Jason Koransky Aaron Cohen Ara Tirado Andy Williams Margaret Stevens Kelly Grosser Mary WilcopĪDVERTISING SALES Record Companies & Schools Jennifer Ruban-Gentile 63 Musical Instruments & East Coast Schools Ritche Deraney 20 Classified Advertising Sales Sue Mahal 63 OFFICES 102 N. Listen to one of the year’s best black metal albums and face the darkness with Krigsgrav.DOWNBEAT 75 GREAT GUITARISTS JACK BRUCE DAVID BINNEY JAZZ CLUB GUIDEĮditor Associate Editor Art Director Production Associate Bookkeeper Circulation Manager Intern It will then be released on CD, Cassette, and digitally on August 6th through Wise Blood Records. "The Sundering" will commence with a track premiere and pre-order launch on the summer solstice, June 21st. Our lyrical content is almost consistently about our place in this world, and how finite and fragile our existence is.” It is about personal perseverance in the face of absolute crushing odds that should not allow it. “This album is based around the dread of a natural event occurring and having no control,” Coleman shares, “but trying to find the means to pull yourself together to get through it all. "The Sundering" was partially inspired by that tragedy, and feels timely in an age where nature has humbled humanity yet again. While the city was resilient in the face of so much carnage, it was a reminder of Mother Nature’s destructive power. It was the deadliest storm in the young history of the United States, with approximately 8,000 fatalities. In 1900, a devastating hurricane hit the thriving coastal city of Galveston in Krigsgrav’s home state of Texas.
Think the Swedish greats like Dissection and Dawn playing as cataclysmic winds come with nightfall. But the album also brings a storm of riffs with its dark-cloud ambience. Krigsgrav channel the rustic atmospheres of Agalloch and Woods of Ypres while the somber moods of Katatonia and My Dying Bride seep into each composition. "The Sundering" is an exceptionally dark and downcast record that considers black metal a canvas instead of a genre prison. Thematically, Krigsgrav is based around beauty in darkness, our stoic internal reflection and just the smallest amount of hope that can still be found, even at life’s darkest moments.” “It is our version of spirituality, I guess you could say. “Krigsgrav represents the bleakness through which we view this world and how we interpret those emotions musically," explains vocalist/guitarist Justin Coleman. The result of their pandemic collaboration is "The Sundering," a masterpiece of gray-skied black metal and melodic death/doom. As the duo prepared to write the project’s sixth full-length, Krigsgrav approached Giant of the Mountain’s Cody Daniels about shifting from occasional live member to full-time lead guitarist. Recurring conspirator Justin Coleman has remained a mainstay in Krigsgrav ever since.
Originating as a two-man band led by David Sikora, he welcomed new members in 2011, transforming the band into a full four-piece unit. "Beyond the enthralling black metal haze, Krigsgrav simply do what all the best melodeath bands do: write catchy riffs with big hooks that make you want to bang your head, pump your fist, and mosh 'til your heart's content." - Cave Dweller Musicįormed in 2004, black metal trio Krigsgrav have constantly evolved throughout their dusky discography. "Easily one of the more intriguing LPs of 2021." - Purgatory Channel "Imagine a thunderstorm, wildfire and tornado occurring all at once, and you’ll get a good idea behind Krigsgrav." - Decibel Magazine "An absolutely stunning combination of atmospheric black metal and melodic death metal." - Metal Injection