
(In this first Synn Report of 2021 Andy Synn assembles reviews of all the albums by the Swiss band Stortregn leading up to their forthcoming fifth album Impermanence, which will be released on March 12th by The Artisan Era.)
Recommended for fans of: Naglfar, Necrophobic, Obscura
The proliferation and seemingly endless sub-division of genres can be both a blessing and a curse, depending on how you look at it.
Some people (myself included) often find it useful to break down existing/evolving genres into more specific sub-styles to help categorise them for potential listeners. But others find the endless proliferation of new sub-styles and sub-genres to be pointlessly confusing and counterproductive.
The truth is, of course, that genre terms and genre boundaries are amorphous and permeable and often change over time, especially when it comes to what counts as “extreme” Metal.
Case in point, the music of Stortregn (who hail from Geneva, Switzerland) straddles the boundary between Melodic Black Metal and Melodic Death Metal – influenced as much by the seminal chill of Dissection and Dawn as it is the agile melodic menace of the early Gothenburg scene (particularly Dark Tranquillity and At the Gates) – while also, especially on their more recent records, adding a razor-sharp technical edge to their sound.
But don’t just take my word for it. With the group’s fifth album set for release in March (which I’m sure we’ll be reviewing in full closer to the time) there’s no better time than the present to delve into their discography. Continue reading »