You definitely get the feeling that these guys spin Venom, Bathory, and Celtic Frost records as often as they reach for the Sleep and Clutch discs.

Sonically, these guys cover a lot of ground, and they definitely have an epic quality to them that some of the finer black metal albums have, but there's a lot of groove and blues thrown in with the barbed-wire riffing, as well as some more atmospheric, experimental moments. Their style is heavily indebted to the prog/post metal of High on Fire's first two albums, but while Pike and Preston opted for a cleaner, thrashier sound on Blessed Black Wings, these cats sharpen up some different weapons and look for other beasts of yore to slay. There's a distinctively noisy, angular Am Rep vibe that pops up in these guys from time to time, and while the music is suitably progressive and challenging, it never resorts to wankery. What it does rely heavily on is skull pounding riffs with equal doses of deadly nightshade and narcotic mandrake. Waves of psychedelia certainly sweep through the band's metallic leanings, and add yet another dimension to their monstrous sound.

Vocally, singer Matt Miner definitely channels the same demons as Cronos, and drinks the same whiskey as Lemmy. He's not afraid to tone down his throaty, raspy, aggressive style when the tempos sway into more doomy territories, where he opts for a mellower, more spoken delivery. The rhythm section offers a tight and pronounced counter-assault to the barrage laid down by the seering guitars and roaring vox, and the production, courtesy of Sanford Parker (Pelican, Unearthly Trance, Buried at Sea) perfectly accentuates all of the band's strengths. Fans of High on Fire, Enslaved, and Celtic Frost will not be disappointed in the slightest with their trip through the Viking world of Greenland

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