In these times when some corners of the black metal scene feel a bit too much like the musical equivalent of a faithful old Labrador – great company for a cold winter evening walk in the woods but about as intimidating as a barrel full of candy floss – it’s good to know there are still plenty of bands that. sonically at least, are determined to bring forth a bit of hell on earth and spew it in your direction. This year has been pretty outstanding in qualitative terms and bringing up the rear, like a terrier trying to rip the arse out of your favourite pair of washing machine-dodging jeans, is Karne. Faith in Flesh is like a grasping claw of bloody tendon and sharpened bone trying to drag you into a very unsettling place indeed. The incessant tremolo riffs are to the fore and the frenetically energy of berserking punk-rock anger and lo-fi production all contributes an explosive intensity. The rabid, rasping vocals are also outstanding – and I suppose these days we should be beyond remarking that the person behind them is female because it’s long since become clear that the black metal vocal style is at least as well suited to women as men. Let’s just say she’s obviously here on merit and not as a way to spin the band’s difference. Wherever they’re getting that rush of energy from, Eingeweide’s fearsome vocals and presence are clearly a major contribution. The band also has a knack of clobbering you with some subtlety rousing choruses through those gritted teeth that make the symphonic crowd look distinctly desperate with their charmless pomposity. Faith in Flesh is no overwrought spectacle – it’s more like a night ducking through the back alleys of some forgotten, gothic city trying to escape the clutches of some black-hearted pursuer.
It’s all more than enough to elevate Faith in Flesh above the masses and, as with a lot of the best black metal, this can be appreciated on a number of levels. There’re those hypnotising chords, the thrashing pace and those ever-present vocals constantly inciting some sort of brutal, sado-masochistic behaviour. Karne seem to feed off bands like Naglfar, Lord Belial and remind me a lot of the excellent Akrotheism which came my way earlier this year. A back to basics take on melody-infused black metal that manages to be darkly seductive while at the same time leaving you feeling distinctly disturbed. After what feels like the comparative lull of the fourth track, the band’s signature tune Karne, the band spends the second half of the album turning things up notch by intimidating notch. The final track sees the bands trademark tremolo riffs explode in one final attempt to set your teeth on edge and leave your hands aching with sympathetic repetitive strain as the barks and frenetic pace bursts loose one more time. It’s an exhilarating jaunt and brimming energy in a way that so many bands fail to achieve even on their debut albums. There are some trademark aspects to Faith in Flesh which are a little overdone and I feel like there’s still some rounding of some rough edges even if a lot of those rough edges are clearly supposed to be there. Other than that Faith in Flesh is a well thought through album with attitude stamped all over it and a band well worth keeping an eye on.
(7.5/10 Reverend Darkstanley)
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