“Polar Veil” is the fifth full-length album from the Finnish band, HEXVESSEL. Their Bandcamp page describes their sound as: “churned in the cauldron of Black Metal, Ritual Folk Psychedelia and Doom Rock, and echoing with shivering Gothic undertones.” That’s an apt description. At most times, they are more metal-adjacent, using elements of black and doom metal in their folk rock sound. The album will be released on September 22nd, 2023, on Svart Records. The singles preceding the album are “Older Than The Gods,” “A Cabin In Montana,” and “Ring.”

“The Tundra Is Awake” kicks off the album with soaring tremolos, booming drums, and Mat Kvohst McNerney’s somber clean vocals. The keyboards come in at the perfect time, giving the track plenty of much-needed impact. I first heard HEXVESSEL on their “When We Are Death” album, and have been loosely following them ever since. This new album is more refined than their 2016 release and their sound hasn’t changed significantly since then. My biggest complaint with “Polar Veil” is that there can be so much going on that the vocals tend to get lost in the mix during the more complex parts. This happens too often for my liking, but since their sound is so unique, I can give them a pass.

The second track, “Older Than The Gods,” is one of my favorites. I love the doom metal energy and the mixing of shouted and sung vocals. The clean lead vocals are somber with the right touch of sweetness. McNerney’s voice is what keeps me coming back for more with every release. The, at times, chaotic instrumentation is the perfect counterpoint for his vocal style. The song, “A Cabin In Montana,” is the highlight of the album. Again, there are shouted backing vocals. The guitars are bright, with airy tremolos. The lead vocals are sung in a slightly lower register than on the previous tracks. The dissonant guitar part towards the end all but drowns out the spoken vocals. I’ve mentioned low spoken vocals being a pet peeve of mine, but in this case, I decided to just go with it. The problem could very well be my damaged hearing from many a concert without ear protection.

“Eternal Meadow” has all of the elements that make up a great HEXVESSEL track and more. Rämänen’s drumming approaches blast beat-level speeds, lending a sense of urgency to the song. After the first major buildup, there is an excellent acoustic guitar solo followed by a clean electric guitar part right before the second big swell. The songwriting here impresses me the most. The final track, “Homeward Polar Spirit,” starts at a speed black metal pace. The folksy vocals continue at their established dreary meter while still building in intensity. Things get chaotic right up until the pause midway through. Then the song takes on a more doom metal feel. Again, the keyboards come in at just the right time. The second half doesn’t reach the same fever pitch as the first, but it does build to a satisfying climax, capping off another excellent album that only Hexvessel can deliver.

I still hold their breakout album, “When We Are Death,” in high esteem, and “Polar Veil” approaches that level of greatness. At times the low vocals can be annoying, only because I love McNerney’s voice so much and I don’t like other elements obstructing such a pleasant sound. Still, “Polar Veil” is a high achievement for a truly unique band and I recommend that anyone who is even the least bit intrigued by the merging of folk music, doom metal, and black metal. I don’t know of any other band that sounds quite like HEXVESSEL