Artist: Sieluhaaska
Country: Finland
Label: Purity Through Fire
Formats: CD EP
Year: 2023
A melancholic piercing riff, an ever so subtle background hum of the keyboards, rumbling bass and raspy cries upon a midpace drum rhythm: Sieluhaaska doesn’t waste time to introduce what they stand for on ‘Kun Aurinkoni Kuoli’. Consisting of the sole band member Saasta, 2023 brought forth the band’s second release in its existence, following a Wolfspell-released split EP with fellow Finns Foedus dating back to 2021.
On that split, Sieluhaaska had already left an impression with their midpaced Black Metal that sounded something along the lines of Finnish melancholic Black Metal blended with a very strong infusion of Burzum. This is not in the least due to the resemblance of Saasta’s vocal approach to that of Varg in terms of maniacal intensity and range. Those that admired that part about the band will be pleased to find ‘Kun Aurinkoni Kuoli’ bears the same vocal qualities. However, compared to the split, the new EP is slightly less raw in guitar sound and the vocals are a little bit less in your face. In the first two tracks of the EP, the music has taken a subtle shift towards the Finnish school of melancholy made popular by the likes of Satanic Warmaster, Sargeist and Horna, although that was already a part of the band sound. The pace in the first three tracks of the EP mostly stays on the midpaced side, with a short trip to faster territories in the cover version of ‘Kun Minä Kuolen’, although the increase in tempo is not nearly as profound as in the original version courtesy of Hämys. At the same time, Sieluhaaska takes an altogether bleaker approach than the original, making the cover fit seamlessly with the band’s own material. And that material focuses on a rather minimal framework built around strong and memorable melancholic harmonies combined with intense vocals. The EP ends with their most sorrowful of compositions, the nearly 10 minute long ‘Conjuration of the True Pain Within’ that epitomizes the despair woven into the music of the band. Here, the pace is dropped just a tad and the Burzum influence shines through the most. A twisted passage with sped up drums contrasting the midtempo guitars is one of the many moments of entrancing misery cast upon the listener, but it’s also here that Saasta’s tortured shrieks cut deepest. A truly magnificent piece of work!
‘Kun Aurinkoni Kuoli’ is available on CD on the ever-reliable Purity Through Fire record label. But vinyl lovers need not despair, as an LP edition seems to be intended, likely coinciding with the forthcoming full-length album. And that can only be considered as a double dose of good news, as based on this very first EP there is a lot of promise in the music of Sieluhaaska.
