The wilderness is a very common concept in alternative music. Every artist has a different approach to writing about the wilderness, and it is very hard to capture the true essence of a forest, or the weather that an artist experiences. This is where GRIMA enters. This Siberian black metal act has aimed to pay tribute not only to the Siberian wilderness, but also to the Siberian forest spirit known as Taiga with their Napalm Records debut Nightside, making this one of the most unique concepts in modern day black metal.
After a brief 2-minute intro starts the album off, ‘Beyond the Dark Horizon’ properly kicks things off. The band do not waste any time introducing their unique sound. This track is slow for black metal standards but delivers an insight into what the rest of the album will entail. Melodic guitar riffs drone through your headphones as vocalist Vilhelm delivers a mix of high-pitched shrieks and death metal growls.
The next couple of tracks that follow are both singles. These songs both encapsulate what GRIMA aim to deliver as a unit. Melancholy in a dramatic, hard-hitting way. On ‘Flight of the Silver Storm’ the first blast beat sequences are heard. The blast beats here are used as a transition between musical segments in the songs, which is very rare to find in black metal. It also uses synths to segway into the following track ‘Skull Gatherers,’ which is the song where the journey really seems to kick off. The slow pace of the intro really helps this song stand out as a unique piece compared to what came before it. It is at this point where the album starts to develop a progressive metal feel to it as session drummer Vlad flawlessly combines straight forward 4/4 drumming with more progressive beats I decided not to bother in counting. ‘Skull Gatherers’ ends with a traditional Russian instrument playing very soothingly, creating a sense of dread upon listening.
‘Impeding Death Premonition,’ the track that follows is slightly more straight forward in terms of the traditional black metal sound. What truly elevates this song, is the use of the traditional instruments once again, as during the bridge, they are very faint as they are mixed with a gorgeous acoustic guitar melody, while as the song progresses to the climax at the end, they are played to full volume. Another thing that makes this song stand out, is that the outro has clean vocals, which is immensely rare on a black metal album.
‘Where We Are Lost’ is another song where the drums are given the opportunity to shine. The intro riff is played over a drum beat which combines single and double pedal footwork which somehow elevates the riff to a whole other level. The bridge following the guitar solo includes a miniature breakdown before blast beats intertwine with the iconic Vilhelm shrieks, adding another layer of creativity to this album. This is a song title that is spot on, as by the end of this song, I felt as if I was lost in a forest. The guitarwork on this track is the best on the album.
Track number eight relies on a slower more mellow start before another more progressive drum beat kicks in alongside the vocals. There is a hint of clean vocals throughout this song, which is very unique as they are layered over the harsh vocals. Once again, the drums start to steal the show around two minutes into the track as the traditional Russian accordion called a bayan gets incorporated to add an extra layer of atmosphere to an already eerie yet extremely well-conceived song. The track ends with a guitar solo which is always appreciated as the listener needs to recover from any type of vocal assault from time to time.
After one last song, a two-minute-long outro plays which is much softer from the rest of the album, which is a very nice touch as it symbolizes the end of a journey through a forest, and back into normality.
This is a vastly different black metal listening experience thanks to the clean vocals used in a few of the songs, but also because it is moodier, and feels like a progressive metal album at times. As a drummer, I always love hearing the bass drum, and I think that the band could have easily complied and turned the volume of the bass drum to match the snare a little more. It is incredibly impressive how the use of the bayan got incorporated into this album, it adds a sense of authenticity to the music, and really makes GRIMA stand out in the black metal scene.
With this forest and spirituality theme, this band definitely do stand out, and with music this good, GRIMA will soon become one of the most unique black metal acts out there, and if they will have more wilderness inspired adventures like Nightside, it would be criminal not to join them.
GRIMA: Nightside – Out 28 February 2025 (Napalm Records)
– Flight of the Silver Storm (Official Video) | Napalm Records
