Relishing in the fall unto the underworld whilst staring romantically into the void finds our protagonist post-ego, fading into blissful nonexistence beyond life in the gentle embrace of Porto, Portugal-based black metal quintet ANZV who’d ferry the spark beyond its raw husk on this polished sophomore full-length album. Our guides on the path below to ‘Kur‘ intend a continuation of their synthesis of “classic” and modern black metal temperaments, leaning toward the latter as they uphold their directive within a Sumer fascinated nihilistic existentialist perspective.

Anzv formed circa 2019 generally under the command of guitarist, primary songwriter and lyricist M. who was previously known as MysticCosmoS since the late 90’s in his black/death metal band Epping Forest. These two entities are linked in a number of ways which reflect the sensibilities of the artist as one could easily pick up ‘Lebabvoid‘ (2017) and hear the interest in new-and-old Polish black metal as well as a general Behemoth-guided sphere of inspiration in hand… then guide that thought toward the concepts, imagery and musicianship guiding this new group in a post-‘The Satanist‘ realm. This is most palpable in relation on their debut LP (‘Gallas‘, 2022) an “occult” black metal release with a “nihilistic Sumerian” theme and modern metal aesthetic (costuming and makeup included). In this sense comparisons to earlier works from Schammasch, Aversio Humanitatis and Uada were/are technically warranted both musically and in terms of performance but this isn’t (yet) a post-black metal band nor do they focus on dissonant forms explicitly.

The vocals were probably my biggest gripe with ‘Gallas‘ at the time, a performance which rarely matched the nuance of their work otherwise. This time around new vocalist Ahnum (Resurrect) suited his role rather than overtook it in my general preview of ‘Kur‘ as a promising, atmospheric and dramatic work with a better balanced mix. I will be fairly harsh up front in suggesting Anzv‘s skills of presentation and performance precede the value of their music as the overall curation is undeniably strong here with fine production values, a thoughtful (perhaps not so deep) theme, and some admirably detailed finishes on the packaging for ‘Kur‘ yet their compositions and greater effect lacks substantive personality beyond a known status quo, a standard already well set. This isn’t such a crime within black metal of today and it doesn’t mean this record isn’t enjoyable as an experience though it felt more like a “general audiences” vision of modern black metal tides and the zeitgeist is impossibly crowded at this point.

There is yet well enough enjoyment to be had sitting with ‘Kur‘ for the sake of its treatment of the ~5 minute black metal song, a set of ten blustering and heavily atmospheric pieces given occasional specificity via various arabesque accoutrement and chorales (“Imdugud”) but dominated by soaring tremolo picked leads and a mid-paced gallop. Though I wouldn’t say these songs are interchangeably set, a piece like “Alû” is quite different from the backgrounded keys/synth and dissonant groaning found on “Shamash”, there is a consistent set of tools at use here which veer between post-black ingress and soaring atmospheric black metal voicing. That is to say there is a certain level of consistency here which makes for a pleasurable listen even if the tone doesn’t gel with the Sumerian theme per at-times cloying, bopping rock moments on the downturn. Perhaps it works for Uada in their own context but the last few minutes of “Shamash” didn’t necessarily prompt a vision of a god of the sun and justice as much as a refrain fit for a blackgaze inclined act.

There are fine songs on here for my own taste otherwise: The aforementioned “Alû” does well to build and represent the melodic voice of the guitarists, a sound they’ll return to frequently, and it serves as an anthemic crowd mover in general. Otherwise I’d particularly enjoyed certain parts of Side B, most of which were more fittingly ominous in tone and/or descending in progression. I’d point to the tremolo picked lead phrases used in the relatively simple “Namtaru” as accessible and neatly stated, though my favorite piece here, “Lamashtu”, successfully echoes some of the theatrics of Side A via choral vocals and keyboards but cuts back to the quick efficacy of its progression.

Action and atmosphere do well to vie for the attentive listener’s ear throughout ‘Kur‘ and I’ve no doubt crowds will be thrilled by these pieces in practicum, there is some manner of captivating energy put into each one. I’d personally struggled to find any one composition or statement that struck me as personal in signature, charged in its statement or particularly unique in its bent. With that said it was a pleasure to listen to as Anzv meet a certain standard with this recording and these songs which takes plenty of skill and ambition to create. As I said, there is a spectacle to behold here and that’ll sell this record to most but this one didn’t click with me all that often. A bigger fan of this sound should be exponentially impressed by the complete package with consideration for the embossed and brilliantly illustrated cover art and such. A moderate recommendation.

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