I came across Nazghor with their 2017 release ‘Infernal Aphorism’ and at the time, I was only moderately drawn to that particular release. If I may be truthful, I was more drawn to the cover art, the color palette, and the integration of the logo into the image. Yeah, I am one of those people; I can be a sucker for interesting imagery. Musically, they were walking the lines of Dark Funeral, Lord Belial, and Naglfar. Now, besides some interesting moments scattered throughout that release, plus also containing members of Entrails, Eternal Evil, and Morphetik, you would think you would be in for something of interest. Sadly, there was really no “wow” factor, and it came across as slightly run-of-the-mill, or dare I say, typical.
Now, much can be said what the wonders of time and an influx of two new members can achieve in both songwriting and grasping the concept of being more than just the standard 2nd wave of Black Metal style band. Now, this being the band’s 8th full-length release on the Solistitium Records, it seems the band has finally got all their stars aligned and literally decided to set the “World Ablaze”.
Forgive me for being a bit dramatic in my description, but I truly see the band and its members taking the steps in a positive direction musically. Now I hear much more of the leanings into the aforementioned Naglfar, but also new elements of Valkryja, Dimmu Borgir, but without the bombast, and also, and this is the crucial one, you may need to sit down for this. Unanimated. Yes, you read that right. ‘In The Forest of the Dreaming Dead & Ancient God of Evil’ are huge mainstays for me, even to this very day. So I shed a bit of a nostalgic tear for what I was hearing on ‘A World Ablaze.’
The dark melodic elements from earlier releases are still there, but now they have been dialed up a few notches. When hearing them now, it allows and lets breathe that mood and splendor of beautiful evil to take hold of you. Unanimated and Dissection both released their seminal early material around the same time period, and they set the standard in what can be achieved utilizing such elements in songwriting. Nazghor has seemed to realize this and has embraced it as well.
The vocals of ‘Nekhrid’ are also a reason for the added dynamic. Having just been recruited to Entrails and appears on their latest release. He, here and now with his primary band (I assume), adds a bit of a more deathly dynamic to the mix of things. Similar to what some of the later vocalists in Setherial achieved in that band’s later output, and moving away from the standard higher-pitched scream typical (or expected) for the genre. There is much more variation in approach and in tone, and it contributes much to the atmosphere and makes for a much more enthralling listen.
I can go on about pivotal moments on this release like for example opener ‘Cursed and Unblessed’ is a perfect amalgamation of all that Nazghor is trying to achieve, then there is the epic darkness and grandeur on ‘Within Crimson Kingdom, or the Black n Roll groove that begins and drives ‘Bathe In Ashes, and also those keyboard accentuations that permeate the various tracks but do not pander to the Dimmu crowd in an overt sense. They are there to enrich the songs, but they are not the primary driving factor, and they just contribute to the whole dynamic. Production finds that right balance of cold and harsh, but still with enough clarity and warmth to the overall mood, that it can appeal to those new to the genre and also those stodgy curmudgeons amongst us.
I mentioned my admiration for Unanimated, and that more than likely influenced my decisions here, and has led me to listen to this particular release on more than one occasion. Having said that, there is much to grasp here beyond just my own musings and yearning for the sentiment of the past. So I ask you to dig deeper, enjoy, and hope perhaps for this to be replayed more than the 2 or 3 occasions until the next new thing comes along.
