• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5

Patria are a long-running Brazilian act that go against the norm by being a South American act that works in the Scandinavian school of black metal. They still have a bit of the dirtiness in their sound you'd expect from their corner of the world, particularly in the faster sections, but most of this is run on fierce tremolo riffing, blasting and often strong drum work, and lovely melodic leads that'd do Dissection proud. Apparently, this album has more synths than usual, but they're used tastefully the same way Emperor used to and it really adds to the cold, mystic atmosphere they try to build on here. Despite having a bevy of recognizable influences, they put them together in a way that I can't say I've heard all that much, and I've certainly rarely heard songs in the style as good as "Archetypes" and the gorgeous and furious "A Last Breath of Sulphur" from more modern bands in the mold, and that puts Patria well above the tidal wave of second wave wannabes we are often forced to deal with. Killer shit from a band I'll have to look more into.