I like to talk a lot about evolution a lot here as I feel like it’s the driving force that separates the bands that are kind of just doing their own thing from the artists that are seeking something more whether that be for their fans, their artistic drive, their sound, the pursuit of doing justice for their craft, or something else entirely. It’s what keeps bands moving forward and what prevents the underground as a whole from becoming stale or, even worse, a beast that is constantly eating its own tail/ass. Naturally, some pursue such lofty highs more fervently than others. With their second album, Nexion shows us how it’s done in such a fashion that’s as stupendous as it is intoxicating.

Five years is more than enough time for any band to make any sort of change in whatever direction they please. For some, that’s a continuation of what’s been done before maybe with a different focus in some aspect or another, and for others that involves changing things entirely. However, it’s the bands that further their particular craft in such a way that feels compelling, organic, and downright masterful that one can tend to find the more fascinating instances of evolution that five years can offer. For all that they’ve brought to the table in the second record five years since their debut, Nexion taps into a vein of their sound that is as spellbinding as it is riveting from top to bottom without exception. Ritualistic but undeniably ferocious for all that it dares to be right from its opening moments, there isn’t a damn thing about “Sundrung” that isn’t meant to bring out something truly primal from within your soul. Simultaneously mourning a world that’s not longer via profound agony and raging against the march of abominable progress, it’s here that we get Icelandic black metal taken to that seldom seen next level that offers so much more than mere riffs and some mild atmosphere. Rather, Nexion grabs the bull right by the horns to deliver an experience that’s representative of what the band has thrown down in the past yet indicative of what is still yet to come.

“Sundrung” has many things to call its own once you descend into its apocalyptic rhythms with the rending of the earth itself something that can happen on a whim should Nexion command it as long as their arsenal remains as prolific and deadly as it is here. This is absolutely an evolution of a band with buckets of potential and talent, yet each track that this record has to offer is something that demands a deeper sense of understanding lest the true glory and magnificence of the work be lost on you as all the different aspects rip violently through you.

“Sundrung” releases on September 19th via Avantgarde Music!

LISTEN to advanced tracks from “Sundrung” on Bandcamp here.

LIKE Nexion on Facebook here.

FOLLOW Nexion on Instagram here.