Watain Lawless Darkness

From Rabid Death’s Curse to Lawless Darkness, Sweden’s Satanic three-piece, Watain, have enjoyed one of the best careers the black metal community has ever seen. With each release, the band explored more and expanded farther than the record before. The result is that 2007’s Sworn to the Dark and 2010’s Lawless Darkness are a couple of my favorite albums of all black metal. But, then, a peculiar thing happened. That thing was 2013’s The Wild Hunt. Love it or hate it, The Wild Hunt will forever be the most interesting (and, to some, the most hated) release of the band’s catalog. Some found it progressive, while others found it abhorring. Regardless how it hit you, there’s no denying that it was different. So much so that many of you screamed “sellout,” while others discovered the band because of it. In the end, it doesn’t matter. Trident Wolf Eclipse ain’t The Wild Hunt.