Human Serpent – Heirlooms Eternal
Greece
The Scars of Millions Proselytism
This is my first encounter with Human Serpent, a trio hailing from Central Greece playing furious black metal with a melodic touch. The band formed in 2012 and “Heirlooms Eternal” is their fourth album.
I’m surprised I haven’t heard of them before, but then again, it’s difficult keeping track of all the killer bands coming out. Human Serpent is certainly not an amateurish band, and have already procured a position for themselves in the Greek underground scene as an elite band carrying the torch for true Hellenic black metal.
One of the first things I’ve noticed about their music is the overwhelming display of powerful melodies, yet somehow the band still manage to sound emphatically heavy at the same time. It’s an auspicious combination that works. Everything sounds perfectly balanced, whether it’s the performance or the production. The atmosphere on this album is absolutely mind-crushing and steeped in melancholia.
Human Serpent definitely has a sound of their own. So in that respect it’s quite tricky to make comparisons. I’ll just add that they definitely have a bit of that old-school Hellenic black metal in their sound and that the musicians are quite accomplished, with the guitarist delivering a solid arsenal of riffs that will put a smile on anyone’s face into true iron-clad black metal that’s all about the riffs. The songs are mostly fast and fierce as could be desired, featuring hard-hitting drums, venomous bass-lines, soul-shattering guitars, and hateful vocals.
On the balance, “Heirlooms Eternal” is 8 tracks of pure Hellenic fury and well-worth your time if you like well-executed black metal with a majestic and crushing atmosphere. (HT)