Band:	Mysticum
Album:	In The Streams Of Inferno
Style:	Industrial black metal
Release date:	1996
A review by:	KwonVerge

01. Industries Of Inferno
02. The Rest
03. Let The Kingdom Come
04. Wintermass
05. Crypt Of Fear
06. Where The Raven Flies
07. In Your Grave
08. In The Last Of The Ruins We Search For A New Planet
09. Eriaminell [2004 Re-release bonus]

The opinions I had heard about Mysticum's "In The Streams Of Inferno" were varying, a part of the people I had asked were telling me that it was something unworthy of my attention and that its production sucked, the other ones were hailing the album as something unique, extraordinary and beautiful in a bestial way. I will have to agree with the second opinion, "In The Streams Of Inferno" the first time I listened to it smashed my face to the ground with its superb and nihilistic industrial black metal, yes, you read correctly, industrial black metal!

I was searching for a long time for something that combined the cold and lifeless feeling of industrial with the eerie and unearthly feeling of black metal and the Messiah (actually, one of the Messiahs, since Dodheimsgard has to be the other one without any second thought) to this research was definitely Mysticum that opened my eyes and took me to post-apocalyptic landscapes through their trance-like atmosphere.

Everything you need to drown in a cryogenic sea of tears, ion storms and dreadful and menacing thoughts is present in the soundscapes of "In The Streams Of Inferno". The sounds of heavy industry are always present, lending that twisted, subhuman and emotionless aesthetic the atmosphere of the band deserves to have, an aesthetic enriched by the beat-like raging and lifeless programmed drumming as well as the synth-born melodies that make their appearance from time to time and lend the compositions a more melodic but always freezing and threatening approach. What is easily noticeable is the fact that you will find a few danceable passages in the compositions of Mysticum which are actually so damn groovy (the whole album has an intense sense of groove in general due to the beat-like drumming and the way the riffing is structured) and if they were presented with a crystal-clear production and with a less violent approach they could become a part of an alternative/industrial club's DJ-set!

The guitar riffing is in the renowned railway Norwegian way, inspired and fabulous, pacing with the music in a unique manner and at times it is so distorted that evokes some kind of nocturnal noise in the air. The same noisy feeling implies for the production as well since it has that blurry and raw/noisy feeling, enriching the atmosphere of the album in a wonderful way, making you think that this surrounding, eerie and unique atmosphere wouldn't be the same with a, let's say, perfect production. And last but not least comes the role of the vocalist, his howling interpretation sounds so sinister and lurking in the dark at the same time, harmonizing with the overall cold and lifeless atmosphere of "In The Streams Of Inferno".

If you want something different, unique, raw, mind-blowing, tranquillity-twisting and above all inspired and well-executed then you definitely have to check out Mysticum's "In The Streams Of Inferno", for your own me(n)tal good!

Highlights: WINTERMASS, The Rest, In Your Grave