Review
Keyboard fanfares, gothic piano intros, and distant bagpipes seep into the margins of James McBain’s fourth album under the Hellripper moniker. Titled after a traditional Highland funeral lament, Coronach finds the Scottish multi-instrumentalist leaning into national folklore while widening his black-thrash parameters. Critics agree this newfound experimental ambition elevates the record, with Kerrang! hailing its "scything magnificence both ancient and timeless" and noting that "high production values and dynamic songwriting" successfully pull the project "out of the sonic dungeons."
Whether delivering "almost hair metal catchiness" or the blistering velocity of "Blakk Satanik Fvkkstorm," McBain maintains a fierce, blackened energy. Noizze celebrates the record as "vicious, decadent, ridiculously fun and packed with riffs sharp enough to draw blood." While these additions of strings and synth risk feeling overstuffed, they instead provide the menace of an "unseen demonic presence" to anchor the album's wild tempo shifts. It is a razor-sharp, beer-hoisting metal record that honors its primitive roots while taking dramatic, rewarding risks.
