Album Review: Nyctophilia – Stargazer

Band: Nyctophilia
Album: Stargazer
Label: Wolfspell Records
Release date: September 22nd, 2025
Country: Poland
Format reviewed: High quality digital recording

Album Review: Nyctophilia – Stargazer via Wolfspell Records by Ioana

You know what is the best thing you can do when someone comes up to you complaining that “There’s no good black metal coming out these days”? You show them Nyctophilia, that’s what you do. Because trust me when I say this band has been putting out some of the best atmospheric black metal in the past 10 years, and given the competition that there is for this, I am dead serious in making this statement. Project mastermind Grief has found, from the earliest beginning of Nyctophilia, an incredible way of infusing the bleakest of mental landscapes into hypnotic, if not trance inducing composition that ooze dread and hopelessness with every note. The latest offering, Stargazer, stays true to this principle through and through… however, there is something more brewing beneath the surface…

What exactly is this thing brewing under the surface, you may ask? Well… in the simplest of terms, it can be described as an expansion of soundscape, a wider shot, if you will. But that doesn’t really cut it. If that alone were the case, then it wouldn’t have stood out to this extent. What Stargazer actually ends up doing is adding a fascinating layer of grandeur to the music, thus differentiating itself rather starkly, yet nevertheless pleasantly from its predecessors.

The origin of this soundscape lies, first of all, in the songwriting approach. Nyctophilia has been for most of its existence, a project that thrives on longer tracks, and this shows up on Stargazer poignantly, as all the songs span over six and a half minutes. This allows for a great variety of musical ideas to be organically introduced and developed along with the main song structures, which does a great job in enriching the atmosphere. This is obvious right of the bat, with “Gateway of Everlasting Darkness” slowly building itself up piece by piece, riff by riff, into an immersive listening experience. The crescendos in the riffing, paired with the slow drumming, recurring synth motives and a crisp, open sound on the vocals, form a hypnotic effect that simultaneously drives the listener further and further into the music, while also enveloping them with a sense of all encompassing awe.

Another aspect that stood out, at least to me, is, thematically there is a more noticeable emphasis on the occult side of things, compared to previous records where the main focus would be on the mental states themselves or the way these states are reflected by nature. Stargazer is not at all afraid to embrace its occult inclinations, however, song titles such as “Ascension Through Black Flames” and “Eclipsed by the Temple of Frozen Moon” would indicate. This particular theme is also reflected in the overall tone of the album, with the mood of it leaning a little more on the mystical/ mysterious ambiance rather than the crushing, dread filled one that dominated the earlier Nyctophilia records, without losing touch with these roots. The balance is delicate, but successful nevertheless. This thematic approach is, obviously in great correlation with the extra flair of grandeur that defines this album, and calls for a more.., not optimistic, but more powerful mentality. From that, and the album cover as well, one may easily state that Stargazer reflects the archetype of the wanderer.

I would also like to shine a little light on the vocal performance in particular. Yes, all instruments on the album excel at what they are all set to achieve, but, as I tend to do with every album, I couldn’t help but feel the need to offer the vocals some extra focus. Placement wise, they are of course, at the forefront of the music, but feel somewhat veiled by the synth and distortion, to the point whey they come off as… misty, for the lack of a better word. I often describe black metal vocals done and produced in this manner as sounding similar to howling winds, and this could easily apply to this performance as well… but not really. There is a lot of fainter, almost whispered layers that bled together to form this fog-like sensation, that further amplifies the element of mystery I mentioned previously. I hope I am not the only one who finds this fascinating…

Needless to say, I believe my words have made it clear that Stargazer is nothing to sleep on. And if you call yourself a fan of atmospheric black metal… you have no excuse whatsoever not to give it a listen. As for myself, I will go listen to it again first thing tomorrow morning. 9.5/10

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9.5/10  Epic Storm
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