Review by Raphaël on September 18, 2024.

From the first acoustic guitar notes, playing a folky melody, building up to a short silence, followed by a simple and catchy heavy metal-sounding riff, accompanied by his clean vocals, you feel like you’ve entered a special place, beyond this plane of existence, looking at vast cosmic entities. After a few minutes of progressively more complex riffs and drum work, the guitars get sludgy and distinctively heavier, with a darker atmosphere, culminating in his powerful death growls. Everything then dramatically shifts to a softer and slower drum beat, filled with soft cymbal work, that accompanies a slow and bluesy electric guitar solo-ish, while switching back to his cleans, but this time, with an extra softness to them. The Opeth influences are on full display here. But, Opeth is one of many influences appearing on Beyond The Reach Of The Sun, soon after the softer section begins, a psychedelic synth appears out of nowhere, changing the mood from relaxing to more mysterious. And, as abruptly as it slowed down, it picks up at full speed once again, on the kick drum and with a death metal tremolo picking, even with a furious blastbeat exploding near the end, all accompanied by his impressive death-growls. The song ends on a droning fadeout transitioning smoothly to the next. This was the first song of an hour (1h15, if you listen to the bonus tracks) long journey, telling the story of a society that’s enslaved by forces from another dimension, that is at its core a story about perseverance.

The easiest way to describe their sound is, if Opeth and Mastodon fused together. But even that description is a bit limited to describe the scope of their music. Metal Archives list their genre simply as, extreme progressive metal, which is extremely vague but I feel, is the only way you can accurately describe their sound. Kenneth Paul Cook provides both clean and harsh vocals this time, with his growls being as deep and guttural as ever and his cleans being at times sludgy and nasal but also, soaring and epic as well as soft and showing vulnerability. Mike Hannay is still on drums and they sound better than ever, they can sound huge, fast and complex as well as soft and slow, helping to change the vibes, working in tandem with everything else. The guitars go to everything from death metal to folk rock, passing by doom, sludge and psychedelic. But at its core, it’s progressive, which means a lot of complexity, technicality and of course, a lot of face melting solos. Their Bandcamp description goes as follows; “Somewhere between sheer, apocalyptic heaviness and precise riffing, lays otherworldly ANCIIENTS—a Vancouver-based rock juggernaut forging crushing heavy metal.” Every song has memorable moments, it’s pure musical and lyrical magic.

The theme of perseverance, having so much meaning for me! Being severely disabled, I’ve had to, and still am, persevering through many, many challenges. But I’d say, particularly resonating in these last 11 months, witnessing the horrors of genocide. These lyrics, from the point of view of the tyrant, seem to fit with the Israeli regime so much: “Despise a world once owned Foresee fire A tyrant I’ve become Empathy escapes me Wrath I have come to claim my throne Waster of worlds Reclaim what’s been bestowed Appearing without warning Incursion if your home Bringing death upon you” This is my personal favorite kind of lyricism, beautiful lyrics that are vague enough, so that everybody will have a different interpretation of them. These brilliant lyrics are from the song 'Celestial Tyrant' and of course, they are accompanied by equally brilliant music. Opening with a fast-paced, solo drum beat, quickly joined by impeccable bass lines, once again showcasing the strength of the rhythm section, proving Rory O'Brien was a great addition to the band. The guitars soon join in the fun, playing a classic sounding, heavy metal riff, all united with epic clean vocals. The mood then becomes instantly darker as Kenneth transforms his melodic and pure voice into a deep and guttural growl, à la Mikael Åkerfeldt. These vocal transitions are so precise and well timed with the instruments, they are a huge component of the incredible variety found everywhere on the album. After a few minutes of this kind of dynamic song writing, a fast paced and melodic solo takes center stage, telling part of the story with its musical phrasing. The solo is followed by a few growled lines, culminating with an instrumental eruption of technical riffing, complex drums and ends as abruptly as it began.

It’s rare an album leaves you speechless after your first listen. Beyond The Reach Of The Sun was such an album but its beauty is that, after every new listen, you will discover more passages you didn’t hear before, a notable solo, an almost "oriental sounding" acoustic guitar picking, a different vocal melody, a crushing doomy riff, an almost voivod sounding intro, an instrumental part, probably inspired in part by Rush and each new discovery will make you fall in love even deeper with their musical world. Each song stands out, while still being an inseparable part of the whole, making you want to restart the journey again and again. This year is proving to be a massive year for progressive metal, showing how diverse it is and I’m here every step of the way, enjoying every moment.

Rating: 9.8 out of 10

Review by Jeger on July 26, 2024.

Just beyond life's many awe-inspiring moments there lies the valley - that dreadful place during your existence where all hangs in the balance and you have very little control over the outcome. Even our bravest dreams and ambitions cannot stand when death calls…For British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada's Anciients, the world was their proverbial oyster following the release of their debut Heart Of Oak LP in 2013; dropping jaws and solidifying themselves as more than contenders for prog metal dominance. But life has its fun little ways of jamming its flagpole into your spokes, and for Anciients guitarist/vocalist Kenny Cook, said face-plant came in the form of my would be worst nightmare. Just before their sophomore effort, Voice Of The Void LP, was recorded, his wife gave birth to their first child and her life was in jeopardy due to post-natal heart complications from which she almost passed. She survived, but then lies the task of raising a baby. All of this along with some departures and various other turmoils effectively put the brakes on any momentum Anciients may have possessed going in. But now… All is copacetic at Anciients camp, and from out of the valley and back into the azures we ascend as we anticipate 2024's Beyond The Reach Of The Sun, scheduled to be released on August 30, 2024 via Season of Mist.

Opeth and Mastodon? Cute stuff in comparison to Anciients. Only the likes of Katatonia are possessing of such class and only the likes of Haken or Rivers Of Nihil are possessing of such vision. Likely the product of these dudes as kids hunkered in their bedrooms with their instruments while other kids played Xbox online and ate chicken nuggets… With Beyond The Reach Of The Sun, Anciients put world-dominating adeptness on display, all the while as they exercise musical wisdom beyond their years. The resulting masterpiece is one that is wholly accessible to any and all levels of extreme metal connoisseurism.

Progressive but not flamboyant or masturbatory, no sense of overindulgence and no inclination that these guys are just trying to impress other musicians. An album designed with you in mind is Beyond The Reach Of The Sun, and as stunningly produced tracks like the riff-happy 'Despoiled' unfold, it will undoubtedly be to a bong rip or two. Ah, that’s better. What better way to enjoy those savory leads and galloping rhythms? Åkerfeldt-heralding cleans giving way to brutal gutturals and mid-tempo'd progressions carrying over into slow doom-worthy passages before a tempestuous riffing maelstrom fit for Tornado Alley transpires. Put this on and just drive, man. Don't think about where, just get on the highway and allow your mind to wander. So what if you end up in bumfuck nowhere, because following this record lies an awakening to the fact that Anciients are probably the most talented prog band out there and that you need gas…

So much to take in during each epic chapter, so crisp, clear and yet not sanitized. Styles ranging from a little prog-death brutality during moments of 'Is It Your God' to some darkly elegant, almost blackened atmosphere during the intro to the following track 'Cloak Of The Vast And Black'. But always back to the album’s riff-laden foundation do Anciients return for your listening pleasure. And it wouldn't be a prog album without that bizarre sense of 70's Atari nostalgia. You'll experience some of that peppered in and some funk? Some very unique stuff going on during 'Celestial Tyrant', like if Les Claypool decided to play a guitar… Groovy and reciprocal, technical and of course progressive to its core.

When the coveted balance between what's progressive and what's musically proper is achieved, the resulting sonic emanation will undoubtedly sound like Beyond The Reach Of The Sun. And is that a sleazy rock lead I hear now during 'The Torch'? You could fuck to this one! Okay, maybe not but I think Slash just got an unexplained hard-on. And now some aquatic smooth jazz to bring forth the end of what's been a remarkable journey. With such striking audiovisuals to be absorbed during the closing track, 'In The Absence Of Wisdom', you'll be gripping onto what's left of this album until your knuckles turn white. And to end with such energy is refreshing as opposed to what I was expecting, which was the overly-drawn-out and utterly pretentious epic.

As we embrace forward-thinking music even more now than ever before, this particular era in extreme metal history is proving to be fertile soil for bands like Anciients. These guys just get it. They're not scrambling to release such cutting edge material that no one understands it, but instead this glorious sonic elixir that does push the envelope but not beyond where one would dare grasp. Class cannot be taught! Just an organic understanding of what constitutes important music to be found here. To go beyond the Sun's reach into the cold expanse of the unknown. An escape! An excursion into places beyond imagination lies just ahead. Bon voyage...

Captivation: 10/10
Concept: 10/10
Cover Art: 10/10
Production: 10/10
Revisitability: 10/10

Rating: 10 out of 10

Review by Raphaël on September 18, 2024.

From the first acoustic guitar notes, playing a folky melody, building up to a short silence, followed by a simple and catchy heavy metal-sounding riff, accompanied by his clean vocals, you feel like you’ve entered a special place, beyond this plane of existence, looking at vast cosmic entities. After a few minutes of progressively more complex riffs and drum work, the guitars get sludgy and distinctively heavier, with a darker atmosphere, culminating in his powerful death growls. Everything then dramatically shifts to a softer and slower drum beat, filled with soft cymbal work, that accompanies a slow and bluesy electric guitar solo-ish, while switching back to his cleans, but this time, with an extra softness to them. The Opeth influences are on full display here. But, Opeth is one of many influences appearing on Beyond The Reach Of The Sun, soon after the softer section begins, a psychedelic synth appears out of nowhere, changing the mood from relaxing to more mysterious. And, as abruptly as it slowed down, it picks up at full speed once again, on the kick drum and with a death metal tremolo picking, even with a furious blastbeat exploding near the end, all accompanied by his impressive death-growls. The song ends on a droning fadeout transitioning smoothly to the next. This was the first song of an hour (1h15, if you listen to the bonus tracks) long journey, telling the story of a society that’s enslaved by forces from another dimension, that is at its core a story about perseverance.

The easiest way to describe their sound is, if Opeth and Mastodon fused together. But even that description is a bit limited to describe the scope of their music. Metal Archives list their genre simply as, extreme progressive metal, which is extremely vague but I feel, is the only way you can accurately describe their sound. Kenneth Paul Cook provides both clean and harsh vocals this time, with his growls being as deep and guttural as ever and his cleans being at times sludgy and nasal but also, soaring and epic as well as soft and showing vulnerability. Mike Hannay is still on drums and they sound better than ever, they can sound huge, fast and complex as well as soft and slow, helping to change the vibes, working in tandem with everything else. The guitars go to everything from death metal to folk rock, passing by doom, sludge and psychedelic. But at its core, it’s progressive, which means a lot of complexity, technicality and of course, a lot of face melting solos. Their Bandcamp description goes as follows; “Somewhere between sheer, apocalyptic heaviness and precise riffing, lays otherworldly ANCIIENTS—a Vancouver-based rock juggernaut forging crushing heavy metal.” Every song has memorable moments, it’s pure musical and lyrical magic.

The theme of perseverance, having so much meaning for me! Being severely disabled, I’ve had to, and still am, persevering through many, many challenges. But I’d say, particularly resonating in these last 11 months, witnessing the horrors of genocide. These lyrics, from the point of view of the tyrant, seem to fit with the Israeli regime so much: “Despise a world once owned Foresee fire A tyrant I’ve become Empathy escapes me Wrath I have come to claim my throne Waster of worlds Reclaim what’s been bestowed Appearing without warning Incursion if your home Bringing death upon you” This is my personal favorite kind of lyricism, beautiful lyrics that are vague enough, so that everybody will have a different interpretation of them. These brilliant lyrics are from the song 'Celestial Tyrant' and of course, they are accompanied by equally brilliant music. Opening with a fast-paced, solo drum beat, quickly joined by impeccable bass lines, once again showcasing the strength of the rhythm section, proving Rory O'Brien was a great addition to the band. The guitars soon join in the fun, playing a classic sounding, heavy metal riff, all united with epic clean vocals. The mood then becomes instantly darker as Kenneth transforms his melodic and pure voice into a deep and guttural growl, à la Mikael Åkerfeldt. These vocal transitions are so precise and well timed with the instruments, they are a huge component of the incredible variety found everywhere on the album. After a few minutes of this kind of dynamic song writing, a fast paced and melodic solo takes center stage, telling part of the story with its musical phrasing. The solo is followed by a few growled lines, culminating with an instrumental eruption of technical riffing, complex drums and ends as abruptly as it began.

It’s rare an album leaves you speechless after your first listen. Beyond The Reach Of The Sun was such an album but its beauty is that, after every new listen, you will discover more passages you didn’t hear before, a notable solo, an almost "oriental sounding" acoustic guitar picking, a different vocal melody, a crushing doomy riff, an almost voivod sounding intro, an instrumental part, probably inspired in part by Rush and each new discovery will make you fall in love even deeper with their musical world. Each song stands out, while still being an inseparable part of the whole, making you want to restart the journey again and again. This year is proving to be a massive year for progressive metal, showing how diverse it is and I’m here every step of the way, enjoying every moment.

Rating: 9.8 out of 10

Review by Jeger on July 26, 2024.

Just beyond life's many awe-inspiring moments there lies the valley - that dreadful place during your existence where all hangs in the balance and you have very little control over the outcome. Even our bravest dreams and ambitions cannot stand when death calls…For British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada's Anciients, the world was their proverbial oyster following the release of their debut Heart Of Oak LP in 2013; dropping jaws and solidifying themselves as more than contenders for prog metal dominance. But life has its fun little ways of jamming its flagpole into your spokes, and for Anciients guitarist/vocalist Kenny Cook, said face-plant came in the form of my would be worst nightmare. Just before their sophomore effort, Voice Of The Void LP, was recorded, his wife gave birth to their first child and her life was in jeopardy due to post-natal heart complications from which she almost passed. She survived, but then lies the task of raising a baby. All of this along with some departures and various other turmoils effectively put the brakes on any momentum Anciients may have possessed going in. But now… All is copacetic at Anciients camp, and from out of the valley and back into the azures we ascend as we anticipate 2024's Beyond The Reach Of The Sun, scheduled to be released on August 30, 2024 via Season of Mist.

Opeth and Mastodon? Cute stuff in comparison to Anciients. Only the likes of Katatonia are possessing of such class and only the likes of Haken or Rivers Of Nihil are possessing of such vision. Likely the product of these dudes as kids hunkered in their bedrooms with their instruments while other kids played Xbox online and ate chicken nuggets… With Beyond The Reach Of The Sun, Anciients put world-dominating adeptness on display, all the while as they exercise musical wisdom beyond their years. The resulting masterpiece is one that is wholly accessible to any and all levels of extreme metal connoisseurism.

Progressive but not flamboyant or masturbatory, no sense of overindulgence and no inclination that these guys are just trying to impress other musicians. An album designed with you in mind is Beyond The Reach Of The Sun, and as stunningly produced tracks like the riff-happy 'Despoiled' unfold, it will undoubtedly be to a bong rip or two. Ah, that’s better. What better way to enjoy those savory leads and galloping rhythms? Åkerfeldt-heralding cleans giving way to brutal gutturals and mid-tempo'd progressions carrying over into slow doom-worthy passages before a tempestuous riffing maelstrom fit for Tornado Alley transpires. Put this on and just drive, man. Don't think about where, just get on the highway and allow your mind to wander. So what if you end up in bumfuck nowhere, because following this record lies an awakening to the fact that Anciients are probably the most talented prog band out there and that you need gas…

So much to take in during each epic chapter, so crisp, clear and yet not sanitized. Styles ranging from a little prog-death brutality during moments of 'Is It Your God' to some darkly elegant, almost blackened atmosphere during the intro to the following track 'Cloak Of The Vast And Black'. But always back to the album’s riff-laden foundation do Anciients return for your listening pleasure. And it wouldn't be a prog album without that bizarre sense of 70's Atari nostalgia. You'll experience some of that peppered in and some funk? Some very unique stuff going on during 'Celestial Tyrant', like if Les Claypool decided to play a guitar… Groovy and reciprocal, technical and of course progressive to its core.

When the coveted balance between what's progressive and what's musically proper is achieved, the resulting sonic emanation will undoubtedly sound like Beyond The Reach Of The Sun. And is that a sleazy rock lead I hear now during 'The Torch'? You could fuck to this one! Okay, maybe not but I think Slash just got an unexplained hard-on. And now some aquatic smooth jazz to bring forth the end of what's been a remarkable journey. With such striking audiovisuals to be absorbed during the closing track, 'In The Absence Of Wisdom', you'll be gripping onto what's left of this album until your knuckles turn white. And to end with such energy is refreshing as opposed to what I was expecting, which was the overly-drawn-out and utterly pretentious epic.

As we embrace forward-thinking music even more now than ever before, this particular era in extreme metal history is proving to be fertile soil for bands like Anciients. These guys just get it. They're not scrambling to release such cutting edge material that no one understands it, but instead this glorious sonic elixir that does push the envelope but not beyond where one would dare grasp. Class cannot be taught! Just an organic understanding of what constitutes important music to be found here. To go beyond the Sun's reach into the cold expanse of the unknown. An escape! An excursion into places beyond imagination lies just ahead. Bon voyage...

Captivation: 10/10
Concept: 10/10
Cover Art: 10/10
Production: 10/10
Revisitability: 10/10

Rating: 10 out of 10

Review by Dominik on October 22, 2024.

Well, here’s a case of languages playing a delightful trick on the unwary. When I first encountered Castle Inside The Eclipse, it wasn’t the music that caught my attention (since I hadn’t heard it yet). It was the album cover, which looked like one of those fairy-tale power metal releases but not like a scary black metal monument. The second interesting observation was the band name – Bloedmaan – which, to my German ears, sounded like something a punk band may use as its moniker. In German, “Blödmann” (pronounced very similarly) translates to “stupid fool”, so I was sure I was in for some ironic, goofy punk. 

Imagine my surprise when I discovered that “Bloedmaan” is actually Flemish for “blood moon”. So much for my punk rock theory! Suddenly, everything clicked into place, and what I found was not a punk-infused self-parody, but a short (way too short) yet impressive piece of melodic black metal. And yes, despite my initial doubts, it does live up to the black metal tag.

The album consists of five tracks, and they feel like a tug-of-war between melodic, melancholic guitar riffs and harsh, blackened vocals. Being a one-man band, you can sense as if Ronarg, the man himself behind Bloedmaan is locked in a battle with his own creative impulses. Which should take the lead – the melody or the (vocal) menace? It’s a constant struggle, and frankly, that tension works.

The opening track 'The Night Of Blood' sets the tone for the album with a captivating mix of melodic riffs and atmospheric tension. It´s an immediate plunge into Bloedmaan's universe, a fitting, immersive introduction to this brief yet intense journey. The slowest track on the album is to be found on position three. 'Haunted Melancholic Obsession' delivers exactly what the title promises. It’s a melancholic, haunting piece, dominated by the lead guitar. In this instance, the music and title are in perfect sync. However, don’t expect that kind of clarity for the rest of the songs.

The standout track in my book is 'Winged Flight Under The Pale Moon'. Here things really take off – literally and figuratively. It runs for over seven minutes and gives us a full tour of the possibilities of melodic black metal. Around the 3:10 mark, the song kicks into a higher gear, the riffs fly (to be more exact we talk about one main riff), and despite the overall grim mood, there’s a surprising lightness that creeps in. It’s the kind of paradox only black metal can pull off, making you feel both crushed under the weight of existence and somehow weightless all at once.

The album ends with 'The Hunter’s Dream', another gem of black metal grandeur. What I really appreciate here is that Bloedmaan hasn’t forgotten that underneath all the corpse paint and misanthropy, this is still metal. We’re treated to some traditional heavy metal elements towards the end of the track, including a solid solo. It’s refreshing to hear a black metal artist who hasn’t forgotten his roots and that a little classic metal bravado never hurt anyone.

The only downside? Castle Inside The Eclipse clocks in at a mere 29 minutes, which is a cruel tease given the clear talent on display here. It’s like ordering a pint of Belgian beer, only for the bartender to hand you a thimble. Just when you’re getting ready for the sixth song, it’s over. Let’s hope that for album number two, Bloedmaan has the confidence to go the full distance because this short offering shows plenty of potential for something much more substantial.

Rating: 8 out of 10 – because while I was fooled by the name, I’m no fool when it comes to spotting potential. Now give us more than a half-hour next time, or I’ll start calling him “Blödmann” again.

Review by Vladimir on January 26, 2024.

Are you a fan of vampire horror or perhaps gothic horror in general? Or are you perhaps searching for something Lovecraftian? Or better yet, how about all of it, combined with black metal music. If this is what you are looking for, then hop in and join me on this journey to the shadows and beyond, as we explore the castle halls of the Belgian black metal one-man band Bloedmaan, with its debut full-length album Castle Inside The Eclipse released on December 15th, 2023 via Immortal Frost Productions. 

From the very get-go, Bloedmaan gives us a vampiric, epic and melodic black metal with dynamic rhythmic patterns implemented throughout every song. Every song is dominated with melodic and powerful tremolo picking riffs with drums that switch between blast beats, double-bass drumming, mid-tempo drumming and even thrash metal drumming, while the haunting vampiric vocals scream within the halls of the castle walls. The only song that introduces something unexpectedly different, yet welcoming for a change, is the third track 'Haunted Melancholic Obsessions' with its epic clean singing vocals during the song’s chorus, much in the vein of Bathory’s viking metal era. From one song to another, you’ll get this sense as if the album was meant to be like one grand odyssey within the misty and gloomy realms, shrouded in shadow and mystery, taking you to unexpected places where you’d best not dare dwell. This journey to the shadows and beyond goes so smoothly that it even ends on a very high note with the final track 'The Hunter's Dream', which gives this whole story an epic closure with a grand payoff. 

The album’s overall songwriting is incredibly dynamic and each song has an effective and smooth transition from one section to another, without breaking away from the album’s stylistic consistency. Something that I felt while listening to this album is that its atmosphere conveys a bit of a Castlevania vibe with its melodies and even the incredibly stylish cover art that was done by the band’s only member Ronarg. Funny thing about this album is that it’s only 28 minutes and 50 seconds long, which is just a little less than a standard album runtime, however considering how the songs have such a strong and dynamic flow of emotions, you feel as if you just listened to an album that lasted over 40 to 50 minutes. There are so many things on this album that could be easily highlighted as one of its greatest charms, but I think we can all agree that the biggest delight is that this album feels exactly like a journey that doesn’t let go or allow itself to disappoint even at the very end. The album has a very raw sharp yet still polished production that manages to make a raw sound feel so balanced out, all the way down to the guitars and drums, except for the vocals which sound like distant cries from the forbidden woods. 

Indeed, this turned out to be one epic and worthy experience that did not let me down, which could possibly be one of the finest melodic black metal works in recent years. With its total of 5 songs in the tracklist, it made it feel like the number of songs was doubled, especially since the runtime does not feel incredibly short, and yet it keeps your attention going all the way through. If you are by any chance looking for a delightful melodic black metal album with vampiric and Lovecraftian concepts, look no further than Bloedmaan’s Castle Inside The Eclipse. 

Rating: 8.9 out of 10