Summon - Dark Descent of Fallen Souls (2017 Reissue) (LP)

Hailing from the rustbelt wasteland of Michigan, SUMMON are one of the very first black metal bands to hail from American soil. Originally formed in 1991 and with ties to the equally cult Masochist, SUMMON were very much the proverbial black sheep in a landscape dominated by death metal. Nevertheless, feeding off the fiery acts overseas in Scandinavia as well as the despair and disgust in their homeland, the band made their official debut with the Fire Turns Everything Black demo in 1995, which would soon form the foundation for their blasphemous 'n' belligerent Dark Descent of Fallen Souls in '97. Grim and primitive but suffused with a sulfurous spirit, SUMMON's debut album saw the power-trio bash and thrash one mini-anthem after another, strafing against the dominant death metal of the day whilst not sacrificing any of its inherent power. Additionally, subtle and well-placed usage of synths added the requisitely moonlit atmosphere of the time. Altogether, Dark Descent of Fallen Souls is very much a record of its time, and yet, 20 years later, it's lost none of its hateful magick and, in fact, sounds remarkably fresh. Hail one of the unsung pioneers of American black metal, at long last on vinyl.