Review by Vladimir on January 3, 2024.

Black metal in Poland has always been very successful with each generation of bands, from the oldschool to the modern, and all the way to the so-called “post-modern” ones. Case and point are the band Angrrsth from Toruń, who have published their debut album Donikąd on April 13th, 2021 as an independent Bandcamp release, and later on physical media via Godz Ov War Productions. If you are into polish black metal bands, especially the kind of bands that came from the later generation, you might want to look out for this one. 

Angrrsth provides a solid range of ideas incorporated in a very simplistic but still very rich sounding black metal, which can be varying from catchy to melodic or perhaps even headbanging heavy. All of these are expressed through tremolo picking guitar riffs with double-bass drums and blast beats, and harsh vocals with a bit of shouting vocal style thrown in. The best example that shows how far this band can go in terms of their expression is the third track 'Niech Się Zaprze Samego Siebie', a powerful banger of a song that manages to be both incredibly heavy and catchy, with its mid-tempo drumming and melodic guitar work that take the entire experience on an entirely another level. 

Like I said, this is black metal with rich and strong songwriting, providing a powerful dynamic band performance whose essence was altogether wonderfully captured and encapsulated in every song possible. All throughout this album, you will feel how the music radiates such energy that feels a bit like you’ve embarked on a journey to a world beyond and back, and the best part is that this album’s consistency really does not fall apart towards the end, which successfully concludes the album on a high note with the closing track 'Ostatni Akt', even with the final ring of the church bell. It is really difficult to listen to the songs and not get yourself entirely immersed in the music, because their dynamics manage to give such an effective flow of creativity that sparkles like the very stars on the cover art. Speaking of which, the cover art does truly manage to represent exactly the kind of experience you are witnessing, and this fantastic work was done by Witchslaughter of the polish black metal band Dagorath. The album has an incredibly heavy high-quality sound production that really manages to highlight the best part of every individual instrumental work. 

Donikąd is just one heck of an album that really left me speechless in some parts and also highly satisfied at the very end. This album seems like a prime example showcasing that the band was going all in with their work without having anything go to waste or completely lose focus and let the rest be “whatever” because they can. They truly managed to express passion and dedication to their work, which is definitely going to win you over if you’re into black metal bands of the newer generation. 

Rating: 9 out of 10