HAIL SPIRIT NOIR

The music on the album is in quite an eclectic progressive extreme metal style, that may be somewhat rooted in black metal but far exceeds the usual genre characteristics of that style. Warm vintage sounding keyboards/organ, progressive song structures, 70s hard rock influences, psychadelic elements, a blackened rock'n'roll touch (just listen to the main riff in "Against the Curse, We Dream" or "Haire Pneuma Skoteino") and just a general playfullness. A band like Enslaved comes to mind, but Hail Spirit Noir has a kind of freakshow/dark carnival atmosphere present in their music that is far removed from the more serious sounding Norwegians. The vocals on "Pneuma" are, in addition to the adventurous instrumental part of the music, one of the great assets of the album. the blackened raspy harsh type vocals and the commanding powerful clean vocals are both delivered with great conviction and skill.

The album features 6 tracks distributed over a 36:57 minutes of playing time, so it's safe to say it's not a very long album. I'd take quality over quantity any day though and there's plenty of quality here to justify the relatively short playing time. "Pneuma" is simply an enjoyable album from beginning to end (the only exception being the 4 minute ambient/noise ending to "Into the Gates of Time", which to my ears is wasting precious playing time). A 4.5 star (90%) rating is fully deserved.

When the term progressive black metal is brought up, the likes of Enslaved, Wolves in the Throne Room, Shining, and Deathspell Omega are usually the first bands that come to mind - many other 'progressive' black metal groups tend to sound similar to at least one of the aforementioned pioneers, but that isn't at all the case with Hail Spirit Noir. In addition to the 'bad acid trip' comparison I made earlier, Pneuma sounds like what would happen if King Crimson got together with Darkthrone for a jam session. The mellotron-soaked style of eclectic prog rock pioneered by Robert Fripp seems like a major influence to Hail Spirit Noir, and the way they manage to also sneak in black metal sections and harsh vocals without ever skipping a beat is admirable. Everything about Pneuma's production just reeks of the late sixties', and I think that's what helps bridge the band's adventurous blend of progressive rock and black metal so well. Just listen to the 12 minute masterpiece "Into the Gates of Time" to hear how much the vintage production helps make Hail Spirit Noir's sound so successful.

Pneuma is one of those albums that may be a bit difficult to grasp at first, but given the proper amount of time, it eventually reveals itself as a brilliant gem. Hail Spirit Noir have made one hell of a debut effort, and while I would've liked it to be a bit longer, this is a downright superb album. Fans of black metal, progressive rock, and experimental music in general should find plenty to enjoy here - this is one of early 2012's musical highlights for sure.