Opus Irae - Into The Endless Night (debut album 2024, melodic black /symphonic metal)

It was already mentioned in the topic about their new single but OPUS IRAE are actually releasing their loooong awaited debut album INTO THE ENDLESS NIGHT on November 15, 2024.
You can preorder it here: https://opusirae.bandcamp.com/album/into-the-endless-night

This album was recorded TEN years ago and the first single(s) sounded very promising to fans of melodic black / symphonic metal. Endtime Productions delayed the release for unknown reasons (well, Endtime Productions being just Endtime Productions I guess) so it comes a bit as a surprise to actually see a release date and also some beautyful mock-ups for the vinyl version.

The artwork was obviously done by legendary Christian "Necrolord" Wahlin and is a good visual hint that fans of Antestor's "Det Tapte Liv" and "The Forsaken" might like this as well though OPUS IRAE are coming from the South of Germany and not the Northern cold.

Very excited for this album. I admittingly dont buy full albums or anything(just don't have thr money and settle for cheap comps and legal free single downloads) but may buy this one. Both songs I've heard are great.

Wow. Finally! On my list.

This was released yesterday. This isn't symphonic black metal with keyboards draped over black metal but rather a 50/50 blend of classical music and black metal. Choirs, ethereal female vocals, strings with extended orchestral breaks, intros, and interludes mark the entire run time. There isn't a moment that is not classically minded with 2 whole tracks devoted to these non-extreme elements. I honestly haven't heard an album like this in 20yrs. It's a throw back to the late 90s and early 2000's when the symphonic metal explosion happened. The black metal aspects are furious at times but everything has a lighter, more uplifting feel than you might expect. The cover art is actually really fitting with the cool, crisp, wintery feel. 

I'm both surprised and still pleased. In an odd way I wish this were even more focused on the black metal aspects (I thought this would more akin to Antestor "The Forsaken") but this is truly beautiful and the lighter classical feel is a nice change for me. I used to eat this style up. It's neat to have it back in my life. I've made it straight through twice thus far and its extremely engaging every moment. I'm captured. This is going to get a lot of play from me if we have a snowy winter. It's the perfect album for these cooler months.

Whoa, I gotta check this out. Sounds really interesting, the only bands I know that even come close to that description are Ecthirion and Epta Astera (minus the symphonic elements for the latter). Both of which are incredible bands

Great record. The singles they released are the best of the songs as the classical instrumentals. They are great. The non singles and instrumentals were pretty ok but didn't click as much my first listen. Would have made a perfect ep. But all around really good.

Gotcha.  I just ordered myself the CD yesterday.     (A distro on eBay had it for $21 including shipping from the UK.)

That's a pet-peeve of mine: for bands to release their best songs as singles so the album is a letdown when you get it.  For that reason, I'll typically only listen to a single once or twice to determine whether I wanna buy the album and then wait for it to arrive before I listen any more.

Kerrick wrote:Gotcha.  I just ordered myself the CD yesterday.     (A distro on eBay had it for $21 including shipping from the UK.)

That's a pet-peeve of mine: for bands to release their best songs as singles so the album is a letdown when you get it.  For that reason, I'll typically only listen to a single once or twice to determine whether I wanna buy the album and then wait for it to arrive before I listen any more.

Typically I'd agree, but 1 of the singles for this album(burden of man) was the only song they had released for 6 years lol. So I jumped at the opportunity when they had a 2nd song available for free download as who knew if it would come out.

I really love every song. I hadn't listened to the singles so I had to check to see if those tracks were my favorites, they were not. Amazing album!