KOSMOGYR's debut is a modern Black Metal album that is aggressive and intense but has a note of depressive melancholy.  Black Metal is a tricky genre for me because I feel that with it, more than any other genre or subgenre of Metal, when the bands are bad...they are terrible.  But when they are good...then they are goddamn good. KOSMOGYR fits into goddamn good category because it takes the best parts of the genre and leaves out the worst ones.  Black Metal's well known frozen aggressiveness is in check, the burnt screams shred the ears, and the bleak atmosphere is accurately represented.  The shoddy production, not stop tremolo picking, and boring, single minded drumming is absent and the album is all the better for it.

Speaking of production, it is raw but it has the added benefit of NOT sounding like it was recorded inside a toilet that was being filled with poo. "Sui Generis," is an atmospheric opening with some great keys/synths and I found myself enjoying it more than most other Black Metal intros.  The first proper track, "The Wane," is the exact opposite and opens with unbridled fury.  The guitars have that classic Black Metal sound but they are played better than most and just when things might get monotonous, they switch it up.  The subtle hints of melody in the lead guitar bring a lot to catch my attention, as does the double bass and snare attack that comes right along with it.  Around the 3:50 mark a vicious, groove riffs accompanied by some more clever lead work brings the song full circle as it finishes as blistering as it began.  Xander is clearly more focused on creating quality riffs and playing real song structures than just barreling his way thru quickly.

The next track, "Quiescent," has an intro that echoes the keys from the opening track.  It's a nice, quick break before the Blackened assault begins with Ivan screaming from the bowels of Hell itself, leading the charge from the riffs and quick cymbal work.  Ivan's vocals are a little deeper here, evoking a twisted marriage between Death growls and Black screams.  He is quite the energetic vocalist and I can tell he really feels this, as opposed to just screaming his head off because reasons. The title track immediately shows us more of that depressive melody they pull off so well and it even had be head banging.  Behind these bleak guitar tones, the drums are really well done, pushing and pulling me thru the rest of the song.  It is a rather gripping song, as the duo really play fast and raw here at what is probably the most Traditional Black Metal part of the album.  At 4:26, things change up again to the melancholy metal and some of the album's best riffs appear on this last half of the song.

"Iridescent," really found its way to me because the vocals and the music, both equally lost and tortured, work so well together.  I loved the movement at 1:42 where the song slows down a moment for Ivan to really show us what he can do with both his vocals and the drums.  This is probably my favorite track on the album because the emotions on the song run high but it never lets up for a breather, with the melodic parts being more of a suffocating blanket than a respite. With "Eviternity," KOSMOGYR have crafted an album filled with destructive melancholic rage, a keen sense of melody, and a searing Black Metal edge.