At the time Century Media Records started promoting this new album by psychedelic black metallers Nachtmystium (meaning: Encompassing Darkness), word was that the band’s mastermind, Blake Judd, had decided to break up the band. According to Wiki, he made this decision prior to going away for drug rehabilitation, and they also quote him as more recently stating, “I have actually decided not to end the band. The time I announced that Nachtmystium was no more came after a series of really difficult issues and situations, and I decided it was time for a major change in my personal life.” In any case, Judd viewed The World We Left Behind as a farewell record during the time that it was written and recorded and it could not have possibly been better even if the band was alive and well, which is to say that it’s a veritable magnum opus.
From the moment The World We Left behind opens with the blistering instrumental “Intrusion,” you know you’re in for a real treat. The guitars bend into intricate and unholy sounds while the drums pummel away in a most propulsive manner. And while the track sounds like it’s intended for use in a slasher flick or snuff film, I dare to say that there’s something upbeat about it, too. There’s also a distinct catchiness to the following track, “Fireheart.” To that end, you could almost say there’s a pop sensibility about it, much in the same way that Iron Maiden’s “The Number of the Beast” and Motorhead’s “Ace of Spades” are immediately infectious metal tunes. But as the album progresses through songs like the epic voyage “Into The Endless Abyss” and the vertigo-inducing “Tear You Down,” it grows darker and the hooks become less obvious and more diabolical.
Throughout the album, Judd blends ominous soundscapes, mind-blowing technical expertise and coruscating guitars into something truly special. A cavalcade of spiky riffs will leave you feeling like you just swallowed a razor blade or two and are about to die while the occasional synth parts deliver ethereal moods that will make you feel as though you’re already dead or at least that your soul has transcended to something greater. It’s a punishing album, but it’s also entirely cathartic.
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