(written by Islander)
We’re now in that “in between” time of year, a time of holidays and year-end lists, a time for “turning the page” and hoping that the mere movement of the calendar from one year to the next will somehow improve life, a time of reflection and a time of looking ahead that’s unlike any other month of the year.
As such, if we’re honest, it’s the worst time of year to try to catch the attention of listeners about new music. But people should still try to be attentive, because otherwise they’ll miss some gems — such as the startling gem of a song we’re premiering below.
This song, “Galgenberg,” is the title track to a four-song debut EP by the Dutch black metal band Veenlijk. With a January 23rd release date by Void Wanderer Productions, it will help launch the new year in fine fashion.
By way of background, we’re told that Veenlijk was formed in 2023 by Posthumus (vocals, guitar) and Mortiz (bass), and that their initial aim was to create black metal with thrash and speed metal inspired riffs.
But we’re further informed that, with the addition of Ballantine (drums) and Fako (guitar), who came from the punk and post-hardcore scenes, Veenlijk settled upon a more varied musical strategy, one with riffs inspired by punk, atmospheric post-hardcore, thrash, and speed metal.
The band also hit upon lyrical themes inspired by old Dutch folktales:
Galgenberg brings you back to Medieval Amersfoort. A time where witches still burned at the stake, and innocent people where persecuted by the Church. A time where mysterious rituals were performed in the dark parts of the forests.
And now let’s turn to the song we’re about to premiere.
Veenlijk pack so many changes into this title song, so many startling shifts in speed, intensity, and mood, that it sets me thinking about metaphors. Maybe it’s something like a high-powered carnival ride with a diabolical madman at the controls, so that it’s more frightening than cheery. Or like careening down a mountain road with multiple switchbacks, and the brakes on your vehicle only working intermittently.
In its moods, the song morphs among feelings of grief, oppressiveness, desperation, and fury, while also generating sensations of mystery, menace, and mayhem. And like the lyrical themes, the music does seem to call back to a much older age.
It includes ingredients of raw black metal — with riffing that’s abrasive and corrosive, and shrieked vocals that sound like sheets of glass being violently torn like paper — but it also includes ethereal guitar melodies that ring and shimmer, like the dismal wailing of ghosts.
The drumwork is also relentlessly jaw-dropping, shifting from solemn marches to riotous blasting and rapidly somersaulting acrobatics. The basswork is itself a vital feature of the music, and given its own chances to seize attention.
The music savages and shines, buzzes in gutting tones, scours like sandblasting, blazes like wildfires, and bends its beleaguered head in sorrow. And you’ll see there are melodic through-lines — dark ones to be sure — that hold everything together, a sign of very effective songwriting.
Galgenberg was recorded, mixed, and mastered at Plug Unit, Reeuwijk, by Hans Pieters. It will be released by Void Wanderer on cassette tape and digital formats, and the label recommends it for fans of Asgrauw, Darkthrone, Grafjammer, and Hellripper.
PRE-ORDER:
https://voidwanderer.com/product/veenlijk-galgenberg-mc/
VEENLIJK:
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61555030753540
https://www.instagram.com/veenlijk/
https://veenlijk2023.bandcamp.com/