In many instances I have a decent idea what a band’s new song is going to sound like before I hear it, either because I’m familiar with their previous work or because it’s preceded by descriptive verbiage from press agents that ticks off genre boxes in a familiar way. But not so with Morvigor.

When I was given the opportunity to listen to the song you’re about to hear from this Dutch group’s new record, I went in blind, unfamiliar with their 2014 debut album and without benefit of any carefully crafted PR rhetoric. And the band’s own list of influences (ranging from Mayhem to Pink Floyd, and from Morbid Angel to Joy Division) was so diverse that it didn’t really help much — though it was certainly intriguing.

And then I heard “No Repentance“, and it felt like someone had stuck a live power line straight into my brain stem, by which I mean it is an absolutely electrifying surprise — one of the best new discoveries of this rapidly waning year. Continue reading »