Artist: Black Rock
Country: Finland
Label: Planet Of Judgement Records
Formats: CD
Year: 2026
Behind this band, with the rather uninspiring name Black Rock, lies a duo who, in this line-up, have been regularly unleashing their primitive-style Black Metal upon the world since 2012. Although their first demo tape from 2013 was released by the better-known Me Saco Un Ojo Records, the rest has been put out via a series of small underground labels such as Unpure Records and Metal Throne Productions, something that certainly adds to the band’s appealing character. Anyone who quickly finds Black Metal a bit too modern should definitely give Black Rock a listen; Hellhammer fans take note.
‘Last Damnation’ is the band’s fifth full-length album and eight release overall. Although the first years of the band have been a bit more prolific than in recent years, the music hasn’t really changed a bit – or at least not when you’re looking at the very core of their musical vision. This is just as regressive as possible when it comes to Black Metal. In just over half an hour we’re being treated on some very old school proto-Black Metal with that very recognizable reverbed Hellhammer-like guitar sound.
While it is mostly the guitar sound that takes centre stage, the rumbling bass and the simple drums to follow the same Hellhammer/early Celtic Frost vibe. The vocals are a bit gruffer, but still echo a lot of Tom G. Warrior’s primitivism. As a consequence, Black Rock can be placed in the same string of bands honouring the unholy sound that was accidentally created in Switzerland as a result of a Venom 12″ EP being played at too slow a speed. Think of bands like Usurper, Cult Of Daath, Winter, Incriminated, Pentacle, Dream Death and obviously Apocalyptic Raids and Warhammer.
This primal form of metal is made up from equal parts of Black Metal, Doom Metal, Thrash Metal and proto-Death Metal and basically stands for the cradle-moment of Extreme Metal. The unholy wellspring from which pretty much everything we still enjoy on a daily basis originated. Black Rock is nothing more and certainly nothing less than a great tribute to those origins.
