The Dark Hereafter

The Dark Hereafter is the fifth full-length from the U.K.'s Winterfylleth and my first exposure to their brand of Black Metal. The first couple of tracks feature some standard raspy vocals, tremolo picking and rapid fire drumming with an overarching melody that gives the songs a symphonic vibe. The middle tracks break the mold a bit with slower tempos, clean singing and deeper atmosphere, similar to Agalloch or maybe Summoning. The Dark Hereafter wraps up with another majestic-sounding speed fest. Even with my relatively limited knowledge of Black Metal, what I'm hearing sounds very familiar though it is undoubtedly well executed. The Dark Hereafter is entertaining but not mind-blowing.