Harakiri For The Sky - Arson album review

Austrian atmospheric black metal at the distinctly accessible end of the spectrum awaits on two-piece Harakiri For The Sky’s fourth album. Using a tried and tested formula to often satisfying effect, they combine gothic melancholy, baleful tremolo-picked leads and the lethal percussion of a moonlighting Krimh, of Behemoth and Septicflesh fame. It’s all crisply produced, but even though most songs push 10 minutes, there isn’t much sonic experimentation, more an alternation of the likes of Heroin Waltz’s slow-burn sadness and the relentless pace of Tomb Omnia, both driven ever onward by pining leads. The Graves We’ve Dug’s emotive moments wouldn’t sound out of place on a Howard Jones-era KSE record, while closer Manifesto introduces female vocals to accompany J.J.’s perma-bellow for a truly melodramatic last impression. Ultimately, Arson is very listenable but eminently forgettable.