Nubivagant – The Blame Dagger

Band: Nubivagant
Title: The Blame Dagger
Label: Amor Fati Productions
Release date: October 4th, 2024
Country: Italy
Format reviewed: High-Quality Digital Recording

Four years ago, multi-instrumentalist Gionata Potenti, also known as Omega, introduced his debut album, Roaring Eye, to the world. This album is a fusion of atmospheric black-metal riffs, complemented by new wave-style clean vocals and, at times, a fierce roar. Now, four years later, Omega has released his third album, The Blame Dagger.

In terms of production and sound, I still find myself more drawn to his debut, which has a more solid, harsher tone. However, when it comes to songwriting, there’s a noticeable progression. While the songs remain relatively simple, that’s precisely what I appreciate about Nubivagant. There are no overly complex riffs, just clear song structures with slow to mid-tempo progressions.

The vocals, though, might take some time getting used to. I can understand why they wouldn’t appeal to everyone. Instead of the harsh screaming typical of black metal, Omega opts for clean, almost Gothic-style vocals, which narrate short stories in a slow, deliberate manner.

The opening track, “Darkness Upon the Face of the Deep”, immediately pulls you into the world of Nubivagant, gripping you by the throat and dragging you deeper. “My God, why hast Thou forsaken me?” is the pressing question Omega asks the void. The highly repetitive “A Perfect Throne”, with its almost Doom/Stoner vibe due to the recurring riff, manages to evoke a 70s atmosphere through its hypnotic vocals before ending with a brief acoustic outro.

At the start of “Who Made the World?”, Omega briefly unleashes the beast in his vocals, delivering a short burst before returning to ponder who created the world—a near-religious question about the origins of everything. The instrumental track “The Voice of the Black Candle” concludes the 37-minute journey. Well, not entirely instrumental—the occasional “oohhh wooohoo’s” make an appearance, though they could have been left out without much loss.

Does the album, due to Omega’s approach, lack the aggression we all love and cherish in black metal? No, it does not. His vocal style elevates the music to another dimension and atmosphere. The vocals are haunting and could, perhaps, have been mixed slightly louder than the rest of the music, though that might be nitpicking.

Omega is on a journey to find the perfect balance between music and vocals, a path he began with Roaring Eye, evolved with The Wheel and the Universe, and has nearly perfected with The Blame Dagger. 8/10 by Consanguineus

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8/10  To Greatness and Glory!
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