Necrophobic – In The Twilight Grey (Album Review)
Necrophobic – In the Twilight Grey
Released: March 15th, 2024
Line Up:
Anders Strokirk // Vocals
Sebastian Ramstedt // Guitars
Johan Bergebäck // Guitars
Tobias Cristiansson // Bass
Joakim Sterner // Drums
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Proving for over three decades that not all the best black metal comes from Norway, Swedish five-piece Necrophobic have been delivering their highly underrated, thrash/death-influenced blackened attack since the tail-end of the 80s. A rare act that has gotten better as the years have progressed, their last two releases – Dawn of the Damned and Mark of the Necrogram – are examples of a band at their arguable peak. With Necrophobic having nailed their unique brand of ravenous – yet epic and darkly melodic – black metal, the group’s 10th studio full-length In The Twilight Grey might be their most anticipated effort to date.
Following a moody, creeping intro, ‘Grace of the Past‘ launches into life, asserting itself as a classic Necrophobic album opener with grabbing guitar lines, Anders Strokirk’s rabid vocals, and marauding blastbeats. The track will certainly kick off the band’s shows for the next few tours, with the stomping middle section custom-built for the live arena. Charging first single ‘Stormcrow‘ is super catchy, it’s tempo-change chorus immediately attesting, highlighting the huge amount of guitar histrionics on In The Twilight Grey – certainly some Judas Priest, Glenn Tipton/KK Downing-vibes going on.
Not many groups can write a modern black metal opus like Necrophobic. While the first four cuts on the LP are more direct and to the throat – the to-the-floor ‘Clavis Inferni‘ might be the record’s most intense moment – the back of In The Twilight Grey is where the Swede’s start to stretch out with some more expansive songwriting. The seven-minute ‘Shadows of the Brightest Night‘ is the immense album centrepiece, with the wrist-shattering track a never-ending cavalcade of swirling guitars and progressive touches, while the enormous penultimate title tune is another weighty tome. It takes a detour with a middle section packing clean guitars and reverb-soaked lead breaks, moving into almost folk metal territory, showing off the band’s eclectic writing talents.
Wrapped up in raw and real-sounding production, In The Twilight Grey sounds both large and energetic, with ‘Cast in Stone‘ harkening back to classic old-school BM, while ‘Nordanvind‘ is a mid-tempo stomper that balances heaviness with clean guitars and atmospheric touches. There are a couple of more forgettable numbers on the record; ‘As Stars Collide‘ isn’t overly noteworthy, while the instrumental closer ‘Ascension (Episode Four)‘ adds little to proceedings, but these moments are overshadowed by In The Twilight Grey’s many brighter moments.
Admittedly not as powerful as their previous two LPs, In The Twilight Grey is still a highly addictive and satisfying addition to Necrophobic’s blackened back catalogue. While more than capable firing of a four-minute burst of black metal, the Swedes’ are certainly at their finest when composing lengthier tracks. The quicker cuts of blackened violence are filled with adrenaline, but it’s when they go into deeper water and push out the arrangements to the six, seven-minute mark that they come into their own. Housing the best of both worlds, Necrophobic’s tenth studio album is another crushing addition to a criminally underrated band’s history.
Necrophobic – In the Twilight Grey tracklisting
- Grace of the Past
- Clavis Inferni
- As Stars Collide
- Stormcrow
- Shadows of the Brightest Night
- Mirrors of a Thousand Lakes
- Cast in Stone
- Nordanvind
- In the Twilight Grey
- Ascension (Episode Four)
Rating: 8/10
In the Twilight Grey is out March 15th on Century Media Records. Order here
Review By – Andrew Kapper. Twitter: @andrew_kapper