Nachtmystium

AMG Review of Nachtmystium

Greg Prato
All Music Guide

Here's a challenge for the extremely brave out there -- try and decipher any of the lyrics on Nachtmystium's self-titled EP from 2002. Unless you have an extremely sharp ear (or a lyric sheet in front of you), this would be quite a daunting challenge. It's impossible to determine if vocalist Zmij is actually uttering words or just offering guttural belches, screams, and groans throughout. Originally released on the Regimental label, this six-track EP was out of print for a few years, before the fine folks at Battle Kommand Records remastered it and put it back in print. The end result sounds like one extended lack metal nightmare, as evidenced by such tracks as "Cold Tormentor (I've Become)," "Come Forth, Devastation," and "Gaze Upon Heaven in Flames." The production is not what you'd expect from a "lack metal album," though (the guitars are pushed more toward the back than usual), but Nachtmystium's self-titled EP should definitely appeal to fans of underground lack metal -- that is, about as underground as you can get.