The other night I was introduced to Black Metal band WELL OF NIGHT. In a music group on Facebook one of the band members mentioned their self-released debut EP The Crimson Hexagon, released in November of 2016. As someone who is constantly on the hunt for new bands to check out I immediately befriended him and asked to hear it (it’s on Bandcamp and it’s cheap, so if you dig it, BUY IT you cheap bastards!!) Hailing from Dayton, Ohio this four-piece definitely encapsulates that vintage Black Metal feel but never once do they go the dated route or anything like that. I gotta admit, I was into this disc right from jump on Friday night.
The EP opens with “Library of Babel” a track with a running time of 9:53. Now you’ve got my attention. Dissonant guitars, blast beats for days, and vocals that sound like they were plucked from the days of yore make for one helluva journey. And never once during this epic did I find myself getting bored or looking ahead. On the contrary, when it was over I was more like, “Already? Really??” The title track is up next, and at 7:42 it’s another epic. Once again it wastes no time and gets right to business. Behind the main guitar riff is this other one that’s swirling about and that adds another dimension to the track, so well done there.
Closing things out is “Pyrrhonist” which starts off with some clean guitars before everything goes to Hell and back. Overall this is a very good, very solid debut offering from a band that has a bright future. If I have one complaint it’s that the EP is only three songs. This is a great teaser, and it gives fans a little taste sure, but I’m a greedy prick and I want to see what these boys can do over the course of eight or nine songs. Something tells me the results would be pretty fucking cool. So go ahead and do yourself the favor and check out WELL OF NIGHT and The Crimson Hexagon. You’ll be glad you did.
STANDOUT TRACKS: ALL OF THEM
RATING: 4.5/5
