ALBUM REVIEW: Black Cilice – Votive Fire

Portuguese black metal mystics Black Cilice return with their seventh album of raw darkness. Set for release via Iron Bonehead Productions on the 1st of May.

Unsettling ambience and drums begin our sepulchral descent before a barrage of melancholic guitars conjure an arcane storm of darkness. The tormented vocals blend into the cacophony and connect as a singularity of despair and malice. With its primitive nature and raw production, the Black Cilice sound we have grown to know well over the years is certainly as potently minimalist and yet poisonous as ever. Slower sections add a sense of profound doom to the anguishing atmospheric onslaught; a dynamic that furthers the impact of the harsher sections. A big part of the enjoyment is to listen extremely carefully to pick out the melodies and try and work out what’s actually happening. Black Cilice create a unique feeling and sound in this sense, one that is purposefully inhospitable and yet somehow actually satisfying to listen to. For me, raw black metal is a genre I largely avoid as most of it lacks in any sort of feeling let alone that all important sense of metal that the genre seems to have disregarded. Black Cilice is, however, a rare exception. There is something “more” to their sound than just being bleak and raw and it has this savagery that while subtle is still intoxicating. “Votive Fire” is off to a bewitching start and I have certainly been pulled in by its atmospheric eeriness.

The shorter running length has always worked well for Black Cilice. I think all impact would be lost if this was dragged out for an hour, whereas at 34 minutes it keeps the urgency and intensity that is such a key part of making this a rewarding listen. The glistening guitar tones and unrelenting percussion mixed with banshee-esque vocals continues the sonic legacy of extreme isolating darkness that this entity create so well. There’s not a lot more to say, I have reviewed other works by the band and this record continues very much in the vein of those prior works. I don’t think it will be one that will convince those who dislike the music, but on the other hand; fans will certainly adore this grim new offering. I am glad to hear more of the riffs coming through, something that the first couple albums made a bit tougher but the last few have solved. This feels like the furthest you can take black metal into the adjective raw before it stops being black metal and becomes noise; so kudos to Black Cilice for nailing this niche better than any other. It sure is a ruthless spectacle. As haunting as ever, these four pieces of music conjoin to make a quadriptych of malevolent despair that certainly is fulfilling to the right ear.

A potent storm of hellish and eerie atmospherics that drag you into the catacombs. Raw, otherworldly and depraved sounding black metal that still harnesses the essential elements and energy of the genre while pushing into sanguineous grounds of their own. This record does not really change the formula much from the last few, so if you seek more of the same then you will adore this. If you are expecting some sort of renewed sound from the band, that is a bit foolish. If raw is the law, these guys uphold it; one of probably ten raw black metal bands I actually enjoy. Listen for yourselves and be drawn into the abysses these Portuguese mystics weave for you.