Suntold named their debut album World Torn Asunder. The conceptual focus of the album is World War I, which did indeed tear the world asunder, killing and wounding 9.7 million military combatants and 10 million civilians. It wiped out almost an entire generation of young men and left an older generation humbled by grief and shame. And yet only two decades later the world convulsed in war again, propelled by the power-hunger and blood-lust of tyrannical leaders and fueled by the worst impulses of their citizens.

History continues to repeat itself. Once again, brutal conflict rages in Europe and atrocities are being inflicted on innocent civilians at the hands of a dictator and his conscripts. There is no clear end in sight, and significant risk that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will become even more decimating to the Ukrainian people and that the conflict will spread beyond its borders.

Unless they had a crystal ball, Suntold did not know the invasion of Ukraine would happen when they wrote and recorded World Torn Asunder. By a terrible coincidence, it is now depressingly relevant. World Torn Asunder reminds us of past horrors but also reminds us of the horrors that are still happening, and in the music it’s a stunningly powerful reminder, which we now share with you via our premiere of the complete album here on the day of its release. Continue reading »

Once again the world finds itself on the precipice of invasion and armed conflict in Europe. One might have thought such days were long gone but now, astonishingly, memories have been revived of how world wars begin. It is thus fitting, even if coincidental, that today we’re premiering the first single by the part-American, part-Belgian black metal band Suntold, which itself delves into those chilling memories.

The name of the song is “The Hill“. In its lyrics it portrays fields drenched in the blood of many men and stinking of rotting flesh. It expresses the prayers of the living combatants that they may yet survive, that they might return to mothers, fathers, and brothers far away. It’s a timeless tale, of course, but the video roots the imagery in those global conflicts to which memories have now returned. Continue reading »