Musically, Chamber of Unlight upped its craft on its second album; the symphonic ornaments, blistering tremolo picking, and furious drumming are spot on. The veterans take an expansive approach to their composition. The eight tracks are powerful and maintain a balance between melodic and symphonic elements, compared to the debut album “Realm of the Night”. The frantic opening track “One with the One” has rich symphonic-sounding keyboards, demonic snarls, and a fiery pace of guitars and drums fired in your face; all kicking in at the same time. The symphonic elements draw you into the song, which comprises sinister growls, while the synth adds a layer of enthrallment in the next track, “Wraithlike”.

The keyboards are handled by Spellgoth (Horna and Trollheims Grott), capturing the majestic, icy black metal sound of the 90s. Chamber of Unlight delivers a diabolical album, while Necrosis (Deathchain and Ajattara), Infection (Ajattara, Behexen, Bythos and Horna) and Leper (Deathchain) apply their characteristic riffs; they contribute enough ferocity to the blasting drums of LRH (Bythos, Deathchain and Horna). The bass guitar is handled by Vnom (Horna), who transforms the songs into absolute monstrosity.

Tracks like “Night Chasm” and “Polkuni” are well-composed by the sextet. The dark entwining synth and guitar melodies’ rhythm is propelled by fierce drumming. The band has refined its sound since the debut by offering high-quality black metal and orchestral pieces.

Each track delivers darker and richer synth textures; there are even some clean vocal passages at the beginning of the song “The Dagger”. The catchy melodies and cascading symphonic passages stand out, along with the constant rawness of the cold, icy tremolos, emphasis on cosmic mystical themes, and chilling orchestral nuances that musically incarnate the symphonic majesty of Scandinavian black metal.

The diabolical aggression shows the melodic side of Chamber of Unlight, and apart from the richly dense atmosphere, the blistering guitars widen the palette by adding catchy melodies. The snarling growls provide icy moments in the tracks, bolstered by swells of raw riffing and blast beats, allowing the jarring percussion to highlight the composition. The symphonic opening of the track “Rise Above” is a beautiful mixture of cold atmosphere and catchy riffs.

The synth acts as counterpoint to the percussive patterns, setting fascinating contrasts in sound with the grinding drums and rhythm guitar.

Another fabulous track is “Where Light Does Not Dare to Enter”, which contains eerie synth passages that sweep over raging percussion. You can notice how the band has refined its symphonic approach. There are lots of furious blast beats in this track, with tremolo sections blazing like fire through the symphonic dance while the guitars keep a steady pulse.

The songs shift between atmospheric sections and straightforward black metal tempos; at the same time, the album is not as chaotic. In my opinion, Chamber of Unlight is just one step away from achieving a bombastic and symphonic aesthetic. The final track, “Dominus Tenebrarum”, is solely instrumental, probably the only song that veers from the compositional scope; it also showcases some industrial touches driven by cold atmospheric synth and clean vocals.

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