Saidan - Onryō II: Her Spirit Eternal LP

The second SAIDAN full-length that has cemented their legacy. An absolute ripper of and album. Uplifting catchy black metal with macabre lyrics, even blackgazey at times. Saidan has been consistently dropping some of the most interesting takes on melodic black metal over the last year, and their second full-length album somehow manages to eclipse all of it with an almost effortlessly malevolent swagger. Mixing various strains of malicious raw black metal with d-beats and euphoric energy of hardcore and effervescent j-rock, cut up with some savage breakdowns and inspired segues, along with the lyrical themes of Japanese horror, folklore and the supernatural, this has the potential to give some people an out of body experience (and bring the BM purists out in hives).