Grabunhold return with ‘Frostheim’, their second full-length, moving between melodic Black Metal, old-school rawness and a strong medieval/fantasy atmosphere. The Tolkien-inspired concept is clearly there, but the guitars are what really take the spotlight: cold, epic and gloomy melodies that feel like they’re marching through frozen mountains, ancient ruins and long-forgotten battlefields.
‘Frostheim’ keeps that traditional German Black Metal spirit, but with a slightly clearer production and a melodic approach that gives the band its own character. There’s something proudly old-fashioned about their sound: Pagan Black Metal, medieval fantasy and that feeling of stumbling across a band that could have crawled out of some old German cave filled with ’90s records.
If I had to place Grabunhold somewhere on the sonic map, I’d point towards Odal and Ulfsdalir for that German Pagan Black Metal character, while there are also traces of more atmospheric melodic Black Metal and bands that combine rawness with a strong medieval feeling.
