Artist: Sorgetid / The True Werwolf
Country: Finland
Label: Narbentage Produktionen
Formats: Split 10″ EP / Split Tape
Year: 2026
Under the title “We Spit On The Flower Of Life”, two Finnish Black Metal bands pay tribute to transience and melancholy. And these are by no means the least significant Finnish Black Metal bands either. On the A-side we find Sorgetid, one of the many projects by V-Khaoz, who is perhaps best known from Vargrav but is also active in projects/bands such as Grieve, Druadan Forest and, previously, Azaghal and Hin Onde. The B-side is reserved for The True Werwolf, the chameleonic musical vehicle of Lauri Werwolf, of Satanic Warmaster. This split 10″ EP, which is also available on cassette tape, therefore promises to be a great listen right from the start.
Compared to Sorgetid’s only release so far, the ‘Natt Av Tusen Dödsfall’ full-length from 2022, the two tracks on this split sound slightly rawer and a bit more crude. But the main ingredient of the music is still very much in place: a deeply rooted melancholy. And, for a change, not much of it reminds of Finnish Black Metal. On these two new tracks Sorgetid is positioned exactly in the middle of Burzum, Mayhem, Darkthrone and Forgotten Woods. So, basically, this is a full-on True Norwegian Black Metal affair. And not the least actually, the brilliance of the riffs, the cold atmosphere and the volatility in the use of vocals definitely makes the songs true earworms. With my somewhat waning interest in Vargrav, this is absolutely a breath of fresh air and a testament to the talent V-Khoaz still is. If you like your Black Metal pure and cold, with hints of the aforementioned classic bands as well as Taake and Armagedda, this EP is something that I would strongly advice picking up, if only for this side of the EP.
The B-side then is, as said, The True Werwolf’s. This long-running project is what you might call the Black Metal equivalent of the box of chocolate (… you never know what you’re going to get). Yet, this time it is “just” Black Metal, no experimental outbursts or unexpected electronics. Although, as far as I know, it has never been stated publicly, I have always had the feeling that the music released under the name The True Werwolf consisted of further developed ideas or complete songs that did not fit the Satanic Warmaster concept at the time of their composition. That’s the case here too. Although the first track, ‘Berzerker’s Thirst’, is still a relatively traditional Black Metal song, there is a somewhat stronger pagan feel to it. This is even more evident on ‘Werewolf Overlord’, which clearly takes things up a notch with a stronger presence of keyboards. In addition, the tracks sound a bit more like a rough rehearsal recording with a not always very pronounced balance; the (presumed) drum machine also plays its part in this. Yet the second track in particular has a great late-90s vibe, partly due to the very prominent synthesiser melody reminiscent of the better work of Thyrfing or Windir. The True Werwolf may not be serving up any bizarre electronic sounds this time round, but the quality of these recordings is undoubtedly high enough to win over fans of Melodic Black Metal. Anyone who already had a soft spot for Lauri Werwolf’s idiosyncratic work will be chuffed to bits with this too.
With a very impressive performance by Sorgetid and an outstanding track (‘Werewolf Overlord’), it is quite easy to state that this split EP has exceeded my expectations. The packaging may be a little minimalist, but the musical content more than justifies the purchase: simply one of the best split releases I’ve heard in a while.
