OLD CORPSE ROAD

On Ghostly Shores Lays The Wreckage Of Our Lore TROLLZORN

UK black metallers invoke history both ancient and recent

‘English Heritage black metal’ is a contentious descriptor, but on labyrinthine epic The Ghosts Of The Ruinous Dunstanburgh Castle, this Durham quintet are literally doing BM about English Heritage sites, and yes it’s a great thing. OCR rarely assimilate 21stcentury reference points, this third LP still sounding entrenched in a mid-90s netherworld where Cradle, Bal-sagoth and Hecate Enthroned are the spearhead of a new wave of British black metal. OCR ride it high with this nautical concept album – a well-worn trope but irresistible, so perfectly are coastal storms evoked by BM’S whirling tumult – and the band’s rustic humanity is refreshing in such a coldly elitist genre. ■■■■■■■■■■

FOR FANS OF: Cradle Of Filth, Winterfylleth,

Emperor

CHRIS CHANTLER