Dark Fortress (Germany): “Spectres from the Old World”

You either hate or love Dark Fortress, but they are certainly a great band that is sometimes not considered among the great black metal bands of today. The invitation to Inferno Festival 2020, then postponed to 2021, and the enormous confidence placed in them by a major label like Century Media are signs of the importance of this German band formed back in 1994. Dark Fortress are traditionally labelled as melodic black metal band, but this label does not apply anymore today. The new album Spectres from the Old World shows a clear evolution towards progressive and post-black metal, as you will hear from the full listen below. The German lads deconstruct any black metal canon and rebuild from its ashes a new canon of their own, which at the same time is also traditional as you can recognize their brand without hesitation. In other words, Dark Fortress play something unique and have created a genre that no one else can imitate. The song-writing is of a top-notch, the sound is spectacular, the musicianship and the production are perfect. Perhaps the only flaw of Spectres from the Old World is that none the less it is a bit cold and does not really enthrall. However, it remains a masterpiece and one of the best black metal albums in 2020.
 
Notes:
Spectres from the Old World was released on February 28, 2020 through Century Media.
 
Personnel:
Asvargr: Guitars
Seraph: Drums, Percussion (tracks 3, 5, 6, 9-12), Songwriting
V. Santura: Guitars (lead), Songwriting
Morean: Vocals, Lyrics, Songwriting, Arrangements (choir)
Phenex: Keyboards
Guest musicians:
Alon Leon Hillel: Vocals (choirs) (tracks 11, 12)
Brandt Attema: Trombone (track 12)
Hannes Grossmann: Drums (tracks 1-4, 7, 8)
 
Text by Herjann
herjann@unholyblackmetal.com