EP REVIEW: Nachtmystium – Resilient

Here I review the new EP from Black Metal legends Nachtmystium, out via Prophecy Productions!

1. Conversion opens things with ambience, there is something peaceful yet incredibly foreboding in the vibe of this introduction. The sampling is well chosen and fits the band really well, adding to the darkness of the introduction further. A really cool way to bring the album into existence.
2. Resilient brings in the bleak yet warm guitars and bass kick in with the simplistic drums and gorgeous synths. The truly atmospheric, depressive and gruesome mood of the album begins. The haunting, cold and self-loathing vocals are completely piercing. Everything comes together in this melancholic work of art gorgeously, creating something very new for the band with a much more ambient feel to it, more aggressive sections heighten the diversity of the track which is emotionally versatile, intense and overall absolutely stunning. The guitar solo had a real vibe of The Cure about it that I loved, accentuated further by the haunting choir vocal style surrounding it. The cleans really driving this piece to full glory and finding the final element, a truly complete song. This was an amazing opening piece!
3. Silver Lanterns drives in more upbeat, Lifelover style riffs that sound epic before the blast beat and icy tremolo riffs drive us into frozen soundscapes once more, with the only warmth coming from the bass. The harsh vocals really come through beautifully on these pieces with a slightly lethargic approach rivalled in a really tight way by the ferocious instrumentals. The lyrics are poetically brilliant and entirely fitting with the music, which is just gorgeously pristine and so luscious in tone. The more subtle things within this song like clean guitars (with only a phaser and some reverb/delay to them) really add an inhuman element that is really enjoyable to me. I loved the use of samples with some groovy yet dissonant guitars and more simple drums that allows the samples to be totally audible but also enveloped in the music brilliance too. Once more the band do an amazing job on this track which is blisteringly emotive but also pretty damn catchy too.
4. Desert Illumination is the closing piece of this EP. Coming in with some nice synths and psychedelic guitars, unique drum beats and a really weird vibe to things, this is certainly different to the other pieces. Spoken word sections add to the trippy experience of the music even further, there is something chillingly beautiful about the beginning of this track, certainly an interesting thing to hear on a Black Metal album. This track is an interesting insight into the creativity and ability of the band to create something really atmospheric but in a totally different way, with primal tribal sounds and psychedelia being utilised rather than harsher Black Metal style. All the same, this was a really cool piece of music and transfers into the more familiar and brutal style the band are known for so fluidly, which in itself is impressive. The blistering riffs, blast beats and cascading, huge atmospherics are back once more. The songwriting and progressive nature of this piece were really impressive with great execution and a totally killer way to finish the EP. Fantastic!

This haunting new EP from Nachtmystium is haunting, melancholic and hateful. Every minute is packed with emotion and truly stunning music, for that alone it must be checked out. Great work! -8.5/10