AN NCS VIDEO PREMIERE: SPLENDIDULA — “KILTE”

 Premieres  No Responses »
Jan 282026
 

(written by Islander)

On April 3rd Argonauta Records will release a new album by the Belgian band Splendidula, whose music blends atmospheric black metal and suffocating doom. The album’s title, Absentia, is a fitting one because the music’s emotional core lies in the tragic absence of loved ones, including the sudden loss of bassist Peter Chromiak in 2022.

In December of last year we premiered a video for the Splendidula single “Echoes of Quiet Remain“, which included a guest vocal appearance by Aaron Stainthorpe, and today we’re premiering another Absentia single and video in advance of the song’s official release on January 30th. The name of this one is “Kilte“, and to introduce it we begin with the comments of Splendidula vocalist Kristien: Continue reading »

AN NCS VIDEO PREMIERE: SPLENDIDULA — “ECHOES OF QUIET REMAIN”

 Exceptions to the Rule, Premieres  No Responses »
Dec 042025
 

(written by Islander)

Loss and remembrance… these are the overarching themes of a new album by the Belgian atmospheric black/doom band Splendidula. Fittingly, the album’s title is Absentia, an apt name because the music’s emotional core lies in the tragic absence of loved ones.

No one can avoid the death of friends and family members. It’s only a matter of time. It’s rarely foreseeable, and often it seems unjust because it’s so random. Splendidula went through such a period beset by loss, and in the making of this new album they dedicated themselves to remembering, and to mourning.

As a new sign of what they achieved in their music, today we’re premiering a video for a song called “Echoes of Quiet Remain“. It includes a guest vocal appearance by Aaron Stainthorpe, known of course for his iconic role in My Dying Bride (and High Parasite). We’ll begin with Splendidula’s own statement about the song: Continue reading »