Ante-Inferno // Antediluvian Dreamscapes // Album Review

In 2020, UK Black Metallers Ante-Inferno released their debut full length album Fame and now they plan to build on those quality foundations and bring their dark and expressional music to us all.

The 7 tracks that are contained on this album span approximately 43 minutes and will take you to some places in your mind that you may not be ready to unblocked.

Opening with ‘A Lullaby to a Dying World’ the welcoming musical intro could easily begin to start to lull you into a trance and leave you vulnerable, before the glorious sounds of Black Metal begin to wash over you and be absorbed by your susceptible state as ‘Transcendence’ erupts into life. The guitar drones a hypnotic riff as the drums crash and opens up any weaknesses before the harsh vocal adds the final stunning extremity to this wonderous sound.

By the time you reach this point of the album, you will know that you are in for a real treat of atmospheric darkness that would rival anything you have experienced anywhere else.

As the album progresses, we head into the darker and more questionable realms of music that really test your comfort in this Black Metal arena and we also get some shorter, yet highly haunting musical offerings that could be seen as a respite but really is just a more subtle attack.

The tracks themselves tend to meander through an outright assault to a relaxed mental test yet no matter what gear the band are in, the Black Metal remains of a very high standard. Steering clear of the traditional distortion has allowed the detailed and intricate nature of the music to be fully expressed and also heard.

The outcome is something that is exciting and extreme. Antediluvian Dreamscapes has the feel and sound of a band that is mastering their craft and really re pushing themselves as far as they can. The album grabs you and doesn’t let go from the start. You will see the emotions rushing through your body and you won’t be prepared for some of them but the way Ante-Inferno attacks your defences is unlike what you will be prepared for.

I received this album the day after seeing one of the best Black Metal bands to ever grace the stage, Emperor and feared that the high I was on after that show would be unfair on his review. However, on a form like this, there is no doubt that Ante-inferno has the quality to mention alongside such greats and is certainly going about things in a way that makes their now and future very exciting.

Ed Ford

Antediluvian Dreamscapes will be released Friday 13^th May 2022 via Vendetta Records.