Review by Michael on October 1, 2023.

With Veil Of Death, Ruptured the three witches from the Netherlands release their third studio album. During the first few seconds I first had the impression that the ladies had jumped a little on the Tribulation goth-rock train, but nope, that was apparently only the siren-like sounds to draw the listener under their spell. What follows is pretty classically held black metal, which comes across partly very cold and unforgiving, but in some places also spreads a certain slightly warm atmosphere (like at the end of 'Ignem Purificat Lilitu'). In addition, there are a few dissonant parts, which give the album a certain bulkiness.

Often the songs are played in the mid tempo range, but 'De Verloren Tijd', for example, is a very draggingly starting song, which, however, explodes all of a sudden. Especially the vocals of singer Obscura are very remarkable here, because they switch from spoken words to a very hysterical cackling within seconds. But as fast as the song explodes, as fast the whole thing calms down again, only the hateful vocals remain. It's a very atmospheric song and one of my highlights of the album. As you can tell from the song title, the eight songs are partly written in Dutch and I have often stated that Dutch is a really perfect language to sing black metal to, well, at least let's call it so because the harsh words match absolutely perfect to this hateful music. Another standout song is the title track, as it captivates with a certain restlessness and driven-ness. Quite fast and driving, this song reminds of old Scandinavian works from the 90s. But even here dissonant parts are built in again and again, so that the listener cannot lean back relaxed, but is always actively invited to listen. With the instrumental intermezzo 'Opus Ad Aeternum' you can take a short breather before you get another full broadside of infernal black metal with 'De Waanzijn Roept Mijn Naam' ("Insanity Calls My Name"). Again, the work is very varied - hyper-fast bludgeoning alternates with very atmospheric sounds and again a very interesting mélange is created. Also, the voice of Obscura is again in the foreground, because it sounds very distinctive and prominent, perhaps similar to Onielar's (Darkened Nocturn Slaughtercult).

In summary, the ladies have recorded a beast of an album that does not have to hide behind other reference works. Veil Of Death, Ruptured has become a very convincing third album, which impresses with a very clear and powerful production and proves that it was composed with a lot of heart and passion. Horns up for Asagraum. So now I have to go, someone is standing down on the street and keeps calling my name, it's annoying and I'm slowly going mad!!!

Rating: 9 out of 10