Artist: Darkera / Nigromancer
Country: Finland / Spain
Label: Escafismo Records
Formats: Split 7″ EP
Year: 2025
Next up in line from the 7” EP’s released by Escafismo Records is this one that teams up Darkera from Finland and the Spaniards of Nigromancer. With both only having released a single demo, in 2020 and 2019 respectively, the two of them are not overly active. Therefore you are forgiven if their band names do not ring a bell instantly. Still, none of the involved musicians are rookies in the deepest corners of the ancient and necro sort of Black/Death Metal. On the contrary, even.
First up is Darkera, comprised of the duo who are almost musical Siamese twins that also work together in bands such as Witchcraft, Moonfall, Funerealm Gloom, Necromonarchia Daemonum and a handful of other bands. The careless listener might want to claim that all of these bands sound pretty much alike, and in some way it is hard to deny that there are also obvious overlaps. But for the connoisseurs amongst us, this is perhaps the closest these lads came to the early and original Beherit sound (that not entirely coincidentally involves one of these guys as well). ‘Rite Of The Black Cross’ is a rather chaotic song that is brimming with that ancient necro sound; often mimicked, but hardly ever paralleled. Compared to Witchcraft, I guess the guys’ main musical vehicle, this sounds much sharper when it comes to the guitars. And with the inclusion of some underwordly growls and howls as well as some samples it feels like Darkera has something of its own to offer and is certainly not inferior to the now extensive discography of these Finnish blasphemers.
Nigromancer then, a band that is spawn out of the minds of some veterans of the Spanish Black/Death Metal scene. The band member’s resume includes current and former activities in respected bands such as Prophets Of Doom, Atonement, Stygian Storm, Crucification and Demonic War; again, these guys are not quite new to the job. And that shows. The last recording might date back about five years, it is obvious that they understand their arts, even if their music feels really spontaneous, or even partly improvised. Their contribution to the split is no less than five tracks of fast and furious Black/Death Metal that breathes a wild and chaotic atmosphere that reminds of the late 80’s. Yet, with the use of some subtle keyboards here and there, they do add something that automatically makes you think of bands like Xibalba, Xantotol or early Varathron and Samael. In short, Nigromancer lives up to its name and craftfully blends occult and moody Black Metal with the raw and noisy kind, an interesting mixture of which I hope to hear more in the future.
