Namebearer/Industries Of The Fading Sun/2025 EP Review

 

  Namebearer  are  a  duo  from  Maine  that h as  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  on  this  recording  plays  a  very  atmospheric,  experimental,  progressive  and  psychedelic  form  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2025  ep  "Industries  Of  The  Fading  Sun"  which  will be  released  in  May.

  A  very  heavy  and  progressive  sound  starts  off  the  ep  while  the  vocals  are  mostly  high  pitched  black  metal  screams.  When  guitar  leads  are  utilized  they  are  also  done  in  a  very  melodic  style  along  with  some  spoken  words  also  being  used  on  a  couple  of  songs  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  also  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  Clear  singing  and  clean  playing  can  also  be  heard  at times  while  the  recording  also  has  its  experimental  and  atmospheric  moments.  When  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  can  be  heard  which  also  gives  the  songs  more  of  a  raw  feeling  and  the  riffs  also  add  in a   lot  of  melody.

  Shouts  can  also  be  heard  at  times  along  with  the  songs  also  adding  in  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts.  A  couple  of  the  tracks  are  also  very  long  and  epic  in  length  as  well  as  some  synths  also  being  added  into  certain  sections  of  the  ep  and  some  of  the  music  also  adds  in  a  small  amount  of  psychedelic  touches  and  the  closing  song  is  an  instrumental.  The  production  sounds  very  raw  and  heavy  while  the  lyrics  are  written  in  a mixture  of  English  and  Finnish  and  cover  apocalyptic  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Namebearer  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  atmospheric,  experimental,  progressive  and  psychedelic  black  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  ep.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Industries  Of  The  Fading  Sun"  and  "Lumivyory".  8  out  of  10.

  https://namebearer.bandcamp.com

https://www.instagram.com/namebearer.metal

  

Namebearer Interview

 

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

I started Namebearer as a way to have an outlet with more immediacy than my other bands and projects. It just felt like the right time for me to start working on a solo project.

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

I really wanted to create a unique and immersive atmosphere that pervaded throughout the demo. I wanted it to be at least rooted in black metal, but I wanted things to flow naturally too. If an idea or riff served the atmosphere or composition well, it made it into the songs.

3.You refer to your music as being 'raw silver metal', can you tell us a little bit more about this term?

To my ear, Namebearer sits somewhere between a few genres. I think there will always be people who make diminishing statements about music and say it sounds like “x” band or it fits into “y” genre. I’m sure that will happen plenty with Namebearer. Genres are useful as marketing terms and quick indicators, but it’s pointless to constantly try to reduce everything down to a single statement. I refer to Namebearer as silver metal because I think it fits, and because I think referring to it with more established genre names is pointless and not as fun.

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

I’ve gotten to the point where I feel like any time I try to explain my lyrics I end up doing a bad job of it. I think there’s a strong sense of surrealism and intensity to the lyrics on this demo though. There’s always something that keeps the words flowing out of my head when it comes to writing lyrics. Not sure what it is though!

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Namebearer'?

I’m the last person in my family with my last name, so if I don’t have any children(who also use my last name) the name will effectively cease to exist. I honestly don’t care if that happens, but I think it’s kind of an interesting thing to consider, and I felt it was a fitting name for a solo project.

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

The artwork was done by Mairead McGuinness. I’m extremely glad to have found her art and been able to work with her. The logo was done by Shannon Jordan, a close friend of mine. The two combined in this incredibly cohesive way, and I think the cover art represents the music well. Huge thank you to the both of them!

7.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?

I’m the only full member right now. The Fool played session drums and made a number of other great contributions, but as of now, he’s just working with me in a session capacity. I’d like to keep things as they are for now. I have a pretty concise vision for this project.

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

We’ll have to wait and see since things are just beginning and there’s only a single song released as of this time. I wouldn’t be surprised if this demo was not well received and went largely unnoticed, and I wouldn’t really be surprised if the opposite happened either.

9.What is going on with some of the other musical projects these days that the band members are a part of?

I’m writing and performing in other bands, as is The Fool. We’d rather keep the names of those bands private in this case because we’ve decided to keep some level of anonymity for Namebearer. Though I’m sure if anyone did any digging they could easily figure out who we are and what other bands we are in.

10.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

I’ll be releasing 3 more demos in this series. I want them all to share the bond of having a strong immersive atmosphere, but I think stylistically they could end up differing a lot.

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?

Lately I’ve been very inspired by Circle of Ouroborus, Keres, Frozen Graves, Cosmic Church, and Diabolical Masquerade. There’s a lot to learn about songwriting when it comes to this style of music. A lot of things “work”  for almost inexplicable reasons. I like to try to analyze why I like the music that I do. I think it can be helpful when writing my own music.

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

Thanks for the interest in the project. I appreciate you reaching out with the questions. Cheers, be well!

https://namebearer.bandcamp.com/album/demo-i

Namebearer/Demo I/Fiadh Productions/2024 Demo Review

 

  Namebearer  are  a  duo  from  the  New  England  region  of  the  United  States  that  plays  a  musical  style  they  refer  to  as  being  'raw  silver  metal'  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  20924  demo  which  will  be  released  in  march  by  Fiadh  Productions.

  A  very  dark  yet  heavy  sound  starts  off  the  demo  while  you  can  also  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  the  demo.  Vocals  are  mostly  angry  sounding  black  metal  screams  while  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  also  add  in  a  lot  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  which  also  gives  the  music  more  of  a  raw  feeling.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  also  hear  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  while  the  music  also  has  its  atmospheric  moments.  Clear  vocals  and  whispers  can  also  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  demo  along  with  the  riffs  also  adding  in  a  decent  amount  of  melody  as  well  as  a  small  amount  of  keyboard  also  being  added  into  the  background  at  times,  one  song  also  adds  in  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  parts  and  all  of  the  tracks  are  also  very  long  and  epic  in  length.

  Namebearer  plays  a  style  of  black  metal  that  is  very  raw  and  atmospheric  sounding.  The  production  sounds  very  dark  and  raw  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  philosophical  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Namebearer  are  a  very  great  sounding  raw  and  atmospheric  black  metal  duo  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  duo.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "Enraptured  In  Black  Blur".  8  out  of  10.

  Namebearer