Review: Horna – Nyx (Hymnejä Yölle)
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Review by Rick Eaglestone
Horna – Nyx (Hymnejä Yölle)
Record Label: World Terror Committee
Year: 2024
Rating: 7/10
Horna needs no introduction, for the last three decades they have been a considerable influence over the Black Metal underground both in their native Finland and abroad, and now to celebrate the anniversary they return with a new full-length album that bridges past, present, and future: Nyx – Hymnejä Yölle
Constructed mainly of Hymni’s but each composition in its own right is incredibly well structured with furious and blasphemous soundscapes which is very much encapsulated in the album opener – Hymni I which also is the longest at nearly nine minutes does a great job in showcasing the wave of influence as well as serving as a real notice of intent.
As the album swirls through various tone and tempo changes it is where the album hits in crowning glory with Hymni III which is a synthesis of peak performance and professionalism with spectral songwriting.
Horna
The album is a cacophony of fury with a real wave of razor-sharp snarls and swipes right up until the final offering Kuoleva Lupaus which serves up a real dynamic shift with acoustic and medieval elements laden with atmospherics, its ominous soundtrack quality is stark quality with the rest of the album and is certainly a risk but the more the track is played it hard not to admire the musical prowess that flows through it, add to this that it is in the bands native tongue also gives it an authenticity that may had been lost had it been performed in English.
It may be largely instrumental in the structure but given how at least 95% of the album is straight-to-the-point, unapologetically unholy black metal the experimentation element is more than accepted
The production on this new release is incredibly tight only heightening the blistering delivery with ferocious technicality and a sweeping sense of flame-burning grandeur.
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