Age of the Rot by Wanion is a throwback to classic black metal. It sounds as if it was pulled out of the box marked ‘Old School Black Metal, circa ’95’ – admittedly with a less low-fi production – and it feels as if it is so covered in corpse paint that you couldn’t bring it home to meet your parents. It is as familiar as that faded Darkthrone t-shirt you really should have thrown out years ago, but just can’t bring yourself to part with, and it manages to sound like all your favourite black metal bands rolled into one without managing to sound like any of them at all. Age of the Rot is a hell of a record, and one I think all fans of the genre should own.
It doesn’t fuck about, it sets out its stall nice and early. This is black metal and this is going to be as brutal a jacked up Rhino on a rutting campaign and faster than a rabbit on amphetamine. It’s also going to have more twists and turns along the way than a bobsled run, and it will embrace its influences and wear them on its sleeve for the world to see.
I always try to avoid comparing bands witb other bands when reviewing a record as I always think that’s lazy writing, and I plan to do that here as well, because when I say that Wanion sound like all of your black metal favourites, what I mean by that statement is I truly believe that you could put Age of the Rot in with any classic black metal record that you care too mention and it holds its own. The five tracks on offer here are perfect. There isn’t a misstep among them. This is pure black metal heaven.
The Ripper Sheds Blood, Age of the Rot, The Only God, In a Waning Moon, Votum. If any of these tracks had been written by Mayhem, Immortal, Emperor, whoever you care to name, then people would be falling over themselves to sing/gutteral roar the praises of Wanion from the highest mountain tops and darkest depths. This right here, Age of the Rot and Wanion in particular is the reason I started the Black Metal Archives, because if nobody else is willing to rant and rave about how fucking brilliant this record is, then I’ll do my damn self it until my throat is sore, my fingertips are bleeding from typing, and you all go check them out just to get me to shut the fuck up about them. I cannot praise Age of the Rot highly enough and if I had a rating system on the Black Metal Archives, it would’ve shattered it to tiny, bloody pieces.
You can, and really fucking should, buy Age of the Rot on Wanion’s Bandcamp Page.
