It is no secret that the world of Tolkien’s creation has been a predominant presence in the world of black metal as countless bands have come together to celebrate the rich lore and tapestry that is Middle-Earth in the form of black metal. Each year provides a tasty new experince for Tolkien-themed black metal, and I figured we’d already met our quota with Dwarrowdelf’s forthcoming album, but I was wrong. Enter Keys of Orthanc, whose debut album does nothing but justice for the unique corner of black metal.

The beauty about bringing Middle-Earth to life with black metal is how the words are all set in stone as Tolkien’s words have been analyzed to death by fans ever since their first publication, but it’s the individual vision of each interpretation and therefore album that keeps people coming back for more. Some people envision a mystical land that’s quite colorful, others imagine a dark world that’s constantly in turmoil, and other people find a calm middle ground. With their debut, Keys of Orthanc brought a mixture of everything together to allow “Dush agh Golnauk” to become a brilliant tapestry of atmosphere, melody, old school magic, and modern day quality production that enables this debut to become both enticing and crispy to the very last note. Many bands tend to go for a more vicious, upfront aspect to really get their sound across, but Keys of Orthanc brings in a perfect sense of atmosphere to the mix that shows a diversity that really permeates “Dush agh Golnauk” in its entirety. It lets these six tracks not only become a dark immersive experience that encapsulates some of the best Tolkien has to offer, but it allows Keys of Orthanc to deliver some black metal that’s all but delicious.

Very few bands can great such a vicious sound and then manage to guide it to the perfect combination that has taken the form of “Dush agh Golnauk” in this fortunate scenario. Keys of Orthanc may be one of the newer bands on the scene, but they’re far from the least intersting by miles.

LISTEN to “Dush agh Golnauk” on Bandcamp here.

LIKE Keys of Orthanc on Facebook here.