I think it’s pretty safe to say that black metal in recent times has seen a lot of growth in terms of its population, yet, as we’re all too aware of, that doesn’t automatically mean that there’s more quality music out there for us to become lost in. Sure, there are plenty of efforts out there that try for their own brand of greatness in some form or another, but it’s another thing altogether for a name to really make a reputation for itself without getting drowned out simply due to how many other voices are out there in the wilderness seeking their own sure footing. Some quality acts require a little bit of legwork or just time to uncover, and those can often be some of the most rewarding finds. When I sat down tonight to investigate Skuggor, I didn’t know what I’d find yet I find myself undeniable entranced.

There’s always a certain old-world magic to a proper work of atmospheric black metal as it can offer a unique portal to a world that we’ve tragically moved on from where the forests spoke to us clearly and the spirits danced around our very feet. It can be a surprisingly easy thing to bring to the table given how many other instances of such material are out there to draw inspiration from, but to make it your own is to do something that incredibly few others can. Despite having just put out a full-length album and a split last year, Skuggor’s passion for the clearly isn’t easily sated as it’s within the six tracks of “Where Sun Resigns” that we get to see what it means for an act to really do the style justice to the fullest extent. A sorrowful performance that draws on a reality now likely gone forever, this is a performance that is littered with contrast pulled off exquisitely as it’s through intense riffs and captivating ambient passages that we’re given a solid breath of what Skuggor is already capable of despite only putting out material since two years ago, yet the vast experience of its mastermind shows us precisely the kind of intense passion that we’re dealing with here. The sort of thing that has allowed atmospheric black metal to still stand tall despite loads of lackluster creations that don’t really add much to the greater glory of the sound and all that it has to offer, “Where Sun Resigns” takes itself seriously and demonstrates how the straightforward can still be immeasurably effective with all the nuance, intelligence, and finesse that one could ask for from the sound.

You don’t always need to be bigger in order to be better. Oftentimes, you simply need to know your way around your given sound in order to make for a creation that’s as impactful as it is bold in nature without stretching yourself too thin or biting off more than you can chew. Skuggor knows precisely what it wants to be every step throughout “Where Sun Resigns” with the name’s prowess and mastery over it all obvious at every given turn. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to now catch up on what Skuggor has thrown down before this because I, clearly, have been out of the loop yet again.

LISTEN to “Where Sun Resigns” on Bandcamp here.

FOLLOW Skuggor on Instagram here.