KHAZAD DÛM are a Black Metal band from Brazil. As a garage band, they started playing for fun in 2014. Their demo album "Vain Efforts" was released in 2015 after bassist Gothmog and Noatún (guitar/vocals) met and teamed up to record music and later orchestrate what would be their first full length studio album "Garmadh". Containing six tracks the album's sound is homogeneous. It comprises elements from Thrash and Doom to the earliest and most prominent bands of first wave, underground Black Metal.

It starts impossibly slow with a 3-minute synth "Intro", which I couldn't wait for it to end, but definitely achieves certain profundity as it reaches its last seconds. The first song of the album "Raise Of The Immortals" presents itself energetically fast, as though as unleashing a beast. The furious guitar brought me an instant reminiscence of INQUISITION's "Magnificent Glorification of Lucifer", but extending to 8 minutes, the song encapsulates a very raw atmosphere. Noatún's guttural vocals are formidable for the genre. It would have been fantastic if he could maintain them through the album. The drums are simple but fuel the song with potent blast beats that become increasingly vital for the song's rawness.

"Raise Of The Immortals" is followed by an acoustic guitar interlude, Draut Gadur. As "Isildur's Bane" begins, it starts with the same old school intensity of the first track, accompanied by some acoustic guitar solos and atmospheric keyboards, the song serves as prelude for track five. "The Ban Of Wisdom", is one of my favorites from the album. It has a consistent aggressiveness in the first part that plays well along with the lyrical context, it is as though powerlessness rediscovered pride and bravery. The keyboards to this song are mild but seem to drown its rage from the bottom.

Probably one of the things I enjoyed the most about this band was to discover the potential in today's underground Brazilian scene. I couldn't start this review without talking about their debut demo album "Vain Efforts". It has probably one of the most nostalgic vibes I've listened in a long time. While Noatún's string riffing was absolutely memorable, this album offers a diverse auditive experience always under Black Metal's classic Thrash fueled restlessness. One would easily think of SLAYER's "Show No Mercy" or their legendary compatriots, SÁRCOFAGO.

Being more professionally produced "Garmadh" is the band's first step to the Inner Circle. Under the name of KHAZAD DÛM, they make extensive use of Tolkien's mythology, but their message is direct and conscious. One could relate it to an unbearable feeling of subjugation and longing for a lost forgotten glory that calls from the depths to be revived. This particular characteristic is visually printed in the album cover. Something not strange to The Middle-Earth nor ours! Lyric wise, they give an entree to early SUMMONING fans, but it is no dessert because of a persistent misuse of the keyboards. Which aren't bad, but doesn't make justice to the rough atmosphere they create in conjunction.

The bass line is powerful, and well executed. At some extent, even the acoustic guitar pieces are irrelevant and unfitting making a great misstep in comparison with what is undeniably fine in their demo. Reading a brief description in the band's page, claims were made praising them for how authentically classic they sound. Here I would have to give my vote and recognize that with "Garmadh", they have successfully re-created and maintained the KVLT NECRO-sound of the genre back in the day. Was it for angst or genuine amusement? Certain is KHAZAD DÛM from Brazil has made me re-consider my skepticism towards underground new bands. Leaving me with favorable expectations to hear of their (hopefully) un-mainstream progression.