Artist: Occult Mountain
Country: USA
Label: Self-Released
Formats: Digital Demo
Year: 2025
Occult Mountain’s first digital demo surfaced last June, although summer might be still fresh in our memories, ‘Cries Of The Forest Spirit’ is already this project’s fifth demo. And in the meantime Fallen Warrior, the sole person behind Occult Mountain, also saw the time and opportunity to record two additional demos with Chalice Of Eden another new band that he is part of as well as no less than three EP’s, one demo and a full-length with Vilis – all in 2025. There is no shortage of inspiration and creativity, as it turns out Raw Black Metal seemingly runs in his veins. For though the output is quite high, what is on offer is certainly enjoyable or even simply good.
The first three reviews have been featured on these pages before, but I decided to leave out the fourth one-track Dungeon Synth/Dark Ambient demo and go straight to this fifth one. However, I might have skipped reviewing the previous demo, if you listen to all those five digital demos in succession, it is clear that Occult Mountain is going through two parallel transitions. The first one seems a bit of a quest to find the right musical direction, all of the demos so far released have a rather distinct sound of their own, without too much that ties them together. This latest offering is quite a tad rawer and although it is not miles away from ‘Wolven Dawn’, this feels even more traditional. Perhaps due to shaper guitar texture and the slightly clearer production (clear, not clean). Yet with the addition of both songs’ Dungeon Synth ending, it still fits quite well in what seems to be Occult Mountain’s vision on the Raw Black Metal genre.
Secondly, this project’s steps towards a more musically “mature” and educated sound is undeniable. I absolutely loved that first demo, that had an almost Casio-like approach with some very attractive melodies, but felt quite a bit naïve or overly simplistic. Compared to that first attempt, ‘Cries Of The Forest Spirit’ is quite clearly a whole different ballgame. It might have a little less charm to it, compared to ‘Winter Invocations’ (Occult Mountain’s first recording), it has gained in persuasiveness and shows an increase in the universal understanding of the genre.
All of the Occult Mountain recordings are rather short, so it is worth to give them all a shot to hear this musical and aesthetical progression for yourself. And besides, these demos are a good way to enjoy some Black Metal from the new generation of musicians. Obviously, there’s still enough to learn and to tweak, but considering these steps taken in only a matter of months, there’s more to come and almost certainly will be better too.
