Stormkeep – The Nocturnes Of Iswylm Review

[Cover artwork by Simon Bisley]

Stormkeep’s full-length debut, Tales of Othertime, caused quite a stir in 2021. And by that I mean it was quite popular. Deservedly. It was big. It was melodic. It had a ton of cool riffs. And its cover art was fantastically blue. Mostly, it was fun; a melding of Dissection and, more curiously, power metal. Others may disagree with the latter element, but it’s there. Fairly strongly, too, intentional or no.

The Nocturnes of Iswylm finds Stormkeep five years removed from their debut. Plenty can happen in five years, of course. And plenty has. Stormkeep is no longer a melding of Dissection and power metal but of Dimmu Borgir and power metal. Subtlety is the band’s enemy now and I like it.

Stormkeep’s subtlety-as-enemy ethos is made clear in the album’s late 1990s style packaging. The Dimmu meets Cradle of Filth face paint promo photos are a dead giveaway. Super not subtle. A dangerous flirtation with schmaltz. Still quite fun, nonetheless, much like Nocturnes itself. And kudos to the band and label for the cool lyric booklet.

Grandiose and synth heavy with blastbeats, shrieks, and clean singing, album opener “The Taste of Immortal Blood” is typical of The Nocturnees of Iswylm. Dimmu is going to keep coming up here, no doubt, but there’s a not insignificant amount of almost Finnish sounding power metal, too. A hint of the Ensiferum-like gallop. An inspired solo at the tail end. The sonic shift from Tales of Othertime couldn’t be more obvious. And why shouldn’t it be?

“The Black Dragons of Iswylm,” much like the opener, confidently navigates the seemingly disparate subgenres (black metal and power metal). What surprises me most about Nocturnes isn’t this shift itself but how well Stormkeep pulls it off whilst sounding reasonably heavy. As much as I like the new Dimmu (Grand Serpent Rising), Nocturnes is Stormkeep out-Dimmuing Dimmu with an often shred-heavy panache.

Melodic black metal is hardly difficult to come by, of course. Particularly this brand of late 1990s-early 2000s, synth-laden melodic black metal, which seems to be making a comeback of sorts. And Nocturnes isn’t without its missteps: namely, “Imperios Sanguine Eroticism,” which fails for being a bit boring—not much sense in it being a single. But Stormkeep’s sophomore effort is a curious statement for a band that charmed most critics five years ago. That they leaned heavy on the riffs will likely go under-appreciated by those who can’t get past the aesthetic shift.

Early though it may be, and as truly different as the albums are, the almost gauche-like charm of The Nocturnes of Iswylm makes it a more compelling listen than Tales of Othertime. I am sure there are many who will disagree. And that’s fine. This one, with its synth and its power metal and its unashamedness, speaks to me. Or perhaps it caught me at the right moment. Either way, thank you, Stormkeep.