Apparently it’s the season of releases made by ex-members of Luna Aurora. Mortuus Infradaemoni is the creation of two ex-drummers of the underground outfit, Profanatitas and Nathaniel, so one could expect some seriously good drumming – not the case. Lots of drumming, though, but pretty standard. In fact, that goes for the strings, vocals and composition too.

Mortuus Infradaemoni aims for the aggressive and atmospheric sound of traditional black metal, and their aim is true, but doesn’t add anything new to the genre. “Imis Avernis” consist of tracks utilizing the same basic elements over and over again: Fast-paced grinding drums and a maximum of three guitar riffs, creating a massive background of noise, plus some seemingly random screaming and howling hidden inside named background of noise. For the untrained ear this establishes “Imis Avernis” as an hour of pointless clamor interspersed with the sound of suffering German-speaking farm animals. For the trained ear the album lands face down in the mediocre puddle of acceptable, but ultimately inane, releases in a musical field – black metal – that has proven extremely durable only because it evolves.

I think it was Varg Vikernes that complained about the automation of “modern” black metal, saying that in the beginning every band fashioned their own brand of black. Compare the first releases of Burzum, Mayhem, Darkthrone, Immortal and Emperor, and it’s hard not to agree with the Count. What Imis Avernis is, is an effigy. It’s very solid music, impressively tight and consistent for it’s kind, but it is non-the-less just an attempt to copy the work of greater masters. When I finish this review I will have forgotten all about it.