Richard Weeks has made waves within the Black Metal community. With politically charged music that is unapologetically aligned with his antifa views. He has come in for both praise and criticism for his attempts at highlighting a disputed issue of the rise of right wing extremism infiltrating the genre, specifically within the underground scene. However, we are not here to discuss politics, we are here for the music.

Coming two years on from the debut of the one man Black Metal extravaganza we have the most recent release of "Wings Of The Joyful". The artwork is simple, showing death sprouting the wings of an angel, well I guess he is the angel of death right? The album opens with "Red Wing, Dead Wing" which is a peaceful instrumental piece, allowing the listener to relax and prepare themselves for what is to come.

We are then thrust into "The First To Die" and to be honest I was underwhelmed. Whilst musically it was sound, there was a very obvious and simple structure that was followed, unfortunately it didn't always have a natural flow to the music and this affected the overall quality of the music. "Hunger" has a very pleasant opening that builds in its layers before the main body of the song kicks in. However again I feel that it is missing substance and meat to the music, there is nothing that jumps out to me and grabs my attention apart from a very abrupt and unnatural ending.

Next we come to "Godless Universe" which is an instrumental piece, showcasing some of Richard's musical talents, the simplicity of the music is welcoming and very easy on the ears, but I do feel that more could have been done to develop this into a much more substantial demonstration of musicality and understanding. "Silencing The Voice Of God" opens with a soundbite of Alan Rickman from the film Dogma before bursting into what I can say is the most impressive track of the album so far. With a renewed energy and more substance we are treated to a much more traditional sounding Black Metal piece.

Finally, the titular track. "Wings Of The Joyful" opens with another soft and clean introduction that is peaceful to listen to. The guitar playing is sublime and again we are shown what Richard can do, the musicianship shown throughout is again marred though by the unnatural feeling to flow of the track.

Overall I feel that while there are some flourishes of promise, overall this is nothing particularly special. But it is a risk with individual projects that a lack of diversity in the song writing and decision making could hinder a production. I would like to see some collaboration and bringing others in to have input so that ideas can be melded together to create a more flowing and rounded sound.