Those recognising the Tolkienien reference in Battle Dagorath’s band name will either be pleasantly surprised or mildly disappointed to find that the Californian trio aren’t a cheesy, Battlelore-inspired power metal troupe, but an atmospheric black metal act with about as much gung ho as Sunn 0))). Luckily, ‘Eternal Throne’ is a nonetheless sumptuously brutal debut that recalls the ambient tendencies of acts like Nachtmystium and Wolves In The Throne Room without the progressive ambition.

    There are still Lord Of The Rings references aplenty, not least in the guttural ‘Ruin Upon The Mountainside’, featuring a soundbite from McKellen’s Gandalf that is at compelling fantastical odds with the dark and morbid overtones of the record. The gritty production renders Dagorath as sounding more at home in the dark forests of Norway than the sunny realm of California, and the result is a resounding victory for true American black metal.

8