A 50-minute work broken into nine songs but unified as one winding, widescreen composition, Venenare shows KRATER at the height of their all-too-considerable powers, a blinding and windswept vortex of sumptuous songcraft and passionate execution. Motifs slice and dice, blast and race with a grace that's simply stunning, as melodic counterplay runs riot with a proud 'n' powerful assertion of classic metal sensibility. KRATER's contours here undeniably exude a sleek and urban quality, but with abstracted hints of their pagan past subtly woven in to the soundfield, the result is staunchly second-wave black metal bravely recast for the 21st century. Venenare is thus timeless, yet forward-thinking all the same.
Re-amping, analog Mix and Master by Greg Chandler at Priory recording studios, UK (www.prioryrecordingstudios.co.uk). Cover and illustrations by Misanthropic-Art (misanthropic-art.com).
