Artist: Moft / Nachtheem
Country: The Netherlands
Label: Self-released
Formats: Split LP
Year: 2025
Almost coinciding with the release of the remastered version of the band’s debut ‘Nacht Zij Met Ons..’ on the highly esteemed Terratur Possessions, Nachtheem has another surprise for us. Presented by the bands themselves on vinyl with handmade covers and hand stamped labels comes a split with Moft.
Nachtheem themselves are quite elusive, but Moft takes it one step further. Little more is known than that the band is Dutch and is somehow tied to Nachtheem, in personnel and through this split. The recordings presented here appear to be the first and only material released and find their origin over 10 years ago. When unearthed recently, the band members decided to finish the final track, amongst others by laying down the vocals. Shortly after a new song for Nachtheem was recorded exclusively for this release and therefore both projects became intertwined in this release, each adding to the other. The result: two lengthy atmospheric Black Metal tracks from Dutch soil.
On the Moft side we find ‘Nachtmeditatie’, a song that starts with gritty feedback that swells for a while until a riff inspired by the slower Black Metal work of Burzum starts to surface. Within the initial minutes, the tone is rather dark, especially when a second guitar with rising tones comes up. There is a certain degree of Pagan spirit contained with the track as well and even gathers a vibe of traditional Doom when the pace rather suddenly goes up into blistering Black Metal. Melody seems less of the focus, and the atmosphere remains rather twisted in the initial minutes. This changes a little while later, when the track becomes more open, adding some clean choirs as the mood moves towards the likes of early Ulver and Enslaved. But yet again, when it seems the band has set a certain mood, they are not afraid to change it up, darkening the atmosphere in the final minutes. Intensifying drums, shrieks and oohs lead into an escalation that reminds me of Shining on their ‘The Eerie Cold’ records. All in all, Moft offers a diverse spectrum of atmospheric Black Metal in ‘Woudmeditatie’, a shifting journey that remains interesting for its 15 minutes or so (give or take a few minutes).
With ‘Dromende Goden‘ Nachtheem continues the path taken on ‘Nacht Zij Met Ons…’ and the split with Wirddha. With 17 minutes, this is the longest track to date and the influence of early Ulver and the first Vemod record is undeniable. However, with the thrusting pace and tremolo riffs there is a certain connection to that Burzum-inspired sound of Ukranian and Russian Black Metal bands like Drudkh and Walknut. Compared to the other recordings, the sound is perhaps slightly more harsh and the vocals escalate a tad more, although none of this goes at the cost of the atmosphere. The balance between the pulsating drums, dominant tremolo melodies, the snarling vocals and backing choirs and keyboards is once again impeccable and offers a higher degree of variation within the Nachtheem formula than ever before. The result is, much as the title suggests, a dreamlike landscape that transcends from more rugged and uptempo parts to stretched out meditative sections. Unlike the debut, this track is devoid of any major Ambient sections. Having said that, the final six minutes mostly revolve around a layer of slower distorted strumming and one of semi-clean guitars, upon which the drums slowly build. The manner in which Nachtheem keeps this interesting by subtle variations in percussion, a rising melodic solo and slight changes of motives is really what separates them as a highly noteworthy atmospheric Black Metal bands. Another great output and a step in the evolution of the band!
Not only is it great that we have more Nachtheem material to dig our teeth in, the interplay with Moft seems to have resulted in an interesting twist to the formula. While still very much founded in the sound of Ulver and Vemod, ‘Dromende Goden’ offers a more diverse soundscape, which perfectly ties it together with the variation of moods contained within material of Moft. Together, this split offers two excellent Dutch atmospheric Black Metal tracks based on the Norwegian tradition, compiled on a handcrafted vinyl edition. Get yours before it’s too late.
