Artist: Matavitatau
Country: Belgium
Label: Altare Productions
Formats: CD EP
Year: 2026
Quite a bit has happened since we last covered the band Matavitatau. At that time, the band’s first demo ‘Numen Nescio’ had just been released, a release that left me highly impressed. It turns out I wasn’t the only one, and that demo first got a luxury tape edition, the band started performing live and ultimately landed their first EP on one of the best current Black Metal labels, Altare Productions from Portugal. So here we are, one year later, with ‘Taeda Inversa’.
Now perhaps it’s good to first keep the focus on what has changed between both releases. For one, the guitar sound on ‘Taeda Inversa’ sounds a tad shriller than on ‘Numen Nescio’, and the prodution is certainly not cleaner, but it is more open to especially the bass sound. Indeed, that instrument has quite a strong presence in for instance ‘Aliter Lachesi Visum’, and is one of the reasons why the EP has a more hypnotising appearance than the demo. That is in part also because the guitar work seems slightly more intent on repetition, to build an entrancing atmosphere with fewer riffs. That is not to say the band minimizes their riffs, but they gain enough to gain traction, the transitions are smooth and subtle, and intricacies are slowly built in. Opposed to the smooth transitions of the string elements is the more unpredictable vocal delivery of Θ, who chants, screams, hisses and sings his way through the EP in impressive fashion. Now that we’ve arrived at the constants, all of the above is still very much cast in a familiar framework set on ‘Numen Nescio’ that has undeniable origins in the early work of Mayhem and the Norwegian scene. Matavitatau doesn’t copy anything explicitly, but certainly consists of members with deep knowledge and respect for the bands that defined the second wave of Black Metal.
As on ‘Numen Nescio’, Matavitatau doesn’t shy from brushing against the more unsettling and dissonant echeleons of atmosphere, in particular in a track like ‘Bulla Citacius, Aura Fugacius’. This song clearly benefits from the aforementioned changes in production that add an extra nervous twist through the plodding bass. Now up to this point of ‘Taeda Inversa’, I was convinced that Matavitatau had pulled off the impressive feat of improving on their demo. But truth be told, I think the fourth track ‘Ex Imo Specu’ is a little bit of a step down. With a more open, galloping atmosphere, it feels a little less oppressive in atmosphere, more flat in the transitions. Nothing terrible, just not up to the standard of the other tracks in my opinion. Luckily, the band redeems themselves with the closing track ‘Favilla Mali’. A songs that slithers, threatening, with poise and venom, doubled riffs, spirited vocals and an old school drive in the drums. Perhaps not even drastically different from the preceding track, it certainly is much more convincing in spirit.
Improving upon ‘Numen Nescio’ seemed like a tall order, but I think ‘Taeda Inversa’ is at least just as good as that demo. Certainly the sharper sound with more space for the bass is a good development that adds to the character of the music. Matavitatau certainly proves that the praise and atttention that followed it is more than justified, and no doubt they deserve their place amongst a top underground Black Metal label like Altare Productions.
