With Scandinavia being pretty much synonymous with being the home of Black Metal, it's always interesting to hear about bands from the further flung corners of the earth. Back this year with their third full-length album "Ryšys", Lithuanian Black Metal band LUCTUS are all set to prove that this small Baltic nation is not to be overlooked when it comes to infernal music.

One thing that immediately jumps out is the vocal style used, being flatter and more animalistic than typically found in Black Metal. This adds an eerie feel to the music, especially when this is done in a reptilian chanted way, as for example in "Kvantinis šuolis", reminding me somewhat of Dagon of INQUISITION. What I also enjoyed was that the bass is so prominent; too often the bass disappears in the mix. These strong bass-lines combine with a solid tempestuous onslaught of drums to provide a sturdy backbone for the music, allowing the guitars and synths to flitter about, weaving haunting and sepulchre textures into the music. However, on the downside, the overuse of the cymbals did get rather irksome. Kingas in general does an excellent job on the throne, really fleshing out the songs and giving them a powerful impetus, but the near-constant use of cymbals distracted greatly from the music, even going as far as drowning out some of the more interesting guitar passages. Heavy Thrash influences creep into songs like "K.B.M.B.", giving the already raw sound a more aggressive and hostile edge that hits you with the force of a sledge hammer, whilst the synth melodies on closing song "NKRKTHRS" lend the album a more symphonic air. Using basic riffs and passages to create atmospheres, "Ryšys" isn't exactly the most complex album around, but this somewhat minimalistic approach still gets the job done, and helps make the album an interesting listen from start to finish.

Overall, "Ryšys" is perhaps not a genre defining release, but it nevertheless is a very solid album. If you're looking for a shot of straight-forward, no-nonsense pure Black Metal, then you'd do well to check out this band.