Review by Felix on October 13, 2022.

Hautakammio. Hau-ta-kam-mio. The name of the band is Hautakammi.. oh, you wonder what I am doing here? Well, my brain is old and rotten and these Finnish devils challenge me seriously whenever they choose a name in their mother tongue. Anyway, here comes – wait a moment – Hautakammio with their first album called… forget it, the Finnish language is a book with seven seals to me and, I apologize, the debut’s name is too complicated for me.

Apart from my linguistic difficulties, the quartet from Suomi dishes up an utterly grim version of Nordic black metal. In terms of hardness, they degrade bands like Aegrus or Malum to teddy bears. Even Behexen remind far behind. But this is no statement concerning the quality of Hautakammio’s music. The approximately 33 minutes are divided into five roughly equally sized pieces and the first of them, kindly christened simply "I" (even I understand this kind of Finnish) actually only offers tediously structured noise. But the four servants of hell can do it better. “II” and “III” leave no doubt that the guys are able to write diabolic riffs. Moreover, these tracks spread dynamic vibes and their compositional density is very remarkable. The seemingly tortured voice gives the apocalyptic scenario the instrumentalists create the final touch. Insane screams characterize the performance of the lead “singer”. In these songs, Hautakammio act like the extreme form of Behexen and they do it with passion.

The B side prolongs the massacre. Technical subtleties, playful nuances and fine-minded melodies find no place in it. Instead, the cold guitars, the permanent double bass thunder and the snare creeate a boulevard of broken beauty while the vocalist still screams with a lot of reverb on his voice. I do not understand a single word, but the destructive atmosphere of negativity is very impressive. In rare moments, the guitars hint at a melody, for example in "IV". But these elements are not characterizing for this “Pure Holocaust 2.0” minus “As the Eternity Opens”. And just like its big Norwegian brother, the album manages to avoid boredom. As mentioned above, the opener does not really hit the mark, but the remaining songs are pure joy for noise fetishists. The adequate production is another advantage of this debut. The sound convinces with the right mix of brutality (80%) and differentiation (20%).

The vinyl edition is stingy with information. Nevertheless, I am a proud owner of my copy, because this format and black metal are simply a perfect match. Hautakammio’s totally uncompromising approach is nothing but true black metal and a kind of corrective for varieties of this style that dilute its spirit. Their debut from 2013 marked a great start and I am curious to discover their further albums. By then I will also know the name of the band by heart, I promise.

Rating: 8.1 out of 10

Review by Adam M on June 9, 2020.

Intronaut pushes their sound into even increasingly more dense soundscapes with their newest album Fluid Existential Inversions. There is definitely a more complex nature to these songs that wind down a number of different trajectories. There is a need to make the music more challenging, but the band still has an oceanic and entirely interesting sound to it.  It’s an interesting change because I thought the band was starting to become more stagnant, but they have surprised me here. 

There is endless variety on the album and a colorful nature that is difficult not to appreciate.  This is easily the best Intronaut has sounded since Valley of Smoke and the album proves to unlock further nuggets after repeat listens.  There are simply a larger number of dynamic changes and progressive tendencies than the last couple of albums and it all adds up to a release that is more forward thinking and interesting.  I still think the band can push the envelope even further, but the progress they have made from the last release is commendable. Though the band has pushed boundaries, there is no doubt the feeling that things are starting to sound a bit generic. I fear for the band’s next album because the band will have to do something really interesting to remain relevant. As it stands, this is one of the best Intronaut albums and one of the best progressive releases of the year so far.  The band is starting to retread similar ideas, but throws the ball into uncharted territories as well. It will be interesting to see how they progress and keep things interesting in the future.

Fans of Intronaut’s previous material will find a lot to like here, as will fans of progressive metal in general. This is simply a very strong progressive post-metal album that will appeal to fans of this sub-genre.

Rating: 7.7 out of 10