One Listen Review
1st Listen 19 Sept 24
Reviewed 13 Sept 24
Winterfylleth – The Imperious Horizon
Candlelight / Spinefarm
Released 13 Sept 24
Due to a well-earned holiday and returning to tech issues, this one listen review is later than anticipated and I would imagine all fans have heard The Imperious Horizon, the 8th album by UK black metal stalwarts, Winterfylleth.
Even with a new line-up, the high quality output of the band has not wavered. This is a band who know how to capture their sound, aided and abetted by a stellar producer in Chris Fieldingand an equally stellar Mark Mynett on post-production and mastering duties. It is important to mention this aspect, because as a unit, they have absolutely killed the production on the album.
Nine tracks long, (7 if you exclude the intro and the interlude at track 8 – these don’t count in my eyes), The Imperious Horizon is about an hour long, but the sheer 100mph aggression littered across the tracks make sure that the album rattles along. Once the intro track is out the way, the album starts proper and ‘Like Brimming Fire’ pounces on you like a starving tiger. It is immediate and it is heavy. Genuine black metal vocals from Chris Naughton are delivered in with his throat-shredding style and are a joy to listen to. It is a very strong opening track.
What is very noticeable throughout the album is the intensity and aggression of Simon Lucas’s drums. The blast-beats absolute pummel you and are often the dominating
factor in a few of the tracks, including the excellent ‘Dishonour Enthroned’.
One minor issue with the album is the lack of variation in the track intros. The first 5 songs are utterly immediate, in your face, not fuck’s given! The tracks are really well delivered, however there is a slight moment of joy when ‘In Silent Grace’ begins with a slower intro and less intrusive nature to the delivery. Primordial’s Nemtheanga contributes his distinctive vocals to the track, helping to make it one of the stand-out songs on a very good album.
Winterfylleth are not a band to let you down. You know what you are getting from them and, despite the line-up changes, or maybe even because of them, the standard remains as high as always. This is a highly-recommended album and I look forward to listening to it again, this time with a pair of headphones, to capture the intricacies and nuances I potentially missed on my one listen.
The DevilsHorns 
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