Noitatulen vartija

You’ve probably never heard of this band, but if you have, consider yourselves one of the lucky ones, because Kyprian’s Circle had to be one of the finest black metal bands to ever come out of Finland despite their extremely small discography. After gracing us with three promising demos, Kyprian’s Circle soon returned to deliver their first and last EP titled Noitatulen Vartija, which is truly one of the most beautiful pieces of melodic black metal I’ve ever heard. With only 5 tracks totaling barely 19 minutes in length though, it is quite short, which is a real shame as close to every second of it is practically flawless.

Taking the standard melodic black metal template and lacing it with mesmerizing folk instrumentation, ethereal synth melodies and genuine beauty, sole band member Kyprian along with the fellow session members used for this record have crafted together an absolute gem. The atmosphere this exceptional combination of musicians are able to convey is simply magical, with mastermind behind Satanic Warmaster Nazgul, inflicting a ferocious and incredibly compelling vocal performance, Toni of Shape of Despair fame providing the music with extremely fitting and enchanting keyboard work, and Kyprian delivering some of the greatest riffs black metal has ever penned. Sure, they might not possess the neck-snapping technicality of Abbath or Ihsahn’s legendary riffing, but they are all just unbelievably captivating, constantly holding your attention and never growing tiresome or repetitive, whether it be the scathing tremolo picking interspersed throughout “Helvetin Pajassa on Miekkamme Taottu,” or the enthralling acoustic passage which opens “Kun Puhui Myrskyn Henki.”

A stunning acoustic composition also makes up the intro track accompanied by the faint tapping of the snare, sending you into trance-like state with their hypnotising spell. The music overall also has this entrancing presence about it, and it is the way everything from the raw, distorted, yet somewhat soothing buzz of the guitar, to the mournful droning of the keyboards all have this ability to bring you under their control which makes this record so truly remarkable. “Noitatulen Vartija” also features a very dark, haunting piano solo, which hovers ever so gracefully over the steady, mid-paced beat of the drums and spellbinding keyboard work, and is definitely one of the album’s many, many high-lights.

The majority of the songs are all fairly mildly paced, flowing along at relatively slow to medium-paced tempos all supported by Abyssin’s firm back-beat, however, there are also some sections that venture into faster, more aggressive territory, with pounding blast-beats and double-bass making a few appearances. Another thing great about the drums is their sound, along with all the other instruments, with nothing ever becoming too over-bearing or buried in the mix. Everything has been refined superbly, with each instrument complimenting one another very effectively.

Delivering a vocal performance far superior to anything I’ve ever heard him done before, Nazgul’s scathing shrieks and screams are all simply remarkable, sounding just so incredibly commanding and malicious. From the first second of these magical 18 and a half minutes to the very last, every single vocal passage remains so heart-felt and convincing it’s unbelievable, along with all the other members captivating performances. Unfortunately, this astonishing little slab of black metal is only half as long as I wish it was, but nevertheless, this criminally under-rated gem is definitely worth listening to and I can simply not recommend it enough. Go on, get to it.

What ever happened to this band? It has been 5 years since this EP, and the band has disappeared from the face of the earth. A shame, as what we have here is atmospheric dark black metal the way it SHOULD be played. Kyprian's Circle plays strangely melodic, haunting and mostly mid-paced black metal that is drenched in such a forlorn atmosphere that it has the same effect as a really sad doom album. Picture Dol Guldur era Summoning crossed with a folk/doom band. From mesmerizing riffs and saturating layers of sorrowful keyboards and piano, to Nazgul's (ex-Horna) scathing black screams, this album totally rules. A short acoustic intro kicks things off, sliding into the dark metal nicely. The band keeps their mid-paced sound interesting by adding various suprising elements (acoustics, piano, etc) over the hypnotic, repetitious riffs. The only true failing is that it is too short. The length is understandable given that it was to be a sampling to whet the appetite of BM freaks everywhere, but, in retrospect, not a good thing, as the band has apparently ceased to exist. If you can still find this (not very likely outside of MP3 form) GET IT. Great stuff from a once promising outfit.