ROOT - Hell Symphony LP (Red Vinyl)

Hell Symphony was not only my first Root album, but one of the earlier exposures I had to Czech extremity, around the same time I was discovering Master's Hammer and Krabathor. Of the three, this was by far the most compelling band, though The Jilemnice Occultist gave them a run for their money. But what I was truly fascinated by then, and no less now, is how they've chiseled out their place within the black metal medium with such a distinct sound that derives from influences other than the expected. I do realize a lot of 'first wave' black metal acts, and several in the second don't bear that traditional Scandinavian structure, or even the filthier production of old Venom, Bathory and Hellhammer, but along with the 'Greek style' pioneered by Rotting Christ and Varathron, Root has proven one of the most curious and compelling examples of a sub-genres parallel regional evolution, hinted upon with the debut Zjevení but fully fleshed out for this iconic sophomore.