Beats and yelling shorts, 7th May 26

Asenheim: ElbenblutOut 24th April on Dominance of Darkness Somewhere beneath this bloated mess sits an intriguing and flamboyant iteration of blackened folk metal. Extended interludes of symphonic darkwave curate us with a degree of mysticism despite the hammy delivery, effectively and regularly resetting the tone before we are furnished with another metallic segment. The issue is not so much quality as it is quantity. The riff palette veers from heavy to black metal with ease, officiated by its distinctive folk identity. But Asenheim’s editing process is poor to non-existent, to the extent that one gets the impression they were working to a quota of tracks in both length and number. The result is rank repetition of otherwise serviceable melodic inflections, the frequent use of domesticated rock chord sequences, or else reliance on cathartic release that defines post metal and is anathema to the tradition this music allegedly draws from. All is not helped by a somewhat tinny guitar…