I absolutely love the Finnish black metal scene since it’s home to the most historic bands in the country’s existence that still makes music this very day. From the early records of Beherit, Satanic Warmaster, Behexen and Impaled Nazarene, here lies Order Of Nosferat who are a international based black metal band from Finland and Germany who’s formation is currently unknown or the year they’ve fronted this project. However, the music is what really drew me in and Nachtmusik is the third full-length recording prior to last year’s album of Arrival of the Plague Bearer and this is released through the label Purity Through Fire. What really intrigued me in checking this band out is not because of their style, but because they incorporate heavy influences from both the first and second wave of black metal but well as adding different dynamics and textures to the amazingly crafted song variations and the craftsmanship alongside the raw, abrasive and almost atmospheric styled passages really sets the bar to the maximum level and ultimately made music that feels diabolical and mysterious.
The album also contains a lot emphasis of high guitar tones, suppressed bass signatures, competent drum work and the vocals sounding vampiric and haunting really makes the listener travel into a abandoned, gothic like mansion where you feel trapped and lonely in a world full of darkness and despair. Stylistically speaking, this record captures the essences of first and secondary waves of black metal in which the instrumentals and production gives the record a much more compelling and vampirism approach since these melodic characteristics does tend to get little tiring at first but once you fulfill your own expectations or verdicts on this album, you’ll soon realize that not all black metal bands are all about hatred or discussing satanic lyrical themes.
Just the moments you dive deeper into the record with tracks such as For Those Who Dwell in Sleepless Despair, Floating on the Sea of Drowned Desires, Tunes of Nocturnal Tragedies and Bloodlust Nightmares Raging Wild right off the bat you’ll get lo-fi keyboard melodies, dreamlike arrangements and atmospheric layers of commanding and minimal instrumentation that is so explosive and engaging it truly feels like watching a old black and white silent horror movie where the suspension really apprehends the mood and fluidity but really gets the momentum going after every listen beginning to end. Nachtmusik is Order Of Nosferat’s most integrating and ghoulish sounding records these musicians have done to date.
Overall Score: 8.5/10
Review by Jake Butler
