Wolves In The Throne Room

Like most black-metal bands, Wolves In The Throne Room wear a cloak of mystery that only serves to make them more conspicuous. But these Pacific Northwesterners stick out even within the genre, favoring a leftist (and dramatically spiritual) focus on the environment that sees them sampling rain and cricket sounds on their 10-minutes-plus tracks. Their massive sophomore album, 2007’s Two Hunters, came cloaked in layers of shoegaze-inspired splendor, but the new Black Cascade emphasizes the ferocity underneath. Like the band’s live sets, Cascade peels off some of the texture but drills into a newly tight regimen of blast beats, power-retch vocals, and simple, bold melodies worthy of a pagan funeral procession.

Updated 02/04/2010