The Pitch: Unsigned Italian band, Ashes of Nowhere, try their hand at the black metal genre.
What I Like: I like the atmosphere. Due both to the overal compositions and the retro-sounding synth additions, I am actually reminded a bit of Satyricon's Dark Medieval Times. This certainly has a more modern sound in terms of both production and the more melodeathy hooks that show up, but the familiarity is there. I also like the variation achieved by utilizing both black metal shrieks and deeper, death metal growls. Cradle Of Filth's first LP also comes to mind.
What I Don't Like: For a startup band, this is pretty solid; but the usual hiccups are present. Namely, the writing could use a little more finesse and trimming, and as always I'd like to see them find a way to stand out in a genre absolutely teeming with others who have a very similar sound. I already see some ideas forming as on "Grains of Sand."
The Verdict: For the price of your choosing, there is little reason not to check out Emptiness. For a relatively new band, their sound is strong even if it could use a little more time to fully mature. More black metal for your collection.
Flight's Fav's: "Empty World," "Grains of Sand"