EISENKULT - Die Hölle ist hier black Vinyl

Since their ...gedenken wir der Finsternis debut album in 2020, EISENKULT have quickly become a flagship band for PURITY THROUGH FIRE, which is perhaps unsurprising given that they include members of labelmates MAVORIM and TOTENWACHE. But EISENKULT's swift ascent was built on the back of that first full-length and the successive ...von Himmel, hoch herab album and a split with now-labelmates ATRONOS, these collective recordings displaying the purest Teutonic BLACK METAL steel: proudly and unapologetically traditional, forged in the fire of the mid '90s but by no means blinkered by the past - and of course, perfect for PURITY THROUGH FIRE's banner. Still, surprises abound, and that's what compellingly came with the comparatively Technicolor Vulgäre, deutsche Hassmusik in 2023, where the power-trio flexed their folkloristic muscles and planted a steel-toed boot in the face of those naysayers who claim black metal can't be both traditional and unique.

EISENKULT continue that triumphant march with Die Hölle ist hier, their fourth full-length in nearly as many years. If the trio's first two albums complemented each other in sound and style, then Die Hölle ist hier is certainly the cagey complement to its immediate predecessor. Where Vulgäre, deutsche Hassmusik dared with its songwriting acumen - biergarten hooliganism raised to incredibly dynamic heights, on wings of major-chorded melodicism and stunning musicianship - EISENKULT's latest long-player rips and races, stomps and sways, with even greater bravado and a by-now-unmasked sense of devilish fun. Granted, this is still BLACK METAL after all - tragedy as present as triumph, the medieval characteristically suggested by the baroque textures now threaded throughout the entirety of their records - so no frowns are turned upside down, but as each of the album's 11 tracks take turns both treacherous and teasing, sometimes stopping on the literal dime and shifting into something (dazzlingly) unexpected, one cannot help but ponder how much (devilish) delight EISENKULT take in defying orthodoxy. 

Mention must be made of EISENKULT's increased usage of synths, which came to the forefront on Vulgäre, deutsche Hassmusik. At times whimsical, folkloric, eerily sprightly, or even unsettlingly mocking, their integration (as well as vintage tone, played with precision) has become a boon for the band, truly putting their already-advanced songwriting ahead of the black metalled pack; if anything, the new texture uncovered here is of the angelic, which comes to a haunting climax on "Töte mich." Maybe not for all, but those synths and the rest of Die Hölle ist hier will provoke a strong reaction in either direction...and EISENKULT wouldn't have it any other way!