Review by Fernando on January 9, 2024.

Poland has had no shortage of gritty black metal recently and the years leading to and during the pandemic brought a deluge of bands from that country that were surprisingly good and varied, from avant-garde and unorthodox acts, to more traditional but refreshing bands. Wilczyca certainly fits in the latter category but with their fourth full length, Magija, they really seem to have come into their own.

Wilczyca were formed in 2019 as a duo with vocalist Nidhogg and multi-instrumentalist Louve and from the get go they wasted no time releasing 3 albums in the span of 14 months. I personally didn’t clicked with those albums, as the band seemingly felt like a typical black metal band, and releasing a trio of albums in such short notice didn’t gave a good first impression. However, with this new record, the band not only improved in every way, but they also became much more interesting to boot.

First and foremost, the band haven’t lost any grit or grime from their initial records, though they have had a significant boost in audio quality and for the benefit of their music. Another improvement which was also done on their previous album is bringing in a guest drummer, in this case the powerhouse that is Krzysztof Klingbein, and yes, he pretty much shines from beginning to end with his masterclass drumming. However, where I want to focus and where much of the band’s improvement is shown is with the core lineup.

Nidhogg is of course a very good vocalist and has his own distinct style, his dry throaty shrieks not only do the job, they really give this record a sense of dread and despair that wouldn’t have been achieved with a more traditional style of vocals, as one thing the band have done consistently since the beginning is how their music sounds depressive but rabid, and that’s very much the case here and it’s been honed to perfection. But the true show stealer, and who’s had a direct hand is the massive improvement this record was compared to their previous output is of course Louve. The music here, while undoubtedly being black metal, has some subtle but very significant traits of prog rock, and some avant-garde elements, while also displaying classic metal and some punk influences that Louve seemingly mangled to fit into black metal, and they fit like a glove.

The best moments are when the band creates dark atmospheres where the bass becomes a mayor player, and with added synths, create a sense of urgency and despair that’s then coagulated into bursts of pure black metal, but it’s in those slower, more atmospheric and eerie spaces where the band shines the most. In many ways this record has the feeling of a very intense horror movie where you’re just waiting for the shoe to drop. And on top of that the album sounds excellent, the cleaner production and Klingbein’s drumming, really gave the band a much needed update and without the band ever having to discard their darkness, and the end result pretty much speaks for itself.

Overall, I’m glad I gave Wilczyca another chance because this record certainly proved their worth and truly show how the creative process must be nurtured to grow into something special.

Rating: 8 out of 10