#AncientTorment / #Haxen The Howling Gale

Today I decided to do a review of a “format” that I love for now, but it’s not usual to see many reviews in the huge publications that exist on this beautiful planet. Unless the bands are very well known and even then, those same bands don’t do it anymore…

What am I talking about? If you’ve already looked at the header of this review, I think you’ve already noticed, but for the most distracted, I’m talking about a split.

As I said above, I love and always loved this “format”. It serves to get to know two or more bands, it depends on the type of split it is, and yes, it’s true, there are less songs from each band, and the question that many ask, “why didn’t the band release a demo before?”. That I don’t know and I’m not even going to give an opinion. What I do know is that I like it and as such I’m going to do a review.

This split is split between two bands both from America and both from the same city, Providence, Rhode Island.

The first band, called Ancient Torment, presents two songs and a Black Metal that touches on a second wave of Black Metal.

The first song “A Solitary Grave Illuminated by the Light of the Morningstar” despite its almost 8 minutes is well achieved, but falling into monotony and/or saturation. The band managed to compose good riffs and they flow in a very pleasant way.

The second song, “Outlaw Cleansed Waters” starts in a different way, more rhythmic, more melodic, and gradually builds up. I liked.

A small note regarding Ancient Torment‘s side… The vocalist, in some moments when he tries to sing in “chorus” with a clean voice… It doesn’t come out very well, in my opinion, but it falls within the acceptable parameters. Besides that, I liked the band.

The second band, named Haxen, presents in this split, 3 songs and a different Black Metal. It’s more mid-tempo compared to Ancient Torment, the sound is rawer and more direct in its faster parts.

In all 3 songs, but especially in the first two songs by this band, they managed to remind me of a mixture of bands that are opposites in terms of sound, even though they are within Black Metal.

In the slower parts of the songs, they reminded me of the band Khold, not so elaborate but the idea is there and in the faster parts they reminded me of TheSyre, in this part a little harder, raw, and bordering on primitive, without being in a destructive sense.

Despite being a split, having introduced me to two bands, but as many say, “there are few songs from each band, I don’t like it at all, etc etc etc etc etc” I liked this split.

It was a split that I liked to buy and I’m going to keep an eye out for stores in Europe because unfortunately, we’re in the 2020s, shipping costs are very high, customs don’t forgive anything, we have to thank the countries and world organizations that fight each other with the intention of “better” living conditions for yours… Thank you for helping to make our life worse and purchasing a simple CD that used to be easy to acquire and now… Meh…

Changing the subject and last words… For me this split deserves it and it will be…
7.5/10 The Key Keeper 666

Ancient Torment
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Haxen
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7.5/10 Victory is possible 
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