Review by Michael on September 7, 2026.

Dutch trio Asgrauw (which means "Ash Grey" in English) are back with their seventh studio album, called "Solips". Not too long after their last one, "Oorsprong", which dealt with the origin of mankind, the listener is invited this time on a trip into their own mind.

The band says: "Asgrauw now turns their gaze inward. Perception. Observation. Time. Experience. How do you know what you see is real? How do you know anyone else sees the same thing?"

Well, this is another quite interesting topic for an album, and so is their music once again. No intro, no prelude, just some fast and razor-blade-sharp tremolo picking introducing the first track, "Confabulatie." Not too much has changed musically here in comparison to the previous releases, and this is absolutely fine. Offering harsh, somewhat Finnish-oriented black metal with some atmospheric keyboard layers, the trio blasts through the eight songs, which are recorded very well, with a quite dynamic and cold production.

Sometimes it is a little bit difficult to comprehend the musical approach because some parts aren't so easily accessible and are more cumbersome than on "Oorsprong". As an example, "Nachtstorm" could be mentioned, with some tricky drumming and many breaks. But the lyrics aren't too easy to comprehend either, dealing with the theory of quantum immortality, which means that life jumps from one dimension into the next after dying. "Manipulatie" (which is about time travel) is another difficult one, lacking some catchy melodies and offering some more dissonant tunes.

But other tracks are much easier to listen to. "Chronisch" is a fine one, with a lot of catchy elements and some galloping drums. Here, you can clearly recognize some more melodies, and so this one isn't too challenging to fully enjoy on the first listen. The closing track, "Nadirflux," is another good, not-too-difficult track, with the most extreme vocals on "Solips". By the way, the vocals remind me a lot of the fantastic Zyklon B EP from 1995. It is a very atmospheric song with many keyboards (that aren't too obtrusive, though) and has a very cool lyrical background. Let me quote the promo sheet here:

"A collapse from above. The track imagines the end of a simulated world, when the controllers pull the plug and the experiment ceases. Particles fall, systems fail, and the comforting scaffolding of reality dissolves. What will happen if the simulation melts down around you?"

Sounds interesting, doesn't it? Quite often, I think that I am somehow trapped in the Matrix, especially over the last couple of years.

Okay, now I've talked a lot about the lyrics, so let me come back to the music itself. As I said, it sounds a lot like Finnish-based black metal. Bands like Horna or Sargeist were quite often an influence, but also, as I stated in my past reviews of the previous releases, Norwegian black metal from the '90s is a component of the musical structures here. "Solips" combines modern stuff with some more nostalgic memories, and this works quite well once again, although it is sometimes a little more difficult to get into than the last albums.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10