Wolves in the Throne Room – 'Estuary' review: black metal from the far future
The US band's new album is set a thousand years after the end of civilisation. Metal Hammer Germany gives it 5.5 out of 7 for carefully crafted atmospheric black metal.
Photo: Kingofcupsqueenofswords / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped and resized)
Single video: YouTube · Wolves in the Throne Room · youtube.com
Single: Ghosts Among the Obelisks
US black metal band Wolves in the Throne Room released 'Estuary' today – via Relapse Records in North America and, according to Metal Hammer, via Century Media. The six songs tell a post-apocalyptic story: 'Our new LP 'Estuary' is set 1000 years in the future after the end of civilization,' Nathan Weaver said when it was announced. If wilderness reclaimed the cities, the estuaries would become 'realms of power and magic'. The band produced the album themselves.
Metal Hammer critic Martin Wickler awards 5.5 out of 7. Trance-like, elegiac passages alternate with long blast-beat stretches over spherical, partly industrial-sounding soundscapes; some sections are stripped back to dry guitar and drums. Mostly just under ten minutes long, the pieces are shorter than on the early albums but feel tighter, with tension built in a relaxed but effective way. His verdict: anyone looking for carefully crafted atmospheric black metal will definitely find it here.
The video is the official music video for 'Ghosts Among the Obelisks' on the band's YouTube channel.