The Ruins Of Beverast - Unlock The Shrine

"The Ruins of Beverast, a German oppressive black metal project born and raised by the old Nagelfar drummer Alexander von Meilenwald.

With "Unlock the Shrine" the first full-lenght album was created in the year of 2004, constisting of several intro / outro pieces linking six adequate songs. December 24, 2006: "Rain Upon the Impure", like its predessecor released by Vàn, beheld the light of night. Now the focus is put on few extreme long tracks avoiding that sort of fragmentation to be experienced on album #1.

The musical aspect faces an unique approach of complex yet atmospheric black metal combining unorthodox with conventional elemnts. Lengthy, mostly hypnotic components are connected with heavy use of vast variations of extreme vocals and choral singing, creating an apocalyptic and oppressive feeling. "- Last.fm

Unlock The Shrine 2004 Tracklisting 1. Between Bronze Walls 08:40 2. Skeleton Coast 03:06 3. Euphoria When The Bombs Fell 05:43 4. God Sent No Sign 03:25 5. The Clockhand's Groaning Circles 10:44 6. Procession Of Pawns 04:00 7. Summer Decapitation Ritual 07:55 8. Cellartunes 02:05 9. Unlock The Shrine 09:05 10. Subterranean Homicide Lamentation 01:59 11. The Mine 12:01 12. White Abyss 01:38 Total playing time 01:10:21

The Ruins Of Beverast plays a very unique style of what I might consider black metal/dark ambient. This album is drastically different from their follow up, Rain Upon The Impure, which was more black/doom. This album variates between drudgingly slow, heavy, crushing walls of volume and nihilistic, ripping, fast paced sounds. There also exists another dichotomy between the said black metal passages and the Gregorian Chants (soft, choral-like music), which adds a very mystic and dark atmosphere to their music.

The atmosphere The Ruins Of Beverast seek to create is not that of cold, grim winters or of melancholic, solitary journeys through the forest. It is a very fiery, warlike, almost hot atmosphere. It is one of imminent death, destruction, and apocalypse. In effect there's a sense of strong hate and violence emanating from this album, though it's also contrasted by the entrancing choral music. It's almost as if there's a funeral - symbolizing utter destruction and death. This is a powerful album that I strongly recommend.

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