Starting in 1995, a dark cloud emerged over Jyväskylä when Alghazanth was formed. A name taken from within a dream of Gorath Moonthron delivered to him by a ‘death bringer spirit in the shape of a white wolf’. After 3 demos and a split Alghazanth released their first full length The Aeons Envenomed Sanity in 1999 and it was demonic praise to the unholy. Now Alghazanth completes their sizable discography with this 8th full length. The aptly named Eight Coffin Nails is in fact the nail in the coffin for this legendary Finnish band. An accumulation of 13 years of occultist symphonic black metal brings us to this funeral album.
The finale is just as one would expect, pure evil from start to finish albeit with less symphonics and less Satanic lyrics than what’s found in previous releases. It still remains a mélange of true black metal with melodic epic riffs caught in between sinister vocals, faint piano touches and as always, the dark thundering of drums. Haunting lyrics fully encapsulate the listener and provide malevolence to this final ritual from the quartet.
The time it’s been from the seventh album The Three-Faced Pilgrim (2013), has left fans hungry for what has shown itself to be a master crafted album, leaving a bittersweet feeling with the band’s following. Knowing that Alghazanth has reached apotheosis will leave you satisfied and hollow at the same time.
