Album Review: Αχέροντας – Nekyia – The Necromantic Patterns

Band: Αχέροντας
Album: Nekyia – The Necromantic Patterns
Release date: April 30th, 2025
Country: Greece
Label: Zazen Sounds
Format reviewed: High quality digital recording

Album Review: Αχέροντας – Nekyia – The Necromantic Patterns via Zazen Sounds by Ask

The latest release by Greek Black Metal act Αχέροντας starts with a distant speaking voice in a vague ambient background, bringing and a sense of mystery. After a few seconds heavy drums and distorted guitars come in and soon after dissonant chords that will satisfy any listener of orthodox black metal. Nekyia – The Necromantic Patterns is a strange mixture of dissonance and melody, of darkness and joy. The listening experience is an adventure from the beginning to end. The moment I think I know where we are heading, the album takes a different turn. It is unexpected and sometimes uncomfortable, but never boring.

The album feels like a story, told by sections of spoken word, followed by screaming and sometimes chanted lyrics. Without access to the written lyrics the story takes form in my imagination as a dark priest telling stories of black rites and the glory of hell to an enchanted audience. The venue is a cave lit by fires and the instrumentation is the shadow play over the walls, depicting the dramatic events.

Chaotic chord progressions are followed by long epic melodies played on a clean electric guitar, then followed by more chaotic and distorted melodic patterns, leaving room for other chord progressions. The music is energetic and never loses momentum, not even in the interludes and tempo changes that are sprinkled across the album.

Nekyia – The Necromantic Patterns is masterfully played and well put together. The real adventure is in the use of unexpected elements, sometimes with amazing results and sometimes leaving more questions than answers. My favourite is the female voice that comes and goes in moments so short I always wish for more. It adds a layer of human pain and unfinished story lines disappearing into the overwhelming chaos. The shrieky violin sound is unexpectedly harsh and adds to the mystery. A less successful experiment is the saxophone in song nr 5. Maybe it is not the saxophone itself that doesn’t fit but the jazzy percussion and casual playing style.

At the end I am exhausted and invigorated at the same time. This is an adventure well worth experiencing. Every time I listen, I discover new gems hidden in the overwhelming flow. No listener will be bored, even though it might not be within everybody’s comfort zone. 8,5/10

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8.5/10 To Greatness and Glory!
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