BEST OF BRITISH: CWFEN / DESOLATED / TRIVAX

(Andy Synn highlights three more homegrown heroes who represent the Best of British)

There is, as I have long been telling you, such a wealth of variety and talent in the UK scene right now that it’s impossible for anyone – even someone as handsome, intelligent, and… above all else… modest as I am – to cover it all.

Still, that’s never stopped me trying, which is why today I’m presenting a killer combo of doomy introspection, aggro intensity, and iconoclastic blackened belligerence courtesy of Cwfen, Desolated, and Trivax.

CWFEN – SORROWS

Normally I’m pretty wary when a band gets a lot of (often disproportionate) hype, attention, and acclaim for their debut – nine times out of ten you end up finding out they already had a bunch of contacts and connections (or just a whole heap of money) in the industry, and that their pre-ordained success had very little to do with their actual talent (in fact there’s a few bands out there where I’m just waiting for the nepotism-shoe to drop) – but sometimes a band comes along and proves that they absolutely deserve all the fanfare and fame… and Cwfen (pronounced “coven”) are definitely one of those bands.

With a distinctive – though, even by their own admission, not entirely unique, as the group openly cite the likes of Amenra, King Woman, and Type O Negative as influences – sound that marries moody Doom-gaze atmospherics and gloomy Post-Grunge riffage, the Scottish quartet immediately put their best foot/feet forwards with the slow-burn melodic mesmerism of “Bodies” and the anthemic “Wolfsbane”, and then capitalise on this with the hypnotic ebb and flow of “Reliks” and the sombre, subdued beauty of “Whispers” (both of which, as well as being personal favourites, remind me a fair bit of Sinistro at their best, circa Sangue Cassia).

Indeed, fans of the latter group, as well as those who appreciate the gothic glamour of bands like Moonspell, Messa, and Paradise Lost – all of whom (especially the latter) are useful touchstones, even if Cwfen don’t sound exactly like any of them – will likely appreciate (maybe even love) what Sorrows has to offer, particularly during a song like second-half highlight “Embers” (which really channels those Icon-era vibes).

And while, for obvious reasons, much of the focus on this album will undoubtedly be dedicated to the sublime singing voice (and judiciously deployed heart-wrenching howls) of vocalist Agnes Alder, it’s worth noting that it’s the deceptively simple, yet actually cunningly clever, structuring of each song – the doomy guitars of Alder and Guy deNuit trading space and presence with the brooding bass-lines of Mary Thomas Baker and the delicate-yet-dense drum work of Rös Ranquinn – which really deserves the credit for making Sorrows so compelling.

Sure, there’s still some room for growth and improvement – despite what you may have read or been told elsewhere it’s not perfect, and I’d love to hear them make more of deNuit’s gleaming lead guitar lines as a way of adding more distinctive and unique textures to each track, and I can’t help but feel like “Rite” is a somewhat anticlimactic choice of closer, when all is said and done – but there’s no doubt in my mind that, on the strength of their debut, Cwfen could well be one of the big breakout stars of 2025.

DESOLATED – FINDING PEACE

It’s pretty well-documented that, love it or hate it, Hardcore is undergoing something of a renaissance right now – at least in terms of mainstream attention and wider acclaim, that is – but what some of you might be less aware of is how big the UK underground scene has gotten over the last several years too.

Sure, it’s got its problems – especially when it comes to the macho posturing of various cliques and crews, as well as issues with certain bad actors trying to use the scene to cover up their own bad actions – but the  level of grass-roots support and the sheer fertility, both in terms of bands and fans, has been astonishing to see.

And while we haven’t covered them here before (which is as much my fault as anyone else’s, as I always meant to pay them more attention but never seemed to find the time) there’s no question that Desolated have been one of the biggest and most notorious names on the circuit for a while now, and their new album – their first since the departure of long-time vocalist Paul Williams – represents a perfect time to jump on the bandwagon if you haven’t already.

At just under 24 minutes (which includes an updated, and arguably even heavier, version of “Dead End” from 2013’s The Sixth Day EP) it’s a lean, mean, beatdown machine that pulls no punches and takes no prisoners from the first churning chug of “The Stomper” to the final hammering hit of pure, pulverising aggression.

Granted, some folks might find the unrelenting, in-your-face intensity a little one-note – there’s barely a moment here where Desolated aren’t attempting to pound the listener straight into the ground with a blend of gargantuan grooves and bone-crushing breakdowns – but keen ears should definitely be able to discern the differences between each track, from the head-banging hooks of “Lessons” and the neck-wrecking rhythms of “Bite Down” to the darker, moodier menace of “Endless Betrayal”, the up-tempo thrashiness of “Let It Slide” and the pugilistic bounce of “Victim 2.0”.

Add to this the occasional burst of blastbeats or ringing ride-bell work (drummer Charlie Thorpe might just be the album’s underrated MVP) and some flashes of fiery lead guitar work, and you’ve got a recipe for success which pretty much guarantees that Desolated are going to maintain their position at the head of the pack for at least another few years.

TRIVAX – THE GREAT SATAN

There’s a certain type of Black Metal “fan” – if that’s the right word – who loves to trot out the attempted “gotcha” of “oh, you’ll write songs criticising Christianity but won’t say anything about Islam” to try and claim that the genre has gone soft or “woke” or… whatever the latest meaningless message-board buzz-word is.

But the truth is that one of the main reasons you don’t see/hear many bands go down this route is because most of us, let’s be honest, don’t really know much about or have much direct experience with Islam – beyond the usual array of fearmongering and dog-whistling – whereas the history and impact of Christianity in both Eastern and Western Europe, for example, directly informs our lives on an almost day-to-day basis (and thus serves as a constant source of inspiration for most of the Black Metal bands we listen to).

Trivax, however, are different in this regard as the band was originally formed – and performed – in Iran, before frontman/mainman Shayan emigrated to the UK, which means they have direct experience of what it’s like to live beneath the shadow of religious fundamentalism and state oppression.

And this experience, which informs and influences everything from the artwork to the lyrics to the seething rage and resentment fuelling each and every track, is a huge part of what makes The Great Satan (whose title and cover art cleverly twist Khomeini’s own words back on him) the band’s best album yet.

Don’t get me wrong, they were already good, and on tracks like early highlight “To Liberation and Beyond” (which is pretty much better than anything Behemoth have put out in the last decade), the prowling, predatory (and grimly groovy) “Here Comes the Flood” (no, not that one) and the majestic “Daemon’s Melancholia”, they basically just take everything that was already so good about their previous albums – the cunningly heavy, cruelly hooky riffs, the thrillingly thrashy, blisteringly blasty drum-work, the subtle splashes of Middle Eastern inspired melody and arcane atmosphere – and sharpen the edges, strengthen the foundations, and tighten up the delivery that little bit further.

But it’s the passion and venom behind lines like “I whisper murmurs of disease in the heart of tyrants / I watch their empires crumble by the fire” and “A supreme leader’s supreme greed / The millions who died for his deeds / Scum they are and always will be” (the latter coming from prodigious penultimate track “Operation Ramadan”, which is easily one of the best things they’ve ever written) that elevates this one to a whole new level.

So who said Black Metal bands can’t be political? Because, on the evidence presented here, maybe more of them should be!