Ethelyn – Anhedonic

Heavy music being produced in Poland is something I am always fond of so I was exited when I saw another metal release from Poland landed at my doorstep. Ethelyn is no exception, as they also hail from Opoczno, Poland. Ethelyn is a quartet playing a mix of melodic death and black metal. The band has been active even longer than our webzine, since the first demo was released already back in 1998. One split appearance followed a few years later, but other than that there was a complete silence around the band. In 2008 they finally released their debut full-length entitled, Traces into Eternity. Three more albums were released in the years to follow, and now in 2024 they’re ready with fifth full-length opus entitled Anhedonic. Before I further dive into this CD, I’ll briefly just mention the current line-up which consists of; Mysth (vocals), Bogunieslav (guitars), Wrath (bass) and Morbideus (drums).

Anhedonic contains 10 tracks filled with a venomous mix of black & death metal, and with a melodic touch here and there. Tracks are delivered in a quick pace, with some razor-sharp riffs, a great amount of tremolo guitars (storming and dark), shrieking vocals (angry but also quite readable vocals), and kick-ass drumming. The singer plays his role very well, because his screams are quite convincing and well-placed. Meanwhile, it’s esp. the drums that help diversify the sound with nice kick-ass drumming, producing some really cool passages.

Due to the short nature of most of the songs (with exception of longiest song from the album “The Grave is Starving“) Anhedonic is not boring at all. Ethelyn’ high-pitched black metal is extreme, but also with some atmospheric harmonies, best exemplified in third track called “Swampborn”. Talking of “The Grave is Starving“ again – it’s a song built and mainly based on riffs, which are carying the whole song. There are sometimes layoffs, such as “Nostalgia for the Time You’ve Never Known” and the aforementioned, “The Grave is Starving” where the melody is even more emphasized. To be honest, the mid-tempo tracks like the opening “It Comes in Waves” and “The Void in Worse Than Hell” are also fascinating and perfectly executed songs.

The songwriting is great with each of the tracks offering different details like short interludes or a few softer and more relaxed moments. Generally speaking this album is dripping with eerie atmosphere, while the level of bleakness is pretty high on Anhedonic. Production sounds good – being rough, yet readable/listenable. Another noteworthy thing is the cover. It’s cool and nicely harmonizes with the layout inside. It again shows that the band has worked not only on the music, but also on the whole package.

Anhedonic is a perfectly executed record by highly talented musicians that should bring tears of joy to each fan of that genre. Thus, with the release of Anhedonic, Ethelyn made a surprisingly good and sincere record. It shows that they’re still alive and kicking, and definitely a band worth having an eye on.

It might not be the most original nor groundbreaking sound, but I’m confident that fans of Dissection, Immortal, Behemoth, Dark Funeral will definitely find many interesting things while exploring Anhedonic a bit firther.

Learn more and/or buy this album from https://ethelyn.bandcamp.com/album/anhedonic