From Bandcamp, “Following two albums and a split EP with BOTANIST as a solo project, Jay Valena is joined by Rashid Nadjib for a third full-length. "Hollow Fangs" is an intensely personal album borne of severance and survival - a visceral exploration for meaning in the wake of trauma. The album provides a cathartic voice of recognition and understanding of this pain in its incisive fury and splendor.” The album has five songs, and “Prismatic Reason” is first. A contentious sound arises from the first few bars. The music is dark, and thick, and the vocals go from controlled whispers to torturous screams. But, there is melody in tow here as well.

“Bernalillo Sunrise” also has melody in tow, but it hangs within the balance of a deep and firm structure from the riffs. This balance is spot on so far. There is a harrowing sense of aggression here, but it is tempered with somber melodies. “Psychotiscism” comes out of the gates with claws and fangs, ready to defend its territory. The sound is dark, and cavernous, akin to a soul’s first glimpse of Hell. “Fragments” is eight minutes of despondence and aggression, two things that wrestle with one another throughout the song. The landscape the band paints is one of the deep North, where snow falls every day of the year, and your mind begins to fail never seeing much of the sun nor the rebirth of spring.

“To Kiss the Viper’s Fang” is the final song, and the longest. It features a devastating and chaotic sound, with the band’s riffs taking center stage and combined with the vocals, obliterating nearly all of the other sounds. There is melody, but it barely hangs on in the storm. Overall, this was an excellent Black Metal album. It didn’t rely on the formulas from the past, but rather forged its own path through the woods. Pain is very present, and you are reminded of that with every movement. But, there is also some solace, and some comfort provided on the album.