Band:	Aura Noir
Album:	The Merciless
Style:	Black metal, Thrash metal
Release date:	October 2004

01. Upon The Dark Throne
02. Condor
03. Black Metal Jaw
04. Hell's Fire
05. Black Deluge Night
06. Funeral Thrash
07. Sordid
08. Merciless

Honestly, I only heard about Aura Noir some months before when Fenriz, talked about them in the interview that he did for Metalstorm.ee. Understand that it was a real pleasure for me to receive from Tyrant Syndicate [the new label of Mr Fenriz through Peaceville] the last release of the Norwegian combo, "The Merciless". Do you want my opinion about all that? Well that's great when you discover bands which do music more than original. Because it's the first time for me that I listen to a band which plays a mix of Thrash and Black Metal?And yeah effectively that's totally uncommon?

If you don't know the band, you must know that Aura Noir is not a newcomer. They play Metal since 1993, they released 3 albums before the new one and they are very respected by a lot of metalheads. A new album of the band is, you can understand it, a real event. Released through the new label Tyrant Syndicate, "The Merciless" follows in my opinion the steps of their firsts albums. We are always in the pure tradition of the music of the band, a great mix of Thrash and Black Metal. Some fans will say that the new album is maybe not better than a masterpiece like "Black Thrash Attack" but anyway there aren't any doubts on the musical quality of this new album. Because of course you could find in this new Aura Noir, all the ingredients which do their music. Always minimalist in the style, [the term minimalist here, is not equal to lack of technical. Listen to the cd and when you'll listen to the excellent Thrashy solo, you could understand?] the excellent enraged guitars riffs in addition of the numerous blasts by the drums are always presents. Even if it's Black / Thrash Metal, for sure we are nearer of Thrash. If you like old school Thrash for example, I'm sure that you could be dazzle of this new album because I feel the spirit of the 80's in the music of Aura Noir. Great guitars solo, very melodic and catchy songs which enter in your head and can't go out, good aggressive lyrics, all that, you will find it in this new album don't worry. Musically "The Merciless" is very dark and the voice of Apollyon can't be better for the style, enraged and aggressive as hell, I'm not sure that we could have a music of such quality without him because he is just perfect really. With songs like the powerful "Hell's Fire" or a killer song like "Black Deluge Night" there is no doubts that one more time again Aura Noir will do something with their new album. The production is also excellent, in the pure spirit of the Thrash of the 80's this is just perfect?

"The Merciless" is maybe not the best album of the band, but well really it's a great album and all the fans of Aura Noir will be dazzle of it. They can mix Thrash and Black Metal, honestly I don't have any problems with that, at the opposite, I just find this music excellent. This is something original, and in the case of Aura Noir just classy. A must have for the fans of dark Thrash and Black Metal.