Review by Felix on June 20, 2023.

Probably we all know bands that seem to be criminally underrated. In our opinion, it is a mystery why these dudes do not already conquer the world. Well, maybe we are just talking about ordinary units that meet our personal taste in an outstanding manner. This could be the objective explanation. But I don’t believe this bullshit. No doubt: regardless of your personal perspective, Shakma are much greater than the ignorant world realizes and it is almost a shame for the black thrash community that it also does not take much more notice of the Norwegians. Shakma have catapulted themselves on my radar with their phenomenal debut and now, after six lazy years, they return with On Tenebrous Wings. Okay, the playtime of less than 33 minutes is a bit feeble, but as long as the quality level is okay, I don’t hesitate to scream “Remember Reign In Blood!” immediately. These magic words stifle any discussion.

So what about the album’s quality, he? In a nutshell: the full-length is a worthy successor of the debut and this alone says a lot. The songs are full of sinister vibes, sharp riffs and high velocity. Shakma dive deeply into the boiling essence of the bastard genre called black thrash. Okay, the intro does not make much sense, but as soon as the party really begins, all ugly, vile or just filthy creatures leave their shabby holes. They enjoy the somewhat blurred, rumbling and vigorous sound. Admittedly, the drums seem to consist almost only of the snare in some sequences. Maybe the sound engineer suffers from an allergy against powerful bass drums? But come on, the production is still very adequate and strong. It gives the songs the flavor they need to reveal their entire shady force. By the way, the fantastic artwork captures the aura of the homogeneous material brilliantly. The stylish booklet rounds off the external features of the disc.

Let’s get back to the natural core of the release, the music. The songs of House Of Possession did not hide the musician’s affinity for the Bay Area, while On Tenebrous Wings sounds less technical and less precise. But beware, this does not mean that it is a significantly weaker release. Shakma just have taken a step closer to black thrashers like Inculter. 'Cryptic Apparition', for instance, delivers six minutes of spontaneous thrash with a very dark and ominous touch as well as a simple yet catchy chorus. In particular this track would have been a highlight on the first album, too. The explosive 'Under His Spell' mixes raging energy with an extremely old school, almost Bathory inspired instrumental part – the mid-paced riffing could be a leftover from Quorthon’s (R.I.P.) debut. 'The Howling Beast' lives up to its name. Strictly hammering verses lead to an opening chorus, before a fanatic instrumental part sets in. Anyway, each and every song deserves a positive description, because the juvenile, untameable (musical) aggression of the trio (unfortunately the composer of 'Ruthless Defiler' has left the formation) dominates all of the seven songs.

Thus, the absolutely coherent On Tenebrous Wings is bursting with energy while reaching a very high level of musical excellence again. Too bad that it already ends with the intriguing last line of 'Ancient Power'. By the way, did I already say that the guys are criminally underrated?

Rating: 8.6 out of 10

Review by Alex on January 29, 2020.

If this is your first time (such as me) hearing Primeval Mass then it's safe to say it will be an enjoyable one. There's something here for the 1st wave black metal fan, the traditional heavy metal fan and a lot for the speed metal maniac. Though the project fronted by Orth has undergone changes since the 2003 demo debut, after hearing Nine Altars you'll get the feeling it was done for the better. Black metal can get boring rather quickly especially if you're listening to Darkthrone carbon-copies. But when the backbone of the genre is given alignment adjustment with the addition of speed metal and traditional heavy metal, it not only becomes exciting to the ear and fresh once again but justifies the essence of the music. Can't tell you how many times I've had to revisit the classics (Venom, Bathory etc.) as an act of therapy; but when a project such as Primeval Mass can borrow some of the elderly spells and apply them, they save me the time of having to go soul searching. For, Nine Altars the black metal factor lies within the vocals and philosophy behind the lyrics, while the speed and trad metal tackle sound; now that’s very old school/traditional.

Most songs are lightning fast and packed with great solos, Orth’s riffs are outrageously good considering the speed at which most are played; and for a 54-minute record, consider what you’ll get on Nine Altars a treat. 'Circle of Skulls' is good but compared to tracks like ‘The Irkallian Born’, ‘Night Rapture’ and the scorcher of an instrumental ‘Amidst Twin Horizons’, it just does not manage to even rise from its kneeling position. Those songs are fucking lethal riff-wise and the drumming is more than the average speed metal wallop. Ruthless fills on the toms and snare all done quick and tidy. Instrumental track ‘Amidst Twin Horizons’ sounds like a lesson conveyed with disdain for the lackluster representations of the genre. Repetition is not an issue here as you’ll rarely find the content on Nine Altars struggling to stay refreshed, again it all comes back to the guitaring, there’s always a new and more exhilarating riff to follow, thus transmitting massive levels of sonic dopamine to the listener. Having managed to open so convincingly it would prove a challenge down the order to sustain the impetus.

With ‘Amidst Twin Horizons’ being the peak of side A on the record competition among songs stiffens on the B side. ‘Burning Sorcery', ‘Orphne' and ‘Firecrowned’ go to battle with each other for the main spot on side B and eventually the complete record; pelting out fiery lacerations of licks, Orth is a real showman, same can be said about George C. that when joined as a team, construct music that embarrasses the piles of alleged ‘efforts’ by other bands. Amidst the competition without expectation the true pinnacle of the album is realized on the final track being the longest by a significant margin, ‘The Hourglass Still’. As if Bathory never went away and "Hammerheart" is the album of the year, this epic ode to black metal genius freezes the glistening era with a serenade that in contrast to the speed takes the road long, cold and slow to a knighted height. There’s no trading punches with this song, its far out the league of all other entries on Nine Altars, a heavyweight to a featherweight, gold to copper, ‘The Hourglass Still’ demolishes without being scraped a single time; thus bringing Nine Altars to the conclusion it is worthy of and giving Primeval Mass a stronger imprint within the Greek black/speed metal terrain.

Rating: 8.8 out of 10