Review of Frosthelm - "The Endless Winter"

INDEPENDENT INSANITY

By: Geoff Teach

North Dakota isn’t known for much aside from its rich Native American history and beautiful, rugged landscapes. However, the smallish North Dakota town of Minot is now also the home to one of the finest up-and-coming black metal outfits west of the Mississippi River, Frosthelm. Upon witnessing the quartet live last month, I immediately descended upon their merch table to pick up a hoodie and a copy of their latest full-length, The Endless Winter (Black Work/Alkemy Brothers).

Upon my first listens of the nine track effort, I was immediately impressed by the stellar production. There is a great rift among black metal enthusiasts between those who believe that black metal should remain true to its roots and produce its music in as low of a quality as possible to maintain the grimy, cold-as-the-grave feel; while others believe that black metal can still be recorded with clarity and quality while still maintaining the ultimate tone of the genre. Count me among the latter. Honestly, I’ve always been a stickler for great sounding music, and truly I tell you, The Endless Winter is some fucking great sounding music.

Frosthelm seamlessly blend every great element of black metal together to form a full and brutal sound: guttural growls and blood-curdling screams; distorted, condensed guitars; and blast beats galore. The Endless Winter’s greatest moments include my two personal favorites, “A Storm of Teeth” and “Forlorn Tides”, as well as “Beneath Dead Horizons”, “The Dragon”, and “Silent and Dark, The Everlasting Sky”, but honestly, every song on this album is phenomenal. Frosthelm’s The Endless Winter is available now, so head to their sites (listed below) and order yourself a copy today!

Keep it Metal! \m/

To check out the official video for “Silent and Dark, The Everlasting Sky” off of The Endless Winter, just press play below!