Dagny Sunshine, here is a name that marks a crucial and cutting presence in the Black Metal scene.  The beautiful and diffused Swedish multi-instrumentalist from Gothenburg is back for the release of her latest and most honored work.  We are talking about NACHTLIEDER and this third full-length, "Lynx," released by Nigredo Records on August 27, 2018.  This marks the return of this forceful lady next to Martrum on drums and Déhà, adding vocal lines and taking care of the mixing and mastering, everything for an album as provocative as the very roots of the follow-up.

It's been a long time since I've heard of Dagny.  To be more exact, it has not been since the magnificent "The Female of the Species" from 2015.  With the high production among Black Metal, it's evident that this is a deserved moment for its return, and she wasted no time in securing a thirsty concept on "Lynx".  As a reference for antagonism in "The Wolves" and a gorgeous painting-inspired cover art called "Guldnyckeln" by John Bauer, 1915, and a portrait of Dagny by I Breathe Needles, all developing a call for clairvoyance and deep knowledge.  Then add to it a vast thematic content imposing the lynx on the culture in history to the foundations of science in a confrontation with feelings of death, loneliness and a poisoned dose of fury on the vocals.

You can start this album with absolute certainty that the reign in "Nachtlieder" of 2013 and "The Female of the Species" pushed everything to a weight piece for the Black metal, opening in "Claws and Bone," between noises and Dagny's stormy scenery provides chaos in her burning lines of voice and guitar, and I really like what she does here when she keeps both running in a unique and divergent way while Martrum provides a vigorous background on the drums.  "Lynx" is a unique song like the album itself, it grows in intensity during the track and explodes in anger by hypnotizing the listeners.  You may find a little cadence in the darkness of "Song of Nova" where more melancholic lines and poetic letters create an icy and interesting atmosphere.

Finally, I got to the point of this album where I wanted to get the best of Scandinavian Black Metal and the winner is "Nameless, Faceless".  At this point I realize how much Dagny has grown in his music, guitar, and bass lines.  Starting from the introduction, they evolve creating integral plains, and even if it sounds a little more lenient, the track captivates the listener until "Law of Decay" where Black Metal traditionalism finally appears as it should be.  We're not talking about basement productions anymore but of a powerful band with horrifying screams on profuse and singular riffs.

As I said at the beginning of this review, Dagny took everything from one end to the other on this album, going from death to Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism like in "Moksha," and although the themes run to different sides, Dagny finds a certain macabre balance between each element, receiving energy from Martrum in the drums, generating a striking atmosphere throughout the album.

Certainly, the return of this lady of Black Metal can attract many different fans, going from Death to Extreme metal, without disappointing anyone.  Highlight for "Dark Matter" and "Eyes Ablaze".