One of the best aspects of being part of online metal networks is the ability to discover music you may have never come across otherwise. "Vulturine" is my first experience of DRAUGNIM, and it definitely won't be the last. This Finnish band (whose name means "white wolf" in English) has been around since 1999, and it seems like time has not withered their commitment to creating an interesting take on "Blackened Pagan Metal". "Vulturine" is an album which comprises of elements woven well into its tapestry. Its sound deftly balances the harsher elements of black metal with clean guitar riffs, quieter moments and subtle keyboard parts. As in "Hunger, So in Demise" opens with clean guitar riffs, after which the full band thunders in, with headbanging tom fills adding to my enjoyment of the track. The last two tracks on the album begin with lone, slowly picked riffs, in contrast to the rest of the song. Track order is done well on this album, with the rapid-fire "A Passage in Fire" being followed by the mid-tempo "Grief Unsung", for example.

This is also an album which moved me. One of the stories the music conjured in my mind was one of a protagonist who survived fiery hardships, only to be left to be gripped by a grief that freezes the soul so deeply that the griever can no longer feel at all. "Grief Unsung" is a highlight of the album for me, with chants evoking a transition into the frozen state. The repeating guitar motifs are later joined by a subtle countermelody, which reminded me of BURZUM circa the black metal-leaning albums. Morior is particularly good at creating interesting variations on his musical themes, which keeps the guitar riffs engaging despite the relatively long lengths of the songs. None of the songs felt long - I was lost in DRAUGNIM's musical world. For me, the album's production felt right for an album with a strong black metal current. The instruments are well-mixed; I felt that everything had enough "breathing space", while retaining the distorted, rough sort of sound which typically characterizes black metal. Chimedra's vocals are given space to show his full power, without sounding too loud and "brickwalled" production-wise. His performance throughout adds to the emotion created by the music. Turms rounds out the low end well; he adds a subtle texture to the tracks.

Session drummer R. Tuomikanto is equal parts brutality and finesse. He brings the headbanging beats in "That Name Is Hate", punctuated with a few drum rolls. Powerful closer "Serpent Stone" sees him combine slower tom beats with rapid fire bass drumming, and brings the song to a satisfying conclusion with a shower of cymbals. DRAUGNIM have produced an album which is one of the high points of the 2016 black metal releases. It is an album of considered and interesting elements. I will be making multiple return journeys to the realm of the white wolf.