GOATMOON – stella polaris – CD

Black Metal – Werewolf Records

One of the most notorious names in the still-thriving Finnish black metal scene, GOATMOON has been an uber-prolific force of iron will since the band’s creation in 2002, all guided by the monomaniacal hand of BlackGoat Gravedesecrator. The band’s earliest efforts were extremely raw and punk-oriented, but it was with 2007’s Finnish Steel Stormwhere GOATMOON truly came into its own, exhibiting a sense of refinement rarely heard in such hateful-yet-epic black metal whilst retaining its core identity, and a title by which BlackGoat Gravedesecrator has fulfilled on all successive recordings. Of them, the subsequent third and fourth albums – 2011’s Varjotand 2014’s Voitto tai Valhalla, respectively – saw GOATMOON continue that refinement with equally compelling results, and in the process garner a more fanatic fanbase…and further infamy.

However, it is with the forthcoming Stella Polaris where GOATMOON will etch its name into Finnish black metal legendry. In many ways approximating its vibrant cover art, Stella Polaris is a mysteriously alluring blast of cosmic, snow-capped majesty. Here, GOATMOON consolidates all its considerable strengths while setting forth on new, untrodden paths across the album’s nine tracks. Verily, Stella Polaris is distinctly Finnish in its poignant purity and staunch traditionalism – this is BLACK METAL, proudly, with no use for nor tolerance of muddling agents – but with its increasingly organ-led attack, BlackGoat Gravedesecrator and a new, full lineup weave a spell that explodes with both a subtle dynamism and an anthemic quality that’s thoroughly addicting. Compact and concise as ever, Stella Polaris accomplishes its mission with no hyperbole and no bullshit: simply, it is GOATMOON at the height of its powers, and ascending supremacy effortlessly.