There are some things that just make sense. When a band has been around for long enough and accomplished enough within its own scope over whatever amount of time, it’s only natural that some sort of branching out would take place for one reason or another. Sometimes, it involves furthering your sound into an unexpected direction. Other times, you find yourself going back to the basics with the knowledge of an auteur of their particular craft. Onirik has been carving out a path for itself for over two decades now, yet it’s with the final entry of a trilogy that the Portuguese act goes right back its influences in a form that’s reverent and respectful of what came before while still making the performance truly its own.

It can be a really difficult thing – treading ground that has been beaten tens of thousands of times and trying to add your own spin whatever form that may come in. For some, it can effortlessly come in such a form that feels uninspired and outright boring for what little it tries to achieve without achieving any personality or flavor; a faceless body which is little more than a failed replica. Yet, in the right hands anything is possible. For all that it has accomplished over the years, Onirik has twisted black metal into an extension of its own being without a shred of compromise to be had in any of its creations. “Curling Serpents Under Stone” is no different. A scathing, ferociously enveloping work that calls back to the olden days of black metal with devious melodies and an intricate songwriting that permeates the burning soul of the record, Onirik manages to channel the classic vein of black metal without blemishing its core concepts but never once allowing that to prevent a marvelous sense of mastery that is evident right from the beginning. It seems relatively simple on the surface, yet “Curling Serpents Under Stone” has a medieval-like force behind its might that just cannot be denied.

This is black metal over a charred world whose future is uncertain. Dark, intense, and searing to the touch, Onirik is a force of the night that’s not to be ignored. Succumb to the cult. Allow it to wash over you and have your eyes opened to such sights you never dared imagined, but now you couldn’t fathom going on without witnessing them.

“Curling Serpents Under Stone” releases on May 30th via I, Voidhanger Records!

LISTEN to an advanced track from “Curling Serpents Under Stone” on Bandcamp here.

LIKE Onirik on Facebook here.