Review by Felix on January 18, 2024.

2,175 kilometers – this is the distance between my home town and Vantaa in the South of Suomi. Nocturnal Sorcery will celebrate the release of their second album Captive In The Breath Of Life in this town near Helsinki. I admit, I am too lazy to join the party; the way is much too long. So here comes my “Plan B”: I am doing the release party on my own, even earlier then the guys themselves. Welcome Felix, your exclusive release session starts right now.

The visual design of the artwork is pure cult. It is generic, reduced to the essentials and it looks like the colorless edition of Helstar’s “Nosferatu”. Anyway, I like it very much, even though one could call it infantile as well. But let’s not dwell on trivialities. Nocturnal Sorcery play, naturally, proggy free jazz with cleverly embedded dissonant gospel choirs… ehm, no. Of course, another black metal breeze cools down the temperature of my living room. Honestly spoken, the music is no less generic than the cover. At this point, good old Bon Scott, God rest his soul, comes to mind. To freely quote the legend from Fremantle: “it’s a long way to the top if you wanna black metal”. And it does not make things easier if you decide to kill the flow of your album with non-musical intermezzos like 'Spectral Force'. It adds nothing to the output but rubbish. Guess they wanted to call it “Spectral Farce”, but I still do not know why they gave it a place in the song list. Okay, I am willing to forget this useless track. I prefer to focus on a real killer like 'Beyond Salvation'. It leaves a very good aroma in view of its harshness, its flow and some trace elements of catchiness. Right from the get-go, the song demonstrates its strength due to the high velocity and the typical, more or less bone-breaking melodies that have given black metal its extra fine spicy taste. In addition, the dogged nagging of the lead vocalist battles with the instruments. Just great. But why, I repeat accusingly: why is the song sandwiched by 'Spectral Force' and 'Joyless Dance In The Shadow', another experiment that devalues every black metal disc to a certain extent? Is it gloomy? No. Is it terrifying? No. Is it simply stupid? Yes.

As a result, the band cuts into its own flesh twice. Maybe this is a new type of suicidal black metal? Not really. Thanks to the black Finnish mentality, Nocturnal Sorcery live out their anger, their hatred and their contempt for the norm. The constantly hammering drummer demonstrates his stamina, the guitarists produce tones that commute between relentless aggression and a low degree of harmonies, the bass guitar player was surely in the studio, but bad luck, nobody can hear him. It doesn’t matter, the production conveys an appropriate underground feel to it and I am happy that the snare does not get lost in the rapid sections (and there are many of them). Ultimately, vocals and instruments are in a good balance and so there is nothing to grumble in this context.

Is anyone still looking for arguments to buy the album? Well, listen to perfidious attacks like 'Oath At Mt. Hermon', 'Redemption At Daybreak' (fantastic break after one minute!) or 'Damned By The Law Of The Stars'. This kind of song is taught at the elitist Behexen school. Without any doubt, there is a big potential and Nocturnal Sorcery should be aware of this fact. There is no need to fill the next album with nonsensical collages again. Anyway, the band is on a good way, even their overlong songs are pretty good and never boring. So I can recommend this album. Despite its small flaws, it attracts a lot of charm. Yes, it is still a long way for the band to reach the top, but in all probability it is at least less than 2,175 kilometers.

Rating: 7.7 out of 10

Review by Maverick on March 17, 2024.

Fun as fuck, and to the point. Modern incarnations of classic heavy metal can be a gamble, especially when so many bands which parade with the name are nothing but pre-metal rock and roll AC/DC clones. There’s nothing wrong with that of course, but the horizon of credibility has taken a bit of a dip with modern “heavy metal” bands. The scene is reviving itself though, with bands like Blood Opera breathing a new sense of hope into the scene.

First, let me start by pointing out some similar bands. Chilean heavy metal band Shadows is probably the closest I could come to pinning this band down. Except, it is more “fun.” You know, it’s happier, resembling the kind of unicorn spirit that one gets from Dio, Rainbow or even a rocking power metal manifestation. You got the attitude, the riffs, and the vocals. It’s all here. While this isn’t a Mercyful Fate onslaught of satanic fury, it is kind of the heavy metal band that one could compare to bands like Pagan Altar, and Wytch Hazel.Second, the flare. Most metal bands these days try utilizing images and concepts that haven’t been used before. Like concept albums with bizarre premises. Yeah, don’t get me started. This band sort of goes with the traditional zombie and gore shit that’s typical of the early American death metal scene, with one exception, it is classical metal.Third, the music itself is something that is top notch. Combining psychedelic 80s sound effects, and early classic metal riffs. It reminds me of something between Motorhead’s "Orgasmatron" (instrumentally) with Twister Sister’s "Stay Hungry". It has the same kind of rock-and-roll and almost glam type vocals. Take 'Fight To Survive' for example, it combines that Twister Sister vibe with its own originality. Combining that cocky NWOBH type riffing with semi-glammy proficiency. Songs like 'Killer Klowns From Outer Space' combine the modern metal entrance pieces to classic metal. It’s a combination of pure fun and what not. What’s not to love?. Fourth, I want to look at the drumming. Now, it doesn’t suffer from Motorhead’s punk driven interpolations, rather it has a balanced rock and rock meets classic metal edge. This makes it easy to listen to, without succumbing to punky overplaying. Top notch, fun, and no bullshit.

If you just want to have a good time, with classical heavy metal themes. This band keeps the faith. It isn’t hard to follow. Just a good rocking album that does not take itself too seriously. Really not bad. If you’re into Twister Sister, check this out. If you want something that is fun to listen to, check it out!

Rating: 8 out of 10