The Greek black metal scene had been producing a lot of quality acts in the past thirty years or so and Medieval Demon are one of those. They may have formed way back in 1993, but I can't remember hearing much, if anything, about them (my memory being what it is, that doesn't mean much... ;)) They released their first album in 1998 and then disappeared for nearly 20 years. Well, I'm glad they're back, because this is top-quality Greek melodic black metal that's not afraid to flirt with the harsher styles of the genre. This is their second album since their return, following 2018's Medieval Necromancy.

There's a lot going on here, from raw black metal all the way to the "light" symphonic style very common with Greek bands. Throw into that some '90s-style blasting black metal, the grandiose and dark approach à la Nocternity, a tasteful, not overdone use of religious-style chants just in the right places, all this glued together with an occult, sometimes chilling horror-like atmosphere. The cavernous, out-of-this-world vocals are a thing of nightmares and a major highlight throughout the album. Keyboards are used quite a bit and on some albums I'd usually think "maybe a little too much," but Medieval Demon have done a great job of using them to full effect without the watering-down effect that so many bands can't avoid, and a lot of that keyboard work adds massively to the atmosphere. Definitely a band I'll be keeping an eye on, as well as digging in their back catalogue.