ANCIENT HOSTILITY is the collective efforts of both SadVoice, from the Ukraine, and Imber from the United States. Together they release their self-titled first album, "Ancient Hostility". I'll be the first to admit that purely atmospheric black metal isn't exactly in my wheelhouse for my most beloved metal genres. However, "Ancient Hostility" brings with it a charm of pure and vile black metal prowess. I honestly felt like I was being tortured while listening to this album, and I don't mean being tortured in a bad way. I just mean that this album made me feel like I was in a deep and dark chasm of pure torture. The harrowing screams of Imber were incredibly mind numbing. And the creepy dissonance of the instrumentation provided by SadVoice carried the somber tone so succinctly. I was pretty much bothered by the entirety of this album, but I believe that is the point to make in atmospheric black metal. Again, not being bothered in a bad way, it just made me feel like I was being dunked into a state of purely vile evil.

People find the absolute beauty in the deep and dark thematic elements of these types of albums. And put simply, the music being played is quite beautiful. You get the best dose of the music in the instrumentals of "Enmity" and "Bloodied Fields". Both tracks carry with them the sad tone that is present in the entirety of this album. I find the level of beauty is carried in the simplicity in the musicianship. It is not all over the place crazy blast beats and fast guitar picking, but they still pack a punch. I think that is the beauty of this entire album. There doesn't need to be a lot of flashy musicianship happening. It's simple and very effective. "Immurement" proves this all the way through. The simplistic drumbeat and guitar riffing are slow and steady, while providing the creepy tonal structure to be carried by the harrowing vocals. The piano melody at the end of the track adds a nice touch.  There are elements of blast beats and faster guitar riffing thrown in at times as well. "Disavowed" and "Conjured Odium" show off the faster tempos of the album.

"Drawn and Quartered" is another of the tracks that brings a fiercer vibe to it. With a chunky bass line and some brutal blast beats I find this track to be the craziest of the album. I just love the balance that is shown between being brutal and atmospheric to the highest degree. At the beginning of the album I was just thrown off by the creepiness of the music I was listening to, but by the end of the album I became more and more of a fan. Give this one a listen.