Nachtmystium - Addicts: Black Meddle Part II (2010)

Sometimes I stop and think how strange it is that nowadays Nachtmystium is one of my favorite bands, and I say this simply because eight years ago when I heard their debut, 'Reign of the Malicious' I thought they were quite simply awful. Of course in those days Blake Judd and his comrades were a corpsepainted clan of Transilvanian Hunger era Darkthrone worshippers with zero innovation and honestly not much talent for songwriting either. Fortunately it became clear to the band shortly thereafter that they were never going to make copying other bands and they quickly began to change, pick up new influences and define their own unique sound.

Eight years later we see Nachtmystium releasing their sixth album as well as the second part of their 'Black Meddle' series. 'Addicts: Black Meddle Part II' tends to carry on in a similar fashion as Part I, though this time around the songs are far catchier and melodic, the solos are just brilliant ('Nightfall,' 'Then Fire' and 'Addicts' are the best examples) and they've also added greater synthesizer depth as well as a very unique sounding song called, 'No Funeral,' which honestly sounds as if they drew influences from 70's disco and new wave music... I'm not kidding. The band has also further refined the psychedelic sound they first started toying around with a few years ago to the point now where they truly do sound like a psychedelic metal band.

The thing about Addicts though is that it takes A LOT of spins before it really clicks. I mean seriously, the first time I listened to the record six months ago I completely dismissed it after the first spin, but not one to give up on an album I bought, I kept listening to it until things really started to click into place. After each spin I noticed different things that really stuck out further, like the aforementioned solos, or some of the funkier synth/moog parts, the melodic nature of songs like, 'Nightfall' or 'Then Fires, the drawn out trippy/epic mood of, 'Every Last Drop' and even the little thrash bit in, 'Blood Trance Fusion' is cute too.

In the end Addicts is some strange blend of minor black metal characteristics, Pink Floyd-ish psychedelia with bizarro synth arrangements, melodic riffs and clever memorable solos and lyrics, which will surely alienate some old fans further, but will surely draw in many new fans that long for unique and interesting music in their ears.

In early 2011 Nachtmystium will be touring with Cradle of Filth, but hopefully a new album will surface by the end of the year as I'm very curious to see where their music goes from here.