Inexorum – Equinox Vigil
Release Date: 17th June 2022
Label: Gilead Media
Bandcamp
Genre: Black Metal, Death Metal, NWOBHM.
FFO: Sacramentum, Mork Gryning, Dawn, and Wintersun.
Review By: Eric Wilt
I’ve written before about my tendency to give an album a first listen based solely on the artwork. In the case of Equinox Vigil by Inexorum, the beautiful fall scene complete with waterfall by Brooks Wilson (singer ad cover artist of Crypt Sermon), guaranteed that I would be checking out the music within. When I see a forest scene like the one on Equinox Vigil, I immediately assume I am about to hear some black metal full of atmosphere and contemplative lyrics accompanied by a black-and-white photo of the sole member of the band corpse-painted and alone in a dark wood. In this case, I was partially correct. Although it began as the solo project of Carl Skildum, Inexorum now consists of two members. Skildum is responsible for guitars, keys, vocals, and programming and Matthew Kirkwold plays bass and contributes vocals. The band picture is in black and white, but it wasn’t taken in a dark wood, and neither man is wearing corpsepaint. Musically, black metal is perhaps a jumping off point for the band, but there is more going on than what you would expect from a typical black metal release.
As is to be expected with black metal, Inexorum incorporates plenty of tremolo picking, blast-beats, and anguished vocals, but they set themselves apart from the crowd by blending traditional metal (that even verge on the edges of pagan metal) influences into their compositions. Several times throughout the eight songs on Equinox Vigil, Inexorum layer a twin guitar lead attack over the rhythm laid down by a third guitar. As for their vocal delivery, there is clean singing in addition to the screeching vocals of black metal. Lyrically, Inexorum delivers thoughtful takes on everything from the human experience to religious hypocrisy and self-healing to nature.
While not necessarily reinventing the wheel, Inexorum has dug out a niche in the extreme music world that is all their own. At times raging, at other times subdued, Inexorum has created a unique album that will please fans of black metal and NWOBHM and pagan metal alike.
(4 / 5)
