Alright, alright. I'm back from a quick hiatus, and I'm ready to jump back into whatever metal is thrown at me. Before new albums are cast upon me, I've been sleeping on the promo for the debut, self-titled album from the Portuguese black metal band Redenção Pelas Chamas. This LP is pretty mysterious, like most debut black metal albums. Its ambiguity and the fact that it's from Portugal (not the most black metal-abundant country) certainly piqued my interest.

Two minutes of crow noises, downpours, and other drab symbolism start off the project, and I can only expect these themes to be expanded upon in the songs to come. "Frente Triunfal" smacks me right in the ear with a raw burst of blast beats and symphonic riffs. For such a lo-fi production, the guitar and keyboard work soar together wonderfully. There's no credited keyboardist, but I'm sure there are elements of it in every song. The genre tag on Metallum labels this as raw black metal, and I couldn't think of a more fitting description. The rawness is explored more in following tracks, such as "Misantropia Total" and "Clamor Distante." The galloping drums in these tracks maintain a constant variety, changing from blast-beats to galloping tempos. "Misantropia Total" features some clanky bass, still audible through the sea of noise. "Clamor Distant" reeks of depressive black metal, and somehow I'm in the mood for some feels. I really wish this song were way longer, so I can stay in this dark, yet calm realm. "Ritual Apotropaico," the track with the most impressive shredding to date, is an instant highlight for its poignant melodies, yet harsh climate. The vocals bite harder than stray hounds on heroin, and the unorthodox riffing complements the mood perfectly.

The halfway point of the album, both in terms of time and song, is marked by "Nortada," an instrumentally dense track. An interesting audible phenomenon occurs, as the bass matches not the guitar, but the drums! The blast-beating is accompanied by sturdy bass notes, and I've never heard this before. Some cleaner singing shines through, as our vocalist Fea-Mogul not only screams, but shouts. "Floresta de Ecos" is a standard track, with no new ideas. "Curor" unfortunately falls down a similar path, but that doesn't mean it's bad. After the "Outro," there's a cover of an NSBM band's song, of which I condemn, and will not elaborate on further.

Well, I'm glad I got out of whatever slump I had and allotted some time for Redenção Pelas Chamas. This Portuguese raw black metal band are masters at creating a lovely atmosphere, with charmingly low sound quality. While the last half of the album was definitely weaker than the first, the songs from it are still solid. It seems like most of the album's uniqueness got condensed into the first half. A great album, but they better not be following in the NSBM coattails...