unsure what to expect from the term raw Black Metal but I think that after hearing this I understand it more now. And I wholeheartedly think that anyone who is a fan of black needs to hear this, it is superb!

Songwriting: 10
Originality: 10
Memorability: 10
Production: 10