Review by Dominik on April 4, 2025.

Do you know the American heavy metal band Black Dawn, which released some "iconic masterpieces" in the late '90s and early 2000s? Or perhaps the Finnish Black Dawn, who stormed onto the black metal scene in 2001 with Blood For Satan? Since both bands have, of course, reached unfathomable levels of stardom—millions of fans, relentless paparazzi, and gated mansions besieged by admirers—they naturally had to settle the crucial question of who truly owned the legendary band name. Fortunately, the legal system stepped in, and as a result, the Finnish Black Dawn was officially rebranded as True Black Dawn. A small victory for order in the world of chaos, allowing us all to sleep soundly once more. But let's set aside courtroom drama and focus on the real question: does Of Thick-Circling Shadows finally push True Black Dawn out of the shadow of their own past?

Given their history, my expectations weren't sky-high. Blood For Satan was less an album and more a black metal starter pack—brutal, cliché-ridden, and thoroughly lacking that signature Finnish magic, this bottled eternal darkness of Lapland winters that makes so many bands from the Land of a Thousand Lakes stand out. The follow-up wasn't much better. So, does Of Thick-Circling Shadows offer something more? The answer is yes—because this time, the band was willing to trade in some of their relentless intensity for something far more sinister: atmosphere. For once, True Black Dawn sounds less like a band who fell out of a second-hand Mayhem rehearsal and more like a group starting to forge an identity of their own.

The shift is noticeable in three key areas. The guitars finally weave a sound tapestry that feels distinctly Finnish. Instead of just bludgeoning you into submission, they create an eerie, foreboding, at times melodic atmosphere that lingers. Secondly, we find vocals with purpose. Gone is the mindless screaming and nagging that sounds like an angry crow trapped in a tin can. Instead, the vocals take on a menacing, incantatory tone—like a twisted prophet whispering dark omens and narrating our inevitable doom. It's less pure aggression, and more controlled malevolence. And finally True Black Dawn went for songwriting with some more depth. This time the band actually varies their approach. There's blistering speed, yes, but also slower, more measured moments that create a push-and-pull tension, making the album a far more engaging listen.

Even when True Black Dawn slows things down, they remain convincing. Sure, "Night And Names" drags a bit, trudging through the shadows without ever really finding its way. But "Worlds In A Mirror" and "The End Of Our Age" prove that melody and bleakness can walk hand in hand, the latter track in particular syncing its sorrowful guitars with its grim message, perfectly echoing the song's gloomy theme. The polar opposite is "Body-Without-Soul", which wastes no time, launching straight into a relentless onslaught. Here, the guitars weave their magic sound, and the frontman delivers a controlled and somewhat restrained, but absolutely fitting performance. He injects just enough variety into his pitch that you happily let yourself being dragged along towards the black void. "Fish, Sin And Soma" brings back some of the chaos of their early days, channeling a Finnish take on Tsjuder with its full-speed ferocity, though it balances that intensity with atmospheric moments that remind you this is no cheap knock-off.

Then there's "The Wind From The Red Cloud", another example of how True Black Dawn has evolved and matured. The song shifts between breakneck aggression and eerie reprieves, keeping the listener on the edge and proving that unpredictability can be just as powerful as sheer force. However, not everything hits the mark. "Palace Of Ash" starts off painfully generic, only partly salvaging itself with a memorable riff in the final stretch—a moment that makes you wish they had introduced it sooner.

Instead of just spilling more Blood For Satan, True Black Dawn has finally begun crafting their own identity. The music is still steeped in darkness, but now it's more menacing, more varied, and—most importantly—finally "Finnish" in spirit. Of Thick-Circling Shadows isn't a perfect album, but it's a crucial step forward. The raw intensity of their early work hasn't been abandoned, but it has been sharpened, refined, and woven into something much more unsettling.

Rating: 8 out of 10, because even darkness sometimes benefits from a little refinement.

Review by Jeger on June 16, 2024.

There are so many cult bands within the sphere of black metal that they’re not even cult anymore, but if there was ever a band that qualified as cult, it would certainly be Finland’s True Black Dawn. Haunting the Suomi underground and signed to the ever-scrutinizing WTC Productions, TBD are not only an illustrious collective, but also one true to the cause, which for this band is and always has been Satanism. It’s not easy to be relevant in such a fertile black metal hot zone as the Finnish underground, so for some bands, obscurity is the way; obscure even to the underground . But I can assure you there is nothing thematically or sonically obscure about True Black Dawn’s music as of late. Black metal done the arduous way with a full lineup, albums that span 10-11 tracks and with painstaking detail. On July 30, True Black Dawn will release their third LP, Thick-Circling Shadows, via the aforementioned World Terror Committee. 

Thick-Circling Shadows is not your typical straight-for-the-jugular Satanic black metal album. With track titles like 'The Depths Of The Looking Glass' and 'The Wind From the Red Cloud', this record boasts more of a metaphorical vibe as opposed to the unfiltered Satanic energy of albums like True Black Dawn’s debut, Blood For Satan. Each cut an unbridled delving into the pits of true Finnish black metal. Albums like Sargeist’s “Feeding The Crawling Shadows” and Behexen’s “The Poisonous Path” drawn to the fore of thought here as the abominable 'Body-Without-Soul' strikes brutality’s match; sparking a blaze of dreadful vocalizations, ploughing riffs and nasty rhythms. The following track, 'Worlds In The Mirror', provides a welcomed change in both rhythm and tempo as classic double-bass currents give way to martial cadences following a windswept intro; driving through the heft of your cortex beat after pounding beat. Where the fuck have these guys been and why no just kudos? This is respectable black metal on the Suomi front - a proud testament to the dominance of the scene - a silent weapon of an album. Closing out with 'The End Of Our Age' and into the chasmic shadows of apocalypse we venture now with all looming passages fraught with suspenseful tremolo riffs and more of those intrepid rhythms to back a most grotesque vocals contribution. Melancholy to the core, somber and epic, melodic and moving. What a way to close out what’s been a fine record. 

A little bit of everything like the Golden Corral buffet. A feast for the loosening of your bullet belt as you gorge yourself on five course meal of a black metal album. So much accomplished musically without a bunch of filler and well within the boundaries of what constitutes true black metal: pitch black, frigid and wicked. With Thick-Circling Shadows, True Black Dawn re-establish themselves as a respectable cult presence and lay down some tasty BM chops for the packing of your ravenous gullet. Doesn’t get much more true and it doesn’t get much more Suomi. 

Rating: 8 out of 10