Lake of Blood - Heed the Primal Calling

by Cosmo Lee

Riffs! The lingua franca of metal. The proclamation of themes. The sinking of hooks. Lake of Blood‘s got ’em – lots. Heed the Primal Calling (Milkweed, 2008), the debut EP of these SoCal boys (why is one named “Nordic”?), is utterly compelling black metal, thanks to utterly compelling riffs. They’re not the usual minor key scribbles. Anthemic fanfares, jagged thrash barbs, and hard-nosed scrapings weave in and out of carefully sculpted tracks. For once, black metal songs one can tell apart! None of this “turn on, tune in, zone out” haze so prevalent in USBM. The production doesn’t match the ambition, but time/money will solve that. Lyrics aren’t the usual fare, dealing with the transformation of human into something higher/lower. This couplet is so tasty: “Come the crimson sunset / Come the creeping darkness.” I raised invisible oranges twice, and I don’t throw those around lightly. USBM has a new star – take heed.

The Darkest Path

Buy:
Milkweed