Ymir - Aeons of Sorrow (LP)

YMIR's history stretches back to the late '90s. The band originally existed as a trio of vocalist/guitarist Vrasjarn, later of funeral doomlords Profetus; drummer Lord Sargofagian, who concurrently founded the prolific Baptism; and lead guitarist Toni Pölkki. With this lineup, YMIR released the Trollsword demo in 1999, mystical black metal firmly (and favorably) of its time. Seven more years would follow before another recording came from YMIR, as the brothers Vrasjarn and Lord Sargofagian were busy with the aforementioned bands (and many others), but the Silvery Howling demo at last arrived in 2006 and saw the band scaled back to a duo and evincing a rawer, nastier sound whilst retaining the sweet stench of the '90s. Naturally, once again, more silence ensued...
Alas, during the dark days of autumn 2020, YMIR emerged from the shadows with their long-brewing debut album for WEREWOLF. Simply self-titled, Ymir was a literal (storm)blast from the past, encompassing compositions spanning 2004-2019. YMIR's black metal here, however, went back even further: guided by the gauntlet of Vrasjarn - with bass and battery provided by Ghast and V.R., respectively - the band's first full-length brought vintage mid-'90s sumptuousness into modern focus, robust and roiling but always with a velvety air of mysticism. Truly, Ymir opened portals of the imagination and ancient consciousness alike.
The bats having flown the belfry, YMIR continue their pillage of the present with the second album Aeons of Sorrow. Driving deeper into the past, Vrasjarn unfurls a comparatively more melodic and nuanced record that's icier and, daresay, more beautiful. Here, he's joined by the always-commanding presence of Corvus on vocals and prolific veteran drummer VnoM, with bass by True Black Dawn's Syphon and additional synths by Tyranny's Agathul - a crucial component of the mesmerizing tapestry of Aeons of Sorrow. To step into the album's landscape is to imbue the spiritual essence, the psychic sensations, the all-enveloping ATMOSPHERE of 1995. Quiet castles, ice-capped mountains, beastly blizzards, infinite darkness, capes and swords and chainmail: while seemingly innocuous "triggers" for those who don't breathe that essence - or worse, mere items of mockery - they serve as the textural touchstones for bands like YMIR and records like Aeons of Sorrow, both in increasingly short supply no matter what the internet might tell you. And yet, with the skillfully unselfconscious songwriting on display here, the album adds to that noble tradition rather than listlessly pecking at its remains.
Put another way, YMIR are reverent to the old ways but are by no means tethered to reductive expression. Aeons of Sorrow is thus a black metal record, no more but definitely no less, and it doesn't need to "be" any more than that. Those whose eyes, ears, and hearts are open to such archaic language will heed the call, just as they did with Ymir.