BRIARGH - Vn Antigvo Trono Olvidado

It seems there’s no need to introduce Briargh to the fans of traditional underground Black Metal. Although the one-man project hails from the Iberian Peninsula it has close bounds with Poland because of the cooperation with the Lower Silesian Stronghold label.
       Last year the second CD of Briargh entitled “Krigas” was released with the Lower Silesian Stronghold logo (the second CD in the history of the band and the first one released on LSS). This year an MCD titled “Vn Antigvo Trono Olvidado” appears on the market, and subsequently a Briargh/Aasgard split CD entitled “Restoration/Kyaoimos” is released (all of these made by the Wroc?aw-based label).
       OK, let’s go back to the topic of the music included on the MCD. The six songs appearing there stick to the atmosphere presented earlier by the band. It’s all really underground, dark and, in a way, ethnic (the author of the music doesn’t deny his Celtic ancestry and fascinations). In the music made by Dvx Bellorvm one can feel the atmosphere of his native lands; he didn’t hesitate to include elements closer to folk than to metal music in his compositions once again. These have been worked in tastefully, serving to create an interesting ambience through the use of folk instruments such as jaw harp, flutes, or simply a tambourine.
       Furthermore, the vocal arrangements in the particular songs are great; they are quite diversified, as if they were created especially for each single track; sometimes one can hear interesting female vocals here and there – these either constitute a background or they are more prominent. The Manowar cover song is a real gem of the MCD; as I’ve already written before in some review, I’m not a fan of these guys’ stuff. However, it must be the third of the fourth song of theirs covered by somebody else that I like a lot. While listening to “Thor” I sense clearly that it is in this track, rather than any one of those that he’s composed himself, that Dvx manages to really spread his wings as a multi-instrumentalist. Each of the instruments can be heard distinctly and they work very well, which means that they actually produce notes, rather than plinking and farting sounds as in the case of many other one-man projects ran by one-man orchestras.
       I’m glad that such underground projects have so much determination and that they don’t give up in spite of all the obstacles – this also refers to those who choose to release the music recorded by such individuals. Fortunately, there were always those with passion, heart, and devotion in Poland and thanks to them we can enjoy such CDs.
       In my opinion the underground Celtic Black Metal presented by Briargh deserves a high note. Taking into account all the elements I’ve mentioned in the review – praise be to the man responsible for the creation of “Vn Antigvo Trono Olvidado”. Praise be to him also because in the times of economic and national globalisation he takes care to preserve the memory and the achievements of his native Cantabria. Ab imo pectore.

16+