Iätön/Portit Pohjolan/Signal Rex/2025 Full Length Review

 

  Finland's  Iätön  have  returned  with  a  new  recording  which  shows  the  music  going  for  a  very  epic,  old  school  and  mystical  form  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2025  album  "Portit  Pohjolan"  which  will  be  released  in  June  by  Signal  Rex.

  Dark  soundscapes,  nature  sounds  and  keyboards  start  off  the  album  which  also  mixes  in  with  the  heavier  sections  of  the  songs  at  times.  When  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  can  be  heard  which  also  gives  the  recording  more  of  a  raw  feeling  and  the  vocals  are  mostly  high  pitched  black  metal  screams.

  All  of  the  musical  instruments  also  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  while  the  music  is  also  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  mid  90's  era.  Melodies  are  also  added  into  a  lot  of  the  guitar  riffing  along  with  the  album  also  adding  in  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  as  well  as  the  solos  and  leads  also  being  done  in  a  very  melodic  style  and  some  of  the  tracks  are  also  very  long  and  epic  in  length,  spoken  words  can  also  be  heard  on  a  couple  of  songs.

  On  this  recording  Iätön  goes  for    a  very  epic,  old  school  and  traditional  form  of  black  metal  that  is  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  mid  90's  era.  The  production  sounds  very  dark  and  raw  while  the  lyrics  are  written  in  Finnish  and  cover  darkness,  nature,  mysticism  and  misanthropy  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Iätön  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  epic  and  old  school  black  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Myrskyn  Laulu"  "Yon  Hamarassa"  and  "Portit  Pohjolan  Nakyvat".  8  out  of  10.

  signalrex.com // signalrex.bandcamp.com 

    

Iätön/Korpimaille/Korpituli Productions/2024 Demo Review

 

  Iätön  are  a  duo  from  Finland  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  on  this  recording  plays  a  very  epic,  old  school  and  synth  orientated  form  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2024  demo  "Korpimaille"  which  was  released  by  Korpituli  Productions.

  Epic  sounding  synths  and  nature  sounds  start  off  the  demo  and  also  mix  in  with  the  heavier  section  of  the  songs  at  times.  Melodies  are  also  added  into  some  of  the  guitar  riffing  while  the  vocals  are  mostly  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  and  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  also  add  in  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats.  

  When  tremolo  picking  is  added  into  the  fast  riffing  they  also  give  the  songs  more  of  a  raw  feeling  while  the  music  is  also  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's  Scandinavian  tradition.  Clean  playing  and  spoken  word  parts  can  also  be  heard   on  a  couple  of  tracks  and  throughout  the  recording  you  can  also  hear  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts,  when  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  also  done  in  a  very  melodic  style.'

  On  this  recording  Iätön  remains  true  to t he  old  school  epic  and  atmospheric  style  of  black  metal  that  they  introduced  on  their  previous  release.  The  production  sounds  very  dark  and r aw  while  the  lyrics  are  written  in  Finnish  and  cover  nature,  darkness,  misanthropy  and  mysticism  themes.  

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Iätön  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  atmospheric,  epic  and  old  school  black  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  demo.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Tähdet  hänen  kruununsa".  8  out  of  10.

  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_U2Mu7ewmtY        

Iätön Interview

 

1. For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the musical project?

Hails! Woewrb here answering the interview. Iätön is a new Black Metal band founded in autumn 2022 a.y.p.s. We write our lyrics in Finnish language and the band consists of two members: Woewrb (vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards and songwriting) & Penetreichtus I (drums, clean vocals and mixing).

2. Recently you have released a demo, can you tell us a little bit more about the musical style that you went for on the recording?

It's just Black Metal with keyboards and influences from older 90s bands. For example, I've been listening to a lot of old Gehenna records (First Spell, Second Spell and Malice) over the last few years and they've had an impact. I just wanted to make something different compared to my other bands and make new music. I think good black metal is always based on tradition. You take influences from here and there and once you get the basics down, you can potentially make something that you can call your own creation.

3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band has explored so far with the music?

Here is a short description of the demo's lyrics:

"Strigoi. Levottomat kuolleet...". My vision and feelings of the northern Carpathians in a poetic way. Just a lyric in classic bm style, glorifying darkness and all things obscure. The mist in the mountains and the bloodlust of the children of the night.

"Portit pohjolan näkyvät". This lyric has been made in collaboration with the drummer. Original lyric was written by me and later the drummer did his own version. A tale about darkness, of the northern lights, our own mortality and how we feel about it. 

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Iätön'?

I was looking for a suitable band name and I wanted it to be at least a little bit original. And since we write the lyrics of the songs in Finnish, I also wanted the name of the band to be in the local language. The english translation of it is Ageless. 

5. Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the demo?

On the cover of the demo, I've used this image of a troll's face on a rock in the middle of snow and trees. For me personally it symbolizes the dark forces of nature. It is related to the theme of nature mysticism, which I have used in my band's lyrics before and will continue to use in the Iätön band as well. In nature there are some special places and this picture was taken near one of them, a gorge in Hyrynsalmi, Finland that is named "Hiidenkirkko". One translation could be "A devil's gorge".

6. Currently there are only 2 members in the band, are you open to expanding the line up or do you prefer to remain a duo?

We have been looking for other members, but so far we have not found suitable musicians to complete the line-up. It's not a problem to record with only two members, but of course we would need a full line-up to play live, for example.

7. Recently 'Altare Productions' released the demo on cassette, can you tell us a little bit more about the physical version of the release?

Iätön "Loitsutulet" tapes are pro-dubbed on high quality BASF tape and the audio is especially mastered for tape duplication, maximizing the dynamic range. Limited to 100 copies. I like the end result, which is a bit rougher on the cassette version.

8. On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of black metal?

As of this writing, the demo has been out for less than two weeks. Nothing like that so far heh, only some good comments from friends and acquaintances.

9. What is going on with 'Hatespirit' and 'Serpentfyre' these days?

I have written new material for both bands, but they are currently inactive. Only time will tell if something new will be released.

10. When can we expect a full length and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

We will continue to record our songs and maybe release a new demo next year. However, there are plans to record a full-length album after that.

11. What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

I mostly listen to Black Metal and Dungeon Synth, Dark Ambient, Industrial. Also some old Heavy Metal, Death Metal, Experimental music and nature sounds. It can be said that these styles of music are my influences. Some records I have lately been listening are: Trolldom "Av gudars ätt..." & "I nattens sken. Vond "Selvmord", "The Dark River", "Green Eyed Demon". Control "The World of Lies". Ymir - "Aeons of Sorrow". Waeltaja (WLTJ and The Frozen Kingdom) albums.

12. Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts? 

A journey into the dark... Wild and ominous nature. Only the strong survive. Hail Satan! Thanks for the interview.

https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/I%C3%A4t%C3%B6n/3540535028

Iätön/Loitsutulet/Altare Productions/2023 Demo Review

 

  Iätön  are  a  duo  from  Finland  that  plays  an  old  school  form  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2023  demo  "Loitsutulet"  which  was  released  by  Altare  Productions.

  Nature  sounds  start  off  the  demo  along  with  some  synths  a  few  seconds  later  which  also  mixes  in  with  the  heavier  sections  of  the  songs  at  times.  All  of t he  musical  instruments  on  the  recording  also  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  most  of  the  tracks  are  also  very  long  and  epic  in  length.

  Most  of  the  music  is  also  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's  era  while  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  also  add  in  a  decent  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  which  also  gives  the  recording  more  of  a  raw  feeling.  Vocals  are  mostly  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  along  with  the  solos  and  leads  also  being  done  in  a  very  melodic  style,  melodies  are  also  added  into  some  of  the  guitar  riffing  and  the  songs  also  add  in  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts,  spoken  words  are  also  added  on  the  second  track.

  Iätön  plays  a  style  of  black  metal  that  is  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's  Scandinavian  tradition  as  well  as  bringing  back  the  epic  sounding  synths  of  that  era.  The  production  sounds  very  dark  and r aw  while  the  lyrics  are  written  in  Finnish  and  cover  nature,  darkness,  mysticism  and  misanthropy  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Iätön  are  a  very  great  sounding  old  school  black  metal  duo  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  demo.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "Portit pohjolan  näkyvät".  8  out  of  10.

  https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/I%C3%A4t%C3%B6n/3540535028#