Review by Fernando on October 28, 2025.

There was a time where I thought Ofermod, the long revered Swedish black metal band who coined the term "Orthodox black metal" and inspired bands such as Watain and Ondskapt (RIP), would never be a prolific band, mainly because of how each of their releases at the time I discovered them were so spread out by many years with extended periods of inactivity. While I still wouldn't call them prolific, ever since he release of 2017's Sol Nox, founder, songwriter, and chief spiritual acolyte Belfagor has consistently released new music in honor of the dark gods of the Nightside, and after a 2-year-long production and with the inclusion of new orator Adeptus, Ofermod has unleashed Drakosophia.

Ofermod is a band that has long fascinated me, not because of Belfagor's infamous stints in jail, but because they're a band that has had a very defined sound and spiritual essence from the get-go, but also because none of their records have sounded alike, at least not when I first discovered them. Ever since the departure of vocalist and guitarist Tehôm (Mortuus) after the aforementioned record Sol Nox, Belfagor seems to have continued the sound of that record while staying true to his musical roots and becoming more fervent in his spiritual beliefs. As such Drakosophia continues in the direction of 2021's Mysterium Iniquitatis, pure orthodox black metal; combining savage riffing with ritualistic melodies and grandiose choral arrangements, the music is designed to be a vehicle to the lyrics which as usual delve deep into the Qliphothic magic, rituals and mysteries; Belfagor mentioned that for this record he brought many adepts of Dragon Rouge, the order he's also a part of to truly invoke the powers of the nightside. And leading this truly ritualistic work is Adeptus, stepping into the role that was previously occupied by the likes of Nebiros and Tehôm is no easy task, but Adeptus rose up to the challenge and is a perfect fit for the band, delivering a truly outstanding performance while breathing new life into the band while sounding like the darkness of death itself.

However, while the record does have lofty spiritual and arcane goals that the band achieves per usual, the music as a vehicle for these rituals is by no means an aside. Belfagor has always been an outstanding songwriter and understands how intrinsic his art and craft are to his beliefs; as such, while the main focus is on the spiritual, the music is also up to par. As stated before, Belfagor is still continuing the direction that started with Sol Nox, with the exception that he's now taken full authorship of the music and he definitely puts his chops to good use; primarily a guitar riff driven record, Belfagor's style is deeply entrenched in old school black metal, as his melodies and tremolo picking have that distinctly funereal vibe of mid to late 90s black metal but without any bells or whistles, this is a pure and raw performance that stands alone, the drumming by Florian Musil perfectly matches the guitars and the intense vocals, my only gripe with the music and instrumentation is the bass, for this record, Belfagor once again brought Devo Andersson to play bass (and to produce the record) and while he's obviously an excellent bassist, this record doesn't really let him shine, the bass serves the singular role of being the guitar's complement and grounding and nothing else, I won't fault Belfagor too much for this since this is an issue of this particular style of black metal.

Furthermore, Devo Andersson's production and mixing and the inclusion of guest choral vocalists Lars Broddesson (Hild, ex-Marduk) and Thomas Eriksson (Year Of The Goat) make this record sound a bit too much like its immediate predecessor. This isn't too much of a problem, and of course, Adeptus' vocals do make it distinct, but if I were to make a wild guess, the decision to stay in the lane of the previous record makes sense as a way to make the change from Nebiros to Adeptus less jarring, and in that front, they succeed. However, it does strip the record from being something truly unique, and the end result is a record that's good, great even, but feels like a transitional record, the step to take so that Adeptus can settle into his role before journeying into the next step of Ofermod.

Rating: 7.8 out of 10

Review by Benjamin on January 22, 2022.

Although a small number of bands have managed to escape the Hungarian underground over the years, most importantly Tormentor, the nation’s contribution to the genre has perhaps not quite been the equal of some of their neighbors. Needless are aiming to change that with the release of their second full-length The Cosmic Cauldron, a fizzing slice of rampaging sci-fi themed death metal, broadly in the vein of The Black Dahlia Murder, or even Edge Of Sanity.

Sitting very much at the moderately technical and thrashier end of the spectrum, what Needless lack in brutality, they make up for in grin-inducing twin guitar leads, with the galloping Dark Tranquillity-meets-Iron Maiden thrill of ‘Astrogate The Spectral Lane’ a standout track for this reason. Not content to rest on their laurels, the band are also happy to throw a few curveballs, not least ‘Planet Oblivion’, which is the sort of gothic rock that you might expect from Within Temptation or Lacuna Coil. Although it is good to hear a band that are keen to stretch themselves, they are undoubtedly at their best on the more aggressive up-tempo material, particularly when the crystalline and precise LaRoque-style legato runs take primacy, as they do on the stellar closer ‘Transgalactic’. Apart from that track, the album is a little front-loaded, not quite sustaining the eyebrow-raising excitement of the opening tracks during the middle section of the record. Some judicious editing would sharpen the cutting edge of the album without compromising their vision, but there is plenty to enjoy here, and the band have should enjoy a wide appeal.

It’s easy to imagine fans of Machine Head and Killswitch Engage getting plenty out of this, but likewise so will grizzled death metallers clinging on to their greying Obituary t-shirts, and the expansive nature of some sparkling instrumental interplay should ensure that this is an album that will reward the repeat visits that it surely deserves.

Rating: 7.3 out of 10

Review by Benjamin on January 22, 2022.

Although a small number of bands have managed to escape the Hungarian underground over the years, most importantly Tormentor, the nation’s contribution to the genre has perhaps not quite been the equal of some of their neighbors. Needless are aiming to change that with the release of their second full-length The Cosmic Cauldron, a fizzing slice of rampaging sci-fi themed death metal, broadly in the vein of The Black Dahlia Murder, or even Edge Of Sanity.

Sitting very much at the moderately technical and thrashier end of the spectrum, what Needless lack in brutality, they make up for in grin-inducing twin guitar leads, with the galloping Dark Tranquillity-meets-Iron Maiden thrill of ‘Astrogate The Spectral Lane’ a standout track for this reason. Not content to rest on their laurels, the band are also happy to throw a few curveballs, not least ‘Planet Oblivion’, which is the sort of gothic rock that you might expect from Within Temptation or Lacuna Coil. Although it is good to hear a band that are keen to stretch themselves, they are undoubtedly at their best on the more aggressive up-tempo material, particularly when the crystalline and precise LaRoque-style legato runs take primacy, as they do on the stellar closer ‘Transgalactic’. Apart from that track, the album is a little front-loaded, not quite sustaining the eyebrow-raising excitement of the opening tracks during the middle section of the record. Some judicious editing would sharpen the cutting edge of the album without compromising their vision, but there is plenty to enjoy here, and the band have should enjoy a wide appeal.

It’s easy to imagine fans of Machine Head and Killswitch Engage getting plenty out of this, but likewise so will grizzled death metallers clinging on to their greying Obituary t-shirts, and the expansive nature of some sparkling instrumental interplay should ensure that this is an album that will reward the repeat visits that it surely deserves.

Rating: 7.3 out of 10

Review by Benjamin on January 22, 2022.

Although a small number of bands have managed to escape the Hungarian underground over the years, most importantly Tormentor, the nation’s contribution to the genre has perhaps not quite been the equal of some of their neighbors. Needless are aiming to change that with the release of their second full-length The Cosmic Cauldron, a fizzing slice of rampaging sci-fi themed death metal, broadly in the vein of The Black Dahlia Murder, or even Edge Of Sanity.

Sitting very much at the moderately technical and thrashier end of the spectrum, what Needless lack in brutality, they make up for in grin-inducing twin guitar leads, with the galloping Dark Tranquillity-meets-Iron Maiden thrill of ‘Astrogate The Spectral Lane’ a standout track for this reason. Not content to rest on their laurels, the band are also happy to throw a few curveballs, not least ‘Planet Oblivion’, which is the sort of gothic rock that you might expect from Within Temptation or Lacuna Coil. Although it is good to hear a band that are keen to stretch themselves, they are undoubtedly at their best on the more aggressive up-tempo material, particularly when the crystalline and precise LaRoque-style legato runs take primacy, as they do on the stellar closer ‘Transgalactic’. Apart from that track, the album is a little front-loaded, not quite sustaining the eyebrow-raising excitement of the opening tracks during the middle section of the record. Some judicious editing would sharpen the cutting edge of the album without compromising their vision, but there is plenty to enjoy here, and the band have should enjoy a wide appeal.

It’s easy to imagine fans of Machine Head and Killswitch Engage getting plenty out of this, but likewise so will grizzled death metallers clinging on to their greying Obituary t-shirts, and the expansive nature of some sparkling instrumental interplay should ensure that this is an album that will reward the repeat visits that it surely deserves.

Rating: 7.3 out of 10