Style: Black metal, dungeon synth, dark ambient, ambient black metal
Primary Emotions/Themes: Winter and all of its glory
Thoughts: These guys are insane. They released four incredibly lengthy albums in four years, with this one being the second release out of the bunch. Prior to this a bunch of demo's that may as well have been albums got released sporadically with 2014 seeming to be a particularly active year.
Beketh Nexehmu play black metal, the type that worships winter. The sound is harsh, yet is full of majesty. The songs are long, and often build over the course of minutes to a dramatic conclusion, but this is only half of the tale. The other half is the ambient side of the band.
Much like the cold black metal, the ambient portions of the album are quite desolate and dreary. They tend to be a bit more drone oriented than the more active black metal parts, but they still retain that sense of majesty that the band establishes within the other genre.
If this all sounds familiar, it's because it is. There are many other bands that do this style of music and do it well. That said, Beketh Nexehmu can stand with the best that this genre has to offer. Their music is well crafted, well paced, and despite the song length, the album does respect your time.
If you want a shorter listen, put on one of the three LP's and you have a complete album. If you want something more in the ambient genre put on the third record. The last track in particular is entirely ambient and is an excellent conclusion to an epic album.
De Fornas Likgaldrar is exactly what it sets out to be. Look at the cover, look at it closely. That feeling of the cold of winter permeates this albums every minute. Beyond that cold however there lies a deep majesty in the night sky. Once the cold is acclimated to and has assimilated the listener that's where this albums true beauty is.
Written December 4th 2023
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