From a purely sonic perspective, cassette might be the ideal format for black metal. I started with CDs, dabbled a bit in vinyl for my favorite bands in the genre, but lately I’ve been grabbing cassettes from Bandcamp (usually from the excellent Fiadh Productions), connecting the threads of collaborations until I found Ashenheart and their latest, Tales From Eternal Dusk. The timing couldn’t have been more perfect: had I discovered them earlier, I might have been turned off by their former adherence to FromSoftware video games for their thematic inspiration. But when the band channels second-wave energy with a more modern, intentional spirit this well, I guess you can lay your Bloodborne fanfic on heavy as you please.

The Michigan quartet specialized in thematic content from the aforementioned video game developer, but if I’m being honest I would never know it listening to last year’s Faded Gold. Opening with “Empire of the Necromancers” I’d say the milieu hasn’t changed that much, with lyrics about encroaching darkness and evil. But the music? The music revels in the foundational signs on the genre: killer tremolo riffing and in vocalist Alex Loach a sinister raspy screech that while sitting a little high in the mix embodies everything you want in black metal vocals, including for me a level of clarity that actually gives you a fighting chance to understand what’s going on without a lyrics sheet.

But where Ashenheart and Tales of Eternal Dusk really rise is in the guitar work of Amanda Kauffman, who besides being a founding member handles most of the songwriting. With the expansion of the former duo to a four-piece, there’s a much broader palette to work with, and on “Apparitions of the Abyss” and the closing “Hymn to Silence the Light” we get some serious shredding in the solo departments, something second wave wasn’t particularly known for.

Is there anything new here? Absolutely not, but I really connected with the refreshing take on an old standby, and I have to admit: sitting in front of the stereo, peering intently at the small font on my cassette foldout brings back a lot of fond memories.

(no pic, because that’s how black metal they are)