Vaeok – Vaeok

Band: Vaeok
Title: Vaeok (EP)
Label: World Terror Committee Productions
Release date: 07 January 2020
Country: USA
Format reviewed: Digital Promo

As winter sets in, I like to keep a healthy supply of black metal at my finger tips for the sunless days and frozen bitter nights ahead. VAEOK is a band that instantly caught my eye, releasing their first EP in the early days of 2020 through World Terror Committee Productions. These american metalheads deliver a furious and atmospheric take on the classic Norweigian black metal sound that strikes a chord with so many. Any fan of Emperor, Blut Aus Nord, Satyricon, Mgla, or Carach Angren will surely take quick notice.

“Terricula Nox” opens with a haunting build on top of eerie chords and a rising symphonic element. Slow dark guitars pick things up before the swarming entropy envelopes the senses. The vocal and instrumental structure are straight out of the black metal playbook but they are perfect for their chilling demeanor. “Atrox” keeps the fury going, starting off like a bomb of grim riffs and ghastly vocals. They keep the pressure up with splashy percussions and let the blackened melodies flow freely in an all out sprint of darkness.

The EP ends just as strong as it begins with “Malaesthete” ripping your guts out once again with their completely dialed vocal delivery and no shortage of bleakness in the monstrous riffing.“Souls Void” changes things up a bit by slowing things down for the final track. VAEOK focus on razor sharp rhythms and some very catchy pick work instead of the full throttle evisceration of previous tracks. Just as quick as if all started, everything is concluded with the symphonics and strings fading into the void they just tore in our plane of existence…

VAEOK will no doubt consume souls with their starry bleak black metal. The keyboard syphonics are well balanced and never feel overbearing throughout the listen. This EP has some absolutely wicked moments; the subtle tempo change in the tremolo picking during the ending of the first track and the unexpected sinister as hell breakdown in “Malaesthete” are two that come to mind. These sorts of things are going to set the hook deep for black metal fans and others who just happen across them by chance. Keep your eyes peeled for VAEOK’s next move; this EP was devastating and deserves some immediate attention from metalheads around the world! 9/10 Metal Yeti

Band
Facebook

Label
Website
Bandcamp
Soundcloud
Facebook
YouTube

9/10: Epic Storm!
**Please support the underground! It’s vital to the future of our genre.**
#WeAreBlessedAltarZine
#TheZineSupportingTheUnderground