The very young Tampere, Finland-based label Saturnal Records suddenly appear out of the blue with some highly interesting releases; On Death’s Wings by Blood Red Fog and Hellspirit with Dawn Under Curse will be the first releases, available as from May 26th on, and at the end of July one can expect Anticipation For Blood Leveled In Darkness by super-group Voodoo Gods. Look out for the upcoming reviews.
This review deals with the second release on this new label, On Death’s Wings by Finland’s Blood Red Fog. This project was formed a decade ago, and throughout the past ten years, there were a couple of extremely interesting mini and full length recordings, and some great splits as well. This specific one, On Death’s Wings, is the third official full length, but actually it was written and recorded at the end of last decade, before the 2012-Harvest-album saw the light. There were some additional recording sessions afterwards (in 2012 and earlier this year). The stuff has been mixed and engineered by founding member / band leader B.R.F. (though some of his Lordamor-colleagues did some session parts), and the mastering was done at the Blackvox Studios by Santtu Kainulainen.
The sound on On Death’s Wings (which lasts for thirty six minutes, by the way), to start with, is beneath acceptance. It surely is of the ‘underground’ kind, which this kind of material demands for, but it too under-produced, too primitive. I like primitivism, but not this kind for sounding like being recorded on a simple tape. No, I’ve heard worse, but as an honest reviewer I do need to mention this.
The compositions are great once again. Okay, there might be discussion about the repetitive simplicity at the one hand (including the lack of originality; see further) or the vocals. When it comes to these, the vocals, you might be surprised. B.R.F.’s voice is not of the ‘regular’ blackish-screaming kind (at least, if this would exist, for there are tens of different timbres and approaches, of course); it’s rather a combination of throaty shouts and hysterical shrieking. You like it, or you do not; it’s that simple… When it comes to the compositions, well, that’s a more consequent story. The pretty lengthy tracks (five in total) are pretty varying in tempo, but with a focus on slower passages. They are very melodic and, at the same time, extremely epic, which gives the whole a subtle touch of Pagan-glory and Viking-superiority. Who can resist this? The combination of this paganised slowed-down tempo and the epic melodies create a certain touch of melancholy, yet not of the desolate, suicidal of funereal kind; it’s rather a longing for Old Glory. The tremolo riffing and the pounding rhythm section provide a feeling of death and desperation, and the vocals (see above) strengthen this eerie spirit.
The bio compares this stuff with the likes of Burzum, Mütiilation, Drudkh, Satanic Warmaster and Horna, and for the better part I do agree. I think it’s not that weird to refer to bands / projects like Vultyr, Cosmic Church (one of the bands Blood Red Fog have a split with) or Saturnian Mist to stay in this band’s home country, or Csejthe, Front Beast, Graveland etc. to go abroad.