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Despite being formed at the beginning of this century, Sigillum Diabolicum are not exactly the most productive outfit from West-European soil.

Czarna magia is Polish for ‘black magic’, so when I did receive an album from a band with that specific name (I got it from The End Of Time Records’ chieftain Dev), I knew this wouldn’t be a Pop or Rock album, yet something that might tease me. Well, believe me: it does!

After two albums that were released via Cephalopagus Records, Portuguese one-man army Sílení signed to Eighth Tower Records (creating superspectrum sounds from ultraterrestrial dimensions), run by Sonologyst’s Raffaele Pezzella, to have this next album released.

The young Russian label Distorted Void has a small yet very interesting roster. It houses material by acts like Psionic Asylum, Onasander, Hiemal and Uzbazur, and they did compose and release some very attractive compilations too. I recently wrote a review for the first Forgotten, Abandoned, Desolated compilation, and this review deals with another compiled sampler, consisting by thirteen pieces by as much projects from all over our globe.

I do not exactly exaggerate when defining Distant Voices as a very unique label. Okay, about the musical taste one can discuss (I do not discuss, for I adore about all releases), but each single release is like a unique thing, almost like a collector’s item. Every release is handmade and extremely limited, with no repressing whatsoever, so all copies must be adored, idolised.

When composer / guitarist David ‘HellRazor’ Meza and bass player / vocalist Maria Alejandra ‘Blasfemia’ Pacheco Zambrano started playing under the moniker of Lucifera (it was somewhere in 2008), they did play cover songs in the first place. Everything from AC/DC to Metallica, or from Rock Goddess to Motörhead passed the revue. Yet soon, the band started writing, recording and playing self-written stuff.

If I am not mistaken, Haiku Funeral were created in 2008 in the south of France by two guys, Dimitar Dimitrov (vocals, electronics, keyboards, hailing from Bulgaria) and William Kopecky (fretless bass, vocals, sitar; originating from the U.S.) under the influence of hallucinogenic and psychotropic pleasure. After three official recordings in the period 2008-2010, the duo signed to Aesthetic Death, and those trusted with this mind-blowing label will not be surprised.

Ethir Anduin are a productive formation, formed in 2006 in Leningrad by Alexey ‘Fenrir’ Veselov (currently also in Bestial Deform, by the way). Throughout this decade, Ethir Anduin (being a solo-outfit) recorded and released quite some stuff, including a hand full of full-length studio albums (many of them being self-released) (amongst them: I Magen Av Svart Kaos – link below)

Guillaume Taliercio is known from his activities in bands like Cowards, Colossus Of Destiny and Eibon especially. The guy wrote some material during the first half of this decade, which did not exactly fit to one of the combos he is involved with, so he composed it as a personal project, which eventually got baptized as Heaume Mortal. He did it, and this isn’t but informative, under the name Guillaume Morlat, by the way.

I had not heard of Unmensch before, but that is not that strange, for this project was formed just two years ago. It is the outlet of one ZR, a guy (or girl, who knows) from the far West of Flanders. Little is known about both musician and project, for Scorn is the first official release by this mysterious outfit. The only thing I know is that his or her ‘music reflects the resentment towards the herd and focusses on individual strength and wisdom’. As a one-(wo)man army that’s an honest statement!