Artist: Akhoth
Country: Australia
Label: Sorcery Productions
Formats: Demo Tape
Year: 2026
‘Storm Of Pagan Fury’, the latest demo from Australian band Akhoth, sounds as if time has stood still. In fact, everything here exudes nostalgia. Not just the music, but also the entire production, the band name, the title, the theme, the cover artwork. Everything. When I became hooked on obscure Black Metal in the late 90s, most of which was distributed on cassette tapes by equally obscure labels via distro lists, a good portion of the tapes I bought sounded like this.
Of course, not everything was equally good, but everything had its function and contributed to the shadowy atmosphere of exclusivity and an overall sense of magic. I was particularly struck by the many tapes from German and Eastern European bands. Again, not because they were perfect—far from it—but perhaps precisely because of that. That perfect imperfection made them irresistible. This was the music that stirred and enthralled me. It is the purity of ‘Storm Of Pagan Fury’ that makes it a perfect fit among all those cassette tapes.
With a medieval ambient intro (and outro), lots of strong riffs, entrancing melodies, bloodcurdling screams and a rehearsal-style production, the list of ingredients is complete. This fits in with a series of demos that I happened to dust off not so long ago, including the first demo by the Romanian band Vokodlok. Perhaps not entirely comparable, but the charming imbalance in the mix and the overall atmosphere strike the same chord with me. This is the kind of music that proves that with limited resources, you can record a demo that can compete with the best records of the moment, simply because it has the right energy and purity. But that doesn’t mean that Akhoth relies solely on those atmospheric elements. In the catchy melodies (especially in the opening track ‘Jusqu’à La Fin De Nos Jours (L’éternité En Cendres)’) and particularly in a set of rock-solid riffs, the band clearly demonstrates that it has what it takes.
The triumphant and heroic sounding combination of raw riffs, a rough production, catchy melodies, and that blissful recognizability makes this material perfect for fans of Satanic Warmaster, Goatmoon, Judas Iscariot, Sargeist, Moonblood, Baptism, and a whole treasure trove of long-forgotten demos from a quarter of a century ago.
