Artist: Spellblade
Country: Unknown
Label: Crucifixion Wounds
Formats: Digital Demo
Year: 2026
Without any information to go on, we’ll have to rely primarily on the music itself when discussing ‘Citadel’, Spellblade’s debut demo. Just as there is no information available about the band, the same applies to the label, for which this appears to be the first release, and a digital-only one at that. Sparsely detailed it certainly is, but fortunately, the Raw Black Metal speaks volumes.
To get straight to the point, Spellblade may come across as quite mysterious due to the limited amount of information it reveals, but musically speaking, it’s not all that impressive. Nothing Spellblade presents here is even remotely innovative or exhilarating. That’s not to say it’s bad, because that’s certainly not the case. The Raw Black Metal, which is occasionally interrupted by short Dungeon Synth segments, is well-executed in its own right and could even be described as reasonably dynamic; however, it lacks that little extra something. That little extra something that makes a demo (or album) special and distinctive. In fact, this is what you might call a dime a dozen, as everything has been done many times before, and often better. Still, it has its charm, not only because of the atmospheric keyboards humming along in the background, but also because the recording quality adds to the appeal. Ultimately, this is a demo that fills its full 18 minutes with Black Metal that will likely win the approval of the average listener, but I’m also afraid it’s one that not many people will revisit. It’s just a good demo, but if it wants to make a bigger splash with the next release, it needs to be a little more exciting than the relatively tame affair it is now.
