Year of release: 2018
Label: Iron Bonehead Productions
Rating: 7,8 / 10
This new release from the mysterious trio ANCIENT MOON I expected with great impatience. Their debut full-length, consisting of a single 28-minute track, was released on Satanath Records in 2015, and it is still one of the best and most original releases of this label. The band plays occult ritual Black Metal that is so trendy today, but it does it terribly convincingly. Frankly speaking, I consider ANCIENT MOON to be one of the leading formations of this style at the moment. Despite a lot of borrowing from MAYHEM, ONDSKAPT, etc., it sounds peculiar and recognizable. In part this is achieved with the help of a dirty otherworldly sound, spitting on modern standards of both the mainstream and the underground. On "Secretum Secretorum" it is a little clearer than on "Vvltvre", but still not particularly eager to satisfy the listener. The music of ANCIENT MOON creates in the brain the images of dark deep dungeons illuminated by the dim flame of torches, where occultists in black hoodies singing the words of ancient spells while opening the portals into the coldness of other dimensions. This musing in working with truly dark flows of cosmic energy, it's not some kind of "retro" sacrifice of the naked virgin in the glory of Satan. The first track which lasts more than 18 minutes is more relaxed, like a ritual itself. carefully thought out and realized. In the second track which is three times shorter, there is a direct collision with the abyss that expels chaos from itself. Probably, I'm wrong in my interpretations because I don't know shit about black magic stuff, but my perception is just that.
The second half of the split, performed by PROSTERNATUR, impresses less. The author (s) of this project also hides his (their) identity, and as the country of origin, metal-archives show us a vague "international", but for some reason it seems to me that this is Germany. Loud and clean sound, strong similarity to the Swedish canonical sound, everything fits to modern standards - typical characteristics of the German occult Black Metal. As a consequence, all this is perceived with a certain amount of boredom, although it is played very well and intensive. It's funny that ANCIENT MOON, while working on the same patterns, somehow manage to do stunning stuff. Anyway, PROSTERNATUR doesn't spoil the general impression. "Secretum Secretorum" will be out on Iron Bonehead on June 22nd, do not miss it.
English (UK) 
Крыўская