From the dawn of the classic debut album, Netherstorm, in 2018, Finland's VARGRAV have almost single-handedly reinvigorated the oft-maligned symphonic black metal subgenre. Forged in fires from the ancients - founder V-Khaoz's credentials are vast and stretch back decades - and stoking the embers last left by OBTAINED ENSLAVEMENT and Norway's COVENANT and ODIUM, VARGRAV's first two albums stand as proud pillars of shimmering, classics-based obsidian. However, it was 2023's massive The Nighthold where VARGRAV eclipsed all prior achievements. With a lineup that included the notorious Graf Werwolf von Armageddon on vocals and Moonsorrow members Trollhorn of the Black Harvest on guitars / bass and Baron M. Tarwonen on drums, VARGRAV's swirling, cosmic surge hit a fever pitch of potency - and the filmic elements latent to their sound became a movie unto themselves. It was not unjust to liken this third album to COVENANT's classic Nexus Polaris.Now, as their second era continues unchained, VARGRAV return with their fourth full-length, Dimension: Daemonium. Tellingly titled, Dimension: Daemonium sees an extension of the cosmic surge that so marked its towering predecessor. Pared down to a duo of V-Khaoz and Werwolf, Dimension: Daemonium is likewise "only" 43 minutes, but it feels no less huge. Songs strike immediately and then stretch out, the clarity even more sparkling, imparting a unique juxtaposition between nasty execution and glimmering atmosphere. Indeed, those atmospheres arguably journey to dreamier locales, but ones blanketed in the dead chill of space. Because in space - or, perhaps, the sad realm of the stars - no one can hear you scream...Furious yet finessed, breathtaking stained-glass visions stained with stardust shot from a black hole, and darkly dramatic as ever: VARGRAV cement their position as THE vanguard of symphonic black metal with Dimension: Daemonium! Details Artist: Vargrav Country: Finland Genre: Black Metal Symphonic Metal Year: 2026 Label: Werewolf Records Format: Digipak Catalogue no: EVIL132 Track listing Intro (Thy Daemonium) Ablaze upon the Nocturnal Realms Moonfrost Storms Dragons of Nightmare The Gates of My Dimension Bleeding Galaxies Starlight Chalice Unveil the Enslavement of Lunar Prophecies
