VESTINDIEN – Verdande

In all honesty, I did not think it possible for the uniquely gifted masterminds behind Vestindien to top or better their flawless debut offering entitled NULL, but by some perverted and wonderful miracle these six twisted souls have conjured up a new work of radiant brilliance that transcends barriers and conventions and is as compelling as its predecessor was.

Verdande is something totally out of the ordinary and is firmly drenched in a slithering, thick atmosphere that enslaves the mind and captures the heart. Sharp as a razor and charged with an intensely passionate energy, its eight compositions contain a wide array of cold and harsh riffs, lyrics that speak of man’s desolate state, and a consistently strong drive that always propels the songs forward. Somewhere between atmospheric black metal, raw post-rock, psychedelic proto-metal, goth rock, and post-punk is where Verdande sits rather uncomfortably, but when you say it like that it still feels as if you are a selling it short as it is packed to the rafters with nuances and shades that hint at so many different influences and inspirations . . . and yet somehow these gentlemen make it flow and work so effortlessly and to such great effect.

Regardless of whether you worship Darkthrone or The Smiths, this LP is exactly what you need, and Verdande is simply a staggeringly sublime output that needs to be consumed and experienced in all its chilling glory. Personally, I would love it if these guys lived forever and kept churning out emotionally dense and impactful masterpieces such as this one and NULL. I can find no faults with Verdande.