While one could accuse hundreds of supreme black metal bands today of revisionist escapism few seek to generate their own dark fantasy worlds with any real sincerity, at least not to the ambitious magnitude of Lahti, Finland-based black metal duo WARMOON LORD who tread familiar ground but do so to an impeccable standard and with increasing ambition album over album. For this third full-length record their craft has all of the lofty adornment and herd-defying attitude one’d want from a second wave obsessed muse yet their treatment of Satanic high fantasy narrated guile is most distinctly lead by an elite uptick in guitar arrangements and performances centered on the realm of the riff. ‘Sacrosanct Demonopathy‘ refuses to toe the line, finding a brilliant ratio between the upshot gloria of introspective Scandinavian black metal majesty and the direct-to-throat slash of (early) melodic black metal at its most complexly scaled and riveting left hand grasp.

Formed circa 2019 Warmoon Lord is the main black metal incentive of Lord Vrăjitor who is probably best known for his work in dungeon synth/black ambient project Old Sorcery as well as his time in doom metal troupe Musta Risti. His interest in black metal was tentatively stated on a well-received first LP (‘Burning Banners of the Funereal War‘, 2019) wherein the riffs hadn’t quite picked a directive and the aesthetic spoke to the trend of the time. It was a fine enough debut album that’d been quickly trounced by the highly melodic mid-90’s aplomb of their second LP (‘Battlespells‘, 2021), a total escalation of their guitar work, a step closer to par with the best of moderne Finnish black metal with some unique fusion of atmospheric keys and “epic” black metal stature unto a late second wave dynamic. Though it’d been too quick a paradigm shift to some fans of the first album there’d been no denying the leap made into that second album, a bigger-and-better standard set which I’d praised in review, giving mention of everything from Ancient and Troll (Norway) to Isvind and even G.B.K. on the ride through. Anticipation for this third LP generally builds behind the strong momentum of the second in my case.

Clarity of performances is the most notable boon found on album number three wherein a focus on increasingly riveting yet complex layers makes for an ensembled feeling rather than a bedroom level gig. Making space for two distinct rhythm guitar voicings alongside much improved drum presence (esp. double bass kick definition) here sets Warmoon Lord within a sprawling and voluminous render. Still entirely entranced by the ambitions of the mid-second wave escalation of precision guitar-driven melody over simpler-dirging grooves ‘Sacrosanct Demonopathy‘ is not without orcish tendency as it drags its magick’d dread mace and oaken shield along in menacing approach of opener “Warpoems & Tragedies”, an instrumental introduction which brings menacing groove to set the mood outright. It doesn’t yet reflect the slashed-out majesty of the experience but cues the listener in on how the ensuing clash will resound.

The true mayhem begins with “Invoking the Retribution Eidolon” bringing its wrathfully, frantically screeched attitude amidst choral keys and galloping riffs which surge and relent in waves. The best keyboard-floated rhythmus on this album resolves into Moonsorrow-esque plumes as the “symphonic” ideation of the album assert itself in a few creative ways outright, my favorite being the groaning tones underpinning the transition into the second stage of the song (~1:56 minutes in). This comes with a heavy metal flair in hand, a bigger personality delivered via demented, lung-emptying rasps and wildly trailing dual rhythm guitar action; It is all Scandinavian black metal of a certain order but as the Eye turns toward Side A considered as a whole Warmoon Lord‘s sound offers something different than suggested compatriots (re: Satanic Warmaster, Vargrav) a sort of generationally removed bile and blustering force that takes peak-era Dawn (’94) and Sacramentum (’96) where highly melodic riffs are a major feature but in an ‘epic’ mode rather than any sort of sweetened romanticism, fusing that dual-rhythmic guitar (read: early 90’s melodic black/death) language back into the frothing highs of Emperor inspired atmospheric reaches.

On some level it’d be fair to suggest the impression of Warmoon Lord‘s sound as symptomatic of the best Finnish black metal on the sophisticate spectrum, and that’d be a fair compliment to give, but in this case the rhythm section performances are particularly broad in scope but specific in mode for these pieces. Every time I picked up ‘Sacrosanct Demonopathy‘ it was admittedly for the riffs but it wouldn’t all work without the drumming found on some of the best songs the record has to offer… such as the kicking and threshing movement delivered by the Thy Primordial-esque ride of “Tartaros Offering”. For my own taste this’d been the most key song of the lot, a shrieking bout of dementia and the piece I’d returned to most often for its Finnblack take on the cluttered, excitable rhythms of ‘Nær sólen gar niþer for evogher‘ but the whole of the album should be commended for both the dual guitar attack on rhythm and sourcing drum patternation which not only suits their work but pulls it away from the usual unconsciously rattled meter.

Prepare to be stun-locked by these folks as I’d suggest every piece here is worthy, there are no filler tracks or overindulgent instrumental goads which interrupt or demean the black-glowing build of ‘Sacrosanct Demonopathy‘. For my own taste Side A was the fixation to start but I’d concede that Side B is its equal, delivering four songs which are just as grand and inspired in entrance via key piece “Uncreation’s Dragon”, probably the most elaborately stated on the album. I’d suggest taking note of the dip into the riff around ~1:29 minutes into the song as the guitars introduce a foreshadowing interruption which escalates as the song unfurls its scroll towards its second half and reaches for the eventual reveal of its folk-melodic core. We’ve neither escaped the realm of ‘Battlespells‘ or found flat iteration of it at this point as the work here takes on a more bold, riff-obsessed vision on songs like this.

Though I’d found it difficult to choose a favorite cut on this album “His Enigmatic Ways” stood out to me as a different shade of black metal riffcraft, something more along the lines of Grand Belial’s Key-esque construction, bearing heavy metal incensed intricacies which reach for a folken endpoint. This makes the moment a bit different from the similar outbursts found on “Empowered by Battlespells” (my favorite piece from ‘Battlespells‘) but also speaks to some consistency of creation as Warmoon Lord‘s capabilities begin to show some mastery of several schools of ‘old school’ black metal ideation. There isn’t a song on ‘Sacrosanct Demonopathy‘ that I wouldn’t recommend, and “Tartaros Offering” is probably the most representative in some broader sense, but for my own taste the shorter yet impactful “Daemonic Supremacy Enthroned” is likely the one that’d win fandom most quickly at face value due to its grandiose but tempered use of atmospheric keys, frayed dual guitar attack at full tilt, and the grand feeling of the album at its peaking glow.

The full listen of ‘Sacrosanct Demonopathy‘ rips past, portaling itself through intermittently familiar ideas while consistently selecting feats which speak directly to thrill of second wave black metal guitar at its most conscious balance between skillfully achieved effect and a sort of high fantasy scene depicted. It isn’t a flawless gem so much as a unique facet in the realm and there are some very mild complaints on my end: The vocals are somewhat backgrounded or appear to lose the plot on a few pieces, the outro is mild in its fading exit, and I’d have enjoyed some more variety in their choice of keys/synth (more of the rhythmic dread found on “Invoking the Retribution Eidolon”, esp.) but I’d not found any major complaint per my time with Warmoon Lord‘s latest. Anyone seeking canonical second wave braced black metal should find this third album their biggest achievement to date and, sure, it is worth a recommendation to the broader populace for its guitar work alone though the whole of their work is escalated in tandem. A high recommendation.

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