Order of Vengeance

Rather than the bullet-belted thrashings of the usual Aussie bands, Runespell wring out a deep, hollow space that reminds me of the more pagan-oriented bands of a decade ago. This has a rather muffled production, but it makes the music sound far more ancient and arcane, so it works for the mood the songs are trying to create. The riffs are nothing revolutionary, sounding like stuff from mid-period Graveland, but again, this album is all about atmosphere, and everything here works to build the ancient, heathen vibe. Runespell will not amaze you, but this is a great example of a band hitting exactly what they were aiming at.