The sophomore release for The Night Eternal is hands down one of my most anticipated releases this year. I can still recall how I was first introduced to them. While visiting Essen, I stumbled into a record store just north of the city center. I bought a few CDs and happened to notice a poster for Brocas Helm’s “Defender of the Crown”. Having never seen anything about that album outside the US, I asked the guy behind the counter about how he got it.
The guy, who is the shop owner, and I started talking and eventually, we hung out in his office, drinking and talking about metal for four hours. It was a ton of fun, having just been to Wacken Open Air days prior. Before I left, I ended up buying two more CDs from him. One of those CDs was “Moonlit Cross” by The Night Eternal, from Essen. I listened to it when I got home from Germany. And I genuinely was blown away by their debut and I couldn’t wait to see how they’d follow it up.
Red seems to be a staple with artwork for The Night Eternal. The previous full-length, as well as their debut EP and following single all used the color somehow. On this album, its use is dialed up to 11. Most details on this album are some shade of red. I admire this piece’s dedication to one color. Additionally, I love the sort of ominous vibe that the floating figure gives off. I feel like it plays into The Night Eternal’s lyrics and overall sound well. Admittedly, I think this piece needs just a little something more in the background, or at least on the sides. Maybe if the smoke was engulfing the figure more it’d do the trick? It’s a touch simplistic, but the cover art has enough detail and vibrancy to appreciate it as it is.
The album opens with the two singles, “In Tartarus” and “Prince of Darkness”. I love both of these tracks. “In Tartarus” is probably my favorite of the two, especially with that intoxicating cool chorus. I can’t help but sing along to that part whenever I hear this song. “Prince of Darkness” is a touch more atmospheric, with a faster riff for the verse. It’s got a vibe reminiscent of “Children of the Damned” by Iron Maiden (One of my favorite underrated Maiden songs). They are both great songs that open the album on a strong note.
“We Praise Death” has a bite to it, which makes it stand out from other tracks. But what really hooked me was its sci-fi opener riff. That riff kinda plays into the ominous vibe of the album art. “Ionean Sea” has an Iron Maiden meets modern Amorphis vibe to it, which I really like. What I noticed about this track when I relistened to it was the drumming. The drumming is both more subtle and more complex here than on other tracks. “Stars Guide My Way” is a more punchy track. When I listened to it the first time, I didn’t notice the punchiness. But upon relistening, I picked up the punchiness and faster pace, which made me like it more. The fade-out is a neat touch to end the song too.
“Run with the Wolves” is alright – probably the weakest track on the album. It’s not my favorite, but I can see how others would like it. I still think it’s good, just not as good as the other songs here. Honestly, I kept waiting for that moment when the song really drew me in. And unfortunately, that moment just didn’t come. That was until the next song, “Prometheus Unbound”. This track is incredible! It’s dark, and aggressive, but stays true to the genre. It kept me engaged from the get-go. The riffs were more complex and Ricardo’s vocals were superb! I hope that more tracks like this are on future The Night Eternal releases!!
The album ends with an instrumental and a closing track. “The Requiem” is a nice instrumental breather after “Prometheus Unbound”. I’m also glad that the instrumental track isn’t the opener for once in a while. I love instrumental openers, but having this at the end is a breath of fresh air. The closing track, “Between the Worlds”, is hands down one of the best tracks on the album. It encompasses everything you’d want in a heavy metal track. It’s fun, punchy, complex in its sound, and builds to be one hell of a track.
Overall, The Night Eternal has really knocked this album out of the park. Their sophomore outing builds off of the debut while standing out from it. The Night Eternal adds more to their already rich sound with this album. Fatale is fun, engaging, enjoyable, and wholly easy to listen to. The Night Eternal is not a group you want to sleep on. Biased as I am, I know this album will be in contention for my album of the year. Hopefully, they come to America sometime soon.
The Night Eternal can be found on Spotify, Instagram, Facebook, and Bandcamp. Fatale was released on July 14th, 2023 under the label Ván Records.