HERZOG is a Black Metal band formed in Belgium recently, one of prolific writer Deja’s many side projects. This is the band’s first album, and it has eight songs. “Loss of Utopia” is first. It’s a mood-setter, with ominous and dangerous sounds, almost like the calm before the storm. “Acheminement” is the first proper track, and a wall of treble hits you out of the gate, although the deep guttural vocals help to swing that sounds back a bit. It has a loose Black Metal sound, but there is more going on here…more layers of sound and a darkness that can’t be denied. “Melted Tesseract” has a more traditional sound, with a wall of guitars, blast beat drumming, and horrid vocal screams.

 “Oath of Weakness” begins with heavy thuds in the drums and a slow moving riff. The riff then ventures out a bit, and you don’t often hear this level of experimentation on Black Metal while holding on to the core sound. “The Craftsmen” has darker, and more powerful tones, almost as if it is announcing the coming of a skilled dealer of the dark arts. Listen to the chord progressions and you will begin to hear the differences in this band. “All Rites” is just as powerful, and the guttural vocals keep it grounded in filth. It goes deep beneath the earth, burrowing into the pit of Hell itself.

 “Oath of I” again hears the album revert back to more traditional Black Metal, and is both aggressive and thick. There are also some deep despondent tones on the album that bring a side of torture with them. “Oath of Us” closes the album, just as it began, with a short instrumental. The symphonic tones hint at some beauty, but if you remove the façade, you can see the ugliness inside. Overall, I found the album to be inventive. Black Metal doesn’t have to stand still, and the lines don’t always have to be so linear. “Furnace” is an example of one that pushed the boundaries forward, rather than relying on the past.