MADE OF METAL: Nature's blackest candy

Some of you may remember that back in 2007, I gave Wolves in the Throne Room a rather favorable review, lauding the band for some seriously emotive modern black metal while giving it a stern talking-to about their penchant for filling its albums with ambient filler (roughly half the album was not exactly what you might call "songs"). There was a time, circa Diadem of 12 Stars, when Wolves was at the top of my list of black metal bands, until Finnish lo-fi necro warriors Horna pulled the rug out from under them.

But, here we are in the year 2009, and the Wolves have decided to step back in the ring with their latest release, Black Cascade. The results: much improved.

For those not in the know, which I suspect is most of you, Wolves in the Throne Room hails from the Pacific Northwest: Olympia, Wash. to be exact, a region whose breathtaking natural northern landscapes have a nasty habit of spurring some truly evocative metal brews that are sometimes brutal (Fall of the Bastards), sometimes ethereal (Agalloch), but always inspiring.

They are day-walkers, if you will. They bear the marks of cold, traditional black metal: raw production (though it's getting better), shrieking vocals and shimmering tremolo riffs. But they use these harsh elements to create much more melodic soundscapes than we're used to hearing in the genre. It's like getting a massage with a sandblaster.

The lyrical content is a breath of fresh air, as well (from what the band tells us anyhow; they don't print lyrics, and I can't really understand what they're saying). Those of you getting a little tired of hokey blasphemy-and I suspect that after almost 20 years of black metal bible bashing you just might be-can take enjoy Wolves' exploration of nature and shamanistic themes ... via shrieks.

At first glance, nothing has changed on Black Cascade. It's still four songs, and they're still really long, but this time the brothers Aaron and Nathan Weaver, along with guitarist Will Lindsay, have created some more immediately engaging material. I can actually remember, nay, have stuck in my head, the opening riffs of "Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog," and I've only listened to the album 10 times! Beyond that, there isn't much else new in the Wolves' lair. They could still use a little more diversity tempo-wise. From the aforementioned "Wanderer … ," the album flows with a rather wraithlike, sea-sickened rhythm into "Ahrimanic Trance," "Ex Cathedra" and finally "Crystal Ammunition." If you're not careful, the whole album can blow by before you know it.

Wolves catches a lot of flak from black metal purists for their refusal to adhere to the genre's traditional aesthetics, as well as their rise in popularity within some non-metal circles. But, there are literally thousands of tr00 kvlt bands out there to satisfy your traditionalist cravings. Are you really going to let what other people are listening to ruin your day? From a writer's perspective, it's refreshing to absorb and review something that, if nothing else, at least stirs up a little bit of debate. Wolves in the Throne Room, I thank thee.