ISOLERT is a Black Metal project out of Greece. They are gritty, evil, and apparently have no respect for borders. As stated on their Bandcamp site, "this bewitching project draws not from the classic Greek black metal sound and instead delves deep into the Scandinavian night." The band formed in 2015 as a foursome and have since consolidated to a trio with their November 11, 2020 release of "World In Ruins," their second full-length album. If you're into SWBM, you'll need to check this band out.

The album has several of the expected trappings - melodic tremolo, frenetic blast beats, screeching banshee vocals, lo-fi production. But it also has some surprises - outbursts of rhythm and full-toned power riffs, discernable basslines, and even, by Odin's goat, stirring guitar solos. I might even go as far as to say the production is in the lower mid-fi range. Blasphemy, I know.

I don't often mention album art, but I have to say this cover is pretty damned awesome. City on flames dance in the background. Emaciated wraithlike wretches grovel in the foreground and betwixt and interwoven are gallows, hurt, blood, and a red moon in full glory. The whole is done in stark blacks, grays, and reds. Altogether, evocative and moving just like the album itself.

My favorite tracks come later in the album. It's almost like the first couple of tracks are like that rock Sisyphus had to push up the hill, but in this instance he slipped and it crushed him and then picked up speed as it kept on rolling back downhill. "Extinction," "Staring At A Path Towards Nowhere," "World In Ruins," and "Light . . . Has Abandoned Us" rank high on my list, with the title track being way the hell up there.

Although the band claims it is their brutal Black Metal that will bring about the end of times (specifically on November 11, 2020), thematically this album is a charred reflection of our current world and its trajectory toward inevitable and utter destruction. The narrative, as signposted by the song titles, takes us from brutal commencement ("Fire, Ash Blood") to severe escalation ("Extinction") to bleak conclusion ("Light... Has Abandoned Us"). So, with us looking down the barrel of death and despair, my recommendation is to run out and get some corrosive Black Metal to acclimate yourself to the impending doom. A good start would be "World In Ruins."