Extinction

It's a perfectly direct title for Nekrasov to start off its 2010 album with, and Extinction is at once about what one would expect from a black metal album in 2010 — familiar tropes, sonically and lyrically (or at least in its titles) that possess some enjoyable tweaks around the corners. For all that, the expected blur of white noise and rasped vocals kicks in almost immediately, there are also sudden blasts of slower heft, similar to how Pig Destroyer lets the classic rock raunch kick through their own work at points. There's also the keyboard pomp of symphonic metal in "Disillusion" and the opening riff of "Chant the Name of God in a Thousand Languages," a nice, chunky riff blasted over by fuzz and vocals so high-pitched that it's near disorienting. The real winners are the longest songs on the album, each of which acts as a contrast to the relatively more straightforward arrangements elsewhere, as Nekrasov overtly explores the blasted but calming effect that black metal has so readily created over time. On the completely emptied and zoned-out side, there's the flowing, dark, ambient howl of "Matter Is the Bastard," with its distant clatters and crumblings buried behind the main cold howl, creating an effective portrait of near-total desolation. "Pre-Fetal Non-Mantra" is more, strange to say, sweet sounding at its start, a gentle if still distant melodic tone echoing out of the depths while the slow introduction of a chaotic crumble of feedback and vocals feels like an interrupting radio signal instead, occasionally cutting out to absolute silence. The rhythmic "No Room for Liberation Found 'Here' or 'Now'" and the lengthy title track conclude the album with a last, almost romantic flow of serene tones and slow-burn feedback anger.