The history of Vahrzaw stretches back to 1992. They adopted their current moniker a few years later and endured until 1998. After a seven-year long hiatus, the trio was back in the saddle in 2005. As our long-lost Norwegian friend Gorger wrote long ago, “They made an early switch from lethal death metal to pitch-black death threats, but have retained elements of capital punishment that shine through in a threatening matter”. In that same piece Gorger described the music of the band’s then-reissued 2014 album Twin Suns & Wolves’ Tongues:

“The sound is ripping, and the band master the genre with panache, sporting excellent and varied tunes, peppered with hostile rage, bestial dark moods and delightfully unpredictable transitions, seasoned with delicate ghastly and morbid solos, proggy technicality, and furious, rasping vocals. The lads offer authentic uncompromising black metal without boring the listener with generic and uneventful structures. Roughly half a dozen bands per ten could have learned a thing or two from their clever compositions, which make no compromise and sacrifice nothing at the expense of hostility, aggression, anger, and disgust.”

We’ve repeated those words because they vividly capture much of what continued to make these Australian such a powerful force through the ensuing years, over the course of 2018’s Husk and 2021’s The Trembling Voices of Conquered Men, even though the music also evolved. And now, seven years on from that last album, Vahrzaw are bringing forth a new one named In the Shallows of a Starlit Lake through the good graces of Bitter Loss Records. We had the pleasure of premiering songs from the band’s last two albums, and now we get to do it again with the new one. Continue reading »

Vahrzaw’s first demo turned 23 years old earlier this year, relatively young in human years but relatively ancient in the annals of extreme metal. After a couple of other releases of a similar vintage, the band’s recording endeavors went quiet for about a decade, but they re-emerged in 2006 and discharged a trio of EPs, several splits, and two albums over the next decade. However, after roughly 25 rough years of inflicting black/death violence, it appears they’ve “really had enough of the bullshit associated with producing albums, and even EPs” — so says Blood Harvest Records, who will be releasing what will likely be this Australian group’s final recording on April 23rd.

This probable swan-song is an eight-track album named Husk. Despite what the title might suggest, and despite the band having bitterly reached the end of their long rope, it’s not a hollowed-out or desiccated affair. To the contrary, it leaves us thinking that it would be a damned shame if this in fact proves to be Vahrzaw’s last hurrah. If it is, they’ve definitely not made their exit meekly or half-heartedly. As Exhibit A, we offer “King In Yellow“. Continue reading »