(written by Islander)
The worst years of the covid pandemic were in many ways a truly terrible time, although it often seems like for many people it has already become a distant memory. But that’s often the way memory works, when forgetting bad times becomes a survival mechanism, or at least eases the way forward.
But it’s equally true that the pandemic years yielded unexpected opportunities for creative activity that otherwise wouldn’t have existed, or would have existed in very different forms. The band we’re focused on in this article is one such example of that.
Temple ov Ahriman is a one-man black metal band hailing from Austin, Texas that was conceived during the Covid-19 pandemic. Its mastermind Thornicator explains what happened:
“Years ago, my other band was to record an album, but our studio time was delayed due to the Coronavirus outbreak. Never one to sit idle for too long, I took the opportunity to write music for a follow-up release.
“What followed was a prolific period unlike anything I’d experienced before or since, and it quickly became apparent that I perhaps had too much material for just one band to learn and record. With the encouragement of a few good friends, I eventually decided to start my own spin-off project and thus Temple ov Ahriman was born.”
“Several years, thousands of dollars, and three studios later” (as Thornicator tells it), he received the master recording for a debut album that he named Heretics of Consensual Reality, and it is now set for release on June 26th. It’s the source of the song we’re premiering today — “White Death“.
Temple ov Ahriman sums up its genre influences as “elements of second-wave black metal, contemporary Finnish black metal, and D-beat”, and that lines up with what you’ll hear on this song.
It launches with grim and gritty riffing over thudding and cracking beats, mid-paced in their momentum. As we hear it, that opening riff generates a beleaguered but still beguiling mood, though the ensuing screamed vocals are scorching in their intensity.
The beats are primally compulsive; the slowly swirling, swarming, and slashing riffage generated by dual-guitars sinks its dark hooks in deeper as it goes; the shrieked vocals remain blistering. Just past the mid-way point, the riffing becomes more fiery, and the music soars, as if expressing a desperate yearning, or a fierce desire, above bursts of double-kick thunder.
Speaking of hooks, they’re damned strong in this song (both rhythmically and melodically), as well as damned dark. Dislodging them after listening isn’t easy at all, nor should it be. The music’s not fancy, not self-indulgent, but it’s well-produced, emotionally potent, and quite memorable.
Heretics of Consensual Reality was mixed by Kfir Gov at Evil Snail Studios, and mastered by Jack Control at Enormous Door Mastering. The dark cover art is the work of Mitchell Nolte, whose eye-catching creations have graced many of our pages over the years.
The album will be released on CD and digital formats. Use the link below for preorders, and also lend your ears to the previously released album track “SPQB“.
PRE-ORDER:
https://templeovahriman.bandcamp.com/album/heretics-of-consensual-reality
FOLLOW TEMPLE OV AHRIMAN:
https://www.facebook.com/templeovahriman
https://templeovahriman.bandcamp.com