Project Thule – Cosmic Law (1999)

Country: United States

Tracklist

1. Die Elektrischen Vorspiele 06:28
2. Haunabu 1 09:03
3. Valknutr 07:04
4. Dog Star 06:11
5. Xeno Transplantation 02:10
6. Cocoon Process 06:02
7. Lucid Dreams 11:40
8. Cydonia Geometry 07:12
9. Cosmic Law 07:46

Projekt Thule was a Portland, Oregon-based project created by Evelyn E. Overholser,
inspired heavily by Pan-European occultism and Paganism.
Three albums were released from 1999 to 2004 with Douglas Pearce of Death In June

appearing on the last one (Blacksun Rising) with guest vocals on two tracks.

Memory

Avzhia – Dark Emperors (1996)

Country: Mexico

Tracklist

1. Into The War 01:53
2. Shadows Of The Forest 08:39
3. Black Prayer 09:26
4. Immortal Spirit 08:32
5. Dark Emperors 09:12
6. Empire 07:04
7. Into The Silence Of The Shadows (Bonus Track) 09:05
8. Father Of Sinners (Bonus Track) 08:44
9. Screams Of Darkness (Live Bonus Track) 06:29
10. Avzhia (Live Bonus Track) 06:09

Avzhia was formed in December of 1992, in Mexico by Demogorgon (ex-Funereal Moon) and Gorgon.
The band was the continuation of their previous project Vomiting God that was created in 1989.
Two more musicians were added in 1993, Ialdabaoth and Goat,

and soon after their first studio demo tape "Immense Dark Sky" recorded and released in 1994 through Bellphegot Records.
Because of musical differences Goat left the band in 1995 and Demogorgon took over vocals,
 while a new member, Forneus, handled the bass.
Their first full length album "Dark Emperors" was released in 1996,

under the collaboration of Storm Productions and Brujo Records featuring six tracks plus two live bonuses.

In 1998 Guttural Records re-released "Dark Emperors"

but this time with two different bonus tracks that were taken from their split with Xibalba.
Two more albums were released in 2004 (The Key Of Throne) and 2010 (In My Domains).
In mid-2019, founding members Gorgon and Demogorgon had a fallout,

and the former started his own version of the band with the rest of the current lineup,

while Demogorgon, who claims to be the legal owner of the band, took legal action against them.

Eventually the problem was resolved and Demogorgon kept the name.

Memory

Bundeswehra – King's Return (Demo 1994)

Country: Poland

Tracklist

1. March To Totenhorn 04:46
2. King's Return 06:00
3. Epitaph I 02:36
4. Hellmasters 02:37
5. Hymn Of Slaves 02:39
6. Epitaph II 02:29
7. Totem 03:27

Black/death metal band from Poland that was created in 1988 and featured Piotr Czaja (aka Pilot) on guitar/vocals.
The band recorded three demos and a split with Nergal from Switzerland before disbanding.
In 1996 Baron Records announced the new demo tape of Bundeswehra entitled "Assyria",

but this was never released and possibly never recorded.

Memory

Alto Stratus – The Ritual (1989)

Country: England

Tracklist

1. The Golden Dawn 08:34
2. Scrying 11:01
3. The Astral Dark 04:30
4. Bardo Thodol 06:46
5. Ceremony 18:14
6. Trancemission II 04:44
7. Mandrake (The Man Root) 05:07
8. The Captive 15:21

The duo of brothers Alan and Steve Freeman (owners of Ultima Thule label),

spent much of their spare time during the 1980's experimenting with electronics, synthesizers and sound collage,

recording more than thirty releases as Alto Stratus and other projects

like Vrije, Q.S.O., Electric Junk, The Newt Hounds, Biomechanoid etc.
Descriptive of man's rituals and ceremonies, the music on this album attempts sonically to reflect

the calm serenity of meditation, the tense air of the ritual dance and the weird realms of occultist magic 

with synthesizers and sound sampling, to create surreal sound paintings, taking the listener way beyond physical realms.
"The Ritual" was the culmination of ten years of sonic exploration and self-training,

developing their own language as non-musicians.
Recorded over a period of four days, it was one of the few recordings that they took advantage

of the multi-tracking possibilities of a 4 track Teac reel to reel,

so for the first time they could play back and dub live without loss of quality.

During recording the band members immersed their selves in the concept of magic and mysticism, 

engaging in hypnotic and entangled patterns of sound, using synthesizers,

keyboards and sequencers, plus loops and sampling.
Some well-known voices can be heard imparting their wisdom in a repeated looping fashion,

all adding to the ritualistic feel.
The bonus track "The Captive" was taken from the 1985 cassette compilation "A Cage Went In Search Of A Bird".

Memory

Rale – Až Zahřmí (1998)

Country: Czech Republic

Tracklist

1. Až Zahřmí 05:32
2. Přiznání Odysseovo 04:07
3. Řeka 04:23
4. V Každém 03:17
5. Na Niti 04:53
6. Zahrada 07:02
7. Galloping 02:39
8. Žalm Svatojánský 04:18
9. Ve Skulině 05:41
10. Netopýr 02:40

Rale arose in East Europe in the 90s bringing together musicians from folk, world, rock,

improvised, and experimental music backgrounds, retaining the delicate appeal of folk acoustic guitars, 

the complexity of avant-prog, and the distinctive touch of Czech rock.
Formed in 1993, Rale came to life through a chance meeting at the International Music Festival MIMI in Marseille, France.
There the guitar duo from the musical group Dunaj, Vladimír Václavek and Josef Ostřanský 

befriended the Japanese violinist Takumi Fukushima 

(who, among other things, collaborated with Volapük on their album "Polyglöt")

and French-Vietnamese singer and dancer Cynthia Phung-Ngoc.
The four of them sat down to write the material for their first eponymous album that was released in 1994 on Wolf Records.
Their various influences were cemented in East-European folk traditions,

giving the band a sound somewhere at the crossroads of Dunaj,

Iva Bittová (with whom Václavek recorded the album "Bílé Inferno"), and Pavel Fajt's Pluto.
Lyrics were written and sung in English, French, Spanish, Vietnamese, Czech, and Japanese

while Phung-Ngoc's voice on record and presence on stage quickly gained the group a cult following in Europe.
The group was later expanded to a quintet with the arrival of cellist Andrea Konstankiewicz 

who she had already played in one of Ostřanský's other projects, the avant-alternative rock outfit Boo.
Two CDs featuring this lineup saw the light of day before the decade closed, "Až Zahřmí" (Rachot Behémót, 1998)

and "Twilight/Soumrak" (Indies Records, 2000) that featured Miloš Dvořáček as a guest on drums/percussions.

Memory

Militia – New European Order (3xLP 1996)

Country: Belgium

Tracklist

1. Natura Magica 12:35
2. Stahlkadanz 01:16
3. Lebensborn 05:57
4. Kampfbefehl 12:03
5. Sieghymne 01:53
6. The Face Of God 07:48
7. Necronomicon 02:33
8. Victory 04:40
9. Maschinenzimmer 11:10
10. Radio Europa 03:32
11. Subterra 09:30
12. Silezia 06:28
13. Pogrom 03:02
14. New European Order 06:15
15. Retrospectiva And Reveille 05:44

Militia is a Belgian industrial band from Bilzen-Rijkhoven in the province of Limburg.
Co-founder Frank Gorissen was active as an industrial music DJ

at the independent radio station Radio Demervallei in Diepenbeek.
For his radio show Radio Militia, he sometimes invited musicians who played in the radio studio.
There he met Jo Billen and together they founded the industrial project Militia in 1989.
In 1990 Jo Billen left the band and continued with his projects Onehouse and The Lama Home Band.
Most of their percussion instruments are made out of oil barrels, old metal parts from cars, machines and scrap material. They combine these self made instruments with conventional drums, toms, cymbals and electronic instruments.
The band members also play a variety of wind instruments (self made and others)

while their live shows are completed with the projection of documentary films and slides.
Militia present in 1996 their first official album "New European Order", a 3 LP set in large fold out cover, 

released by the German cult label Praxis Dr. Bearmann.
In 2017 the album was re-released as a double CD via Old Europa Cafe.

Memory

Blackwinds – The Black Wraiths Ascend (7'' EP 1999)

Country: Sweden

Tracklist

1. The Black Wraiths Ascend 06:38
2. The Watchers 02:47
3. Share My Doom 05:40

Blackwinds was Lord Mysteriis (Setherial, ex-In Battle etc.) project

which he formed around 1998 during Setherial's downtime.
In 1999 he released the debut EP "The Black Wraiths Ascend"

with the help of Zathanel (Blot Mine, ex-Sorhin, ex-Setherial etc.) on bass

and Lord Kraath (Setherial, ex-Egregori) who handled the vocal work and guitars.
The EP was released through Bloodstone Entertainment in a limited edition of 300 hand numbered copies

and was recorded and produced by the band at Greencastle Studio.
After a long hiatus Blackwinds gave a sign of existence in 2008 with the release of "Origin"

that presented the three tracks from the sold out debut EP plus four unreleased tracks

featuring Infaustus (Sorghegard, ex-Setherial) on vocals.
The same year Blackwinds released their first, and only, full length album "Flesh Inferno" on Regain Records.

Memory