Kvad | Sort Skogsmesse | Purity Through Fire

Release Date: October 31, 2025

Format: CD, Vinyl LP

Genre: Black Metal

Country: Norway

When it comes to modern black metal, few figures are as restless and productive as Peregrinus. Known for projects such as Hjemsøkt, Solus Grief, Unholy Craft and Heraldic Blaze, he has shaped his own small universe of darkness and frost. Under the Kvad name, he channels the coldest traditions of Norwegian black metal, with “Sort Skogsmesse” marking the project’s third full-length release. Recorded in the depths of winter at Numinous Cavern Studio, the album continues Peregrinus’ path into the raw and ancient.

“Sort Skogsmesse” builds on the spirit of Kvad’s previous work “So Old”, but this time, the music sounds even more rooted in the grim Nordic legacy that shaped the genre decades ago. The production is harsher, the guitar tone thick and distant, and the vocals rougher and closer to the early ’90s Norwegian approach. The sound is icy but grim, the kind of texture that belongs to forest landscapes and endless nights. Subtle synth touches appear like faint lights in the distance, never overwhelming the rawness of the main sound.

The songwriting moves between storming aggression and slower, mid-paced passages that create space and atmosphere. The tension shifts often, giving the album a restless energy that keeps the listener drawn into its cold heart. Each track is like part of a larger cycle, as if the music itself walks through different phases of the same endless winter. There’s a defined vision in how Kvad approaches this kind of black metal, raw, direct, unpolished, and authentic to its roots.

Peregrinus’ vocals cut through the mix with a throatier tone, somewhere between a rasp and a roar, while Lord G’s drumming maintains a balance of power and restraint. Together they craft something that sounds true to the early Scandinavian lineage, echoing the influence of Gorgoroth and Kvist, while still sounding alive and present rather than nostalgic. “Sort Skogsmesse” is an album that rewards immersion. It doesn’t rely on theatrics or dramatic shifts, instead trusting in atmosphere, repetition and the icy pull of its riffs. This is the creation of an artist deeply rooted in that tradition intimately and treats it with the right devotion.

Score: 7.0

kvad.bandcamp.com

www.purity-through-fire.com