Year: 2020
Total Time: 09:30
Label: Vendetta Records
ULTHA is a five-membered Black Metal band from Germany that was formed just six years ago (in 2014). Although it is (unfortunately) not very well known, its unique sound has given us great musical moments. So far, they have released four full length albums with their second masterpiece album entitled “Converging Sins”, three splits and four EPs, counting in this year’s. And as we had not yet recovered from 2019’s amazing EP “Belong” and without having announced anything earlier, the 7” EP “Floors of Heaven” was suddenly released a few days ago, to blacken our souls once again.
The new release (like “Belong”) is consisted of two compositions, with the big difference being in their duration (instead of the 38 minutes of the previous EP, now we have only 9 minutes of music, unprecedented for ULTHA songs). ULTHA said that the quarantine and isolation helped them write new songs but, if you listen to the band’s releases, you will realize that its members seem to be constantly in “isolation”! The Germans do not need any virus to write music, as their familiar melancholy Black Metal sound is again present to remind us the misery and decay in which we live in. The first song, “Forever Always Comes To An End”, starts aggressively and then the rhythms drop and continue in a melodic post-metal decomposing soundtrack. The second composition “To The Other Shore of the Night” moves at a more mid-tempo rhythm, with dark melodies in an atmosphere of despair.
ULTHA build their music with atmosphere and plot, moving with great ease and confidence from mysterious and depressing dark paths to Black Metal outbursts of rage. The duration of the EP may be short but it should not be underestimated compared to their previous releases, as the emotional nature of the music and its shade is equal to the value of their discography, so ULTHA should be proud of “Floors Of Heaven”! For those of you who do not know them (too bad for you) it is time to discover a great band! For the rest of us, let’s hope that the rumors that report ULTHA already working on their next album will be true…
Rating: 7.5/10
Editor: Nikos Manousis
Related Link: ULTHA – Facebook Page
