To Embrace the Vampyric Blood

This was Crimson Moon's first full-length. They came in with a bang. I have been an avid fan of Crimson Moon for some time, and I finally managed to hear this album as part of their new release Xeper Xepera Xeperu. The only words I can use to describe this album are Vampyric Black Metal.

The intro track pours out of the speakers in a haunting tone. All the while, you get the sense that you're walking through the woods at night. Then, the ritual starts. 7 tracks of pure vampyric black metal assaults upon the listener. When I say that it is vampyric, it is because I cannot associate this style with any other cliche black metal band. Crimson Moon doesn't conform to the usual style of tremelo picking, annoying blast-beats, non-existent bassline, and someone screaming "hail satan" ten thousand times. This is haunting black metal from the grave.

The structure of the music is a roller coaster in a way. One minute, you will have mid-tempo black metal with distorted guitars, bassline following, and drums pounding. Then, it stops. The guitars turn off their distortion, and they play a somber, haunting tune on their guitars, while the bassline plays a little solo with the keyboard accompanying them. The vocals will drop from screaming growls to clean, spoken chants. It'll take you on a roller coaster of pure black metal from the very start.

The problems I have with this album mostly lie around production. Sometimes, the vocals will be so loud that it overpowers the song. Othertimes, you can barely hear the drums enough to know they even have a drummer. The worst time was in the outro. The keyboard part got so high-pitched that I kept having to turn it down. It was painful to the ears.

Overall, this album is one of my favorites. If you are a fan of Crimson Moon, you'll like this album.