Russian one-man black metal band Sivyj Yar releasing new album this fall (stream a track); Agalloch on tour now

by Wyatt Marshall

The one-man Russian black metal band Sivyj Yar took us by surprise on Invisible Oranges last year with his fantastic third album The Dawns Were Drifting As Before. (Russia doesn’t have the same cross-over as Europe). Not wasting a beat, Sivyj Yar is prepping a new album, From the Dead Villages’ Darkness and the single “Distant Haze Was Arising” is streaming in this post. It’s a stunner that should appeal to fans of Agalloch, older Alcest, Woods of Desolation and the like — the melodic brand of black metal with folksy touches hits a sweet spot. Here’s what we had to say about it on Invisible Oranges:

The scope of this song is enormous. Pagan-approved grooves transition to pensive interludes to soaring blasts, ascending and descending with serious majesty on a backbone of rock solid riffs. It’s invigorating as hell. The strings on this are excellent, Dornenreich level as Ian put it but less a focus and a bit grander at the same time in my opinion, a smattering of tasteful acoustics, some bowed, some not, that mesh better with howled, raspy, slightly DSBM style vocals than anyone could have imagined. Like on other Sivyj Yar material, the bass is more lively, quirky almost, than what is typical of black metal.

You can stream “Distant Haze Was Arising” below and look for the Dead Villages’ Darkness on the Italian label Avantgarde Music this fall.

Speaking of Agalloch, the band’s tour hits Irving Plaza on Monday (6/30) with Jex Thoth. That show is presented by Invisible Oranges and tickets are still available.

Sivyj Yar stream below…