SAMSAS TRAUM

SAMSAS TRAUM, in the person of its sole leader Alexander Kaschte, decided to record a black metal album. Memories of the sonic experiments by MOONSPELL and THERION come to mind. But while the former released black metal under the DAEMONARCH moniker and the latter recorded death metal under the name DEMONOID, Kaschte had no desire to create a new project and presented his experiment to listeners under the SAMSAS TRAUM banner. A very bold decision, I must note. After all, it's unclear how old fans of the band's gothic metal past will react to such innovations, and it's uncertain whether new fans will appear. But apparently, such an extraordinary personality as Alex couldn't care less. On the new album, we hear epic black metal with fleeting symphonic backdrops, splashes of acoustic guitars, and magnificent guitar solos — the last thing I expected. Kaschte himself says that bands like DARKTHRONE, BURZUM, SATYRICON, and DISSECTION inspired this experiment, but personally I would also mention ROTTING CHRIST — it is the epic quality of these Greeks that permeates the entire disc by the Austrians. The result is an excellent example of melodic black metal without any pop-oriented symphonics or unnecessary power riffs, something that has been sorely lacking in recent years. Bravo, Kaschte! I eagerly await the second new album, which I've heard is done in an acoustic folk style.