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Rating: Unfortunately, this will be the last review I write about Blutharsch's music. I have just learned that Albin Julius has passed away suddenly. This collaboration between his Der Blutharsch And The Infinite Church Of The Leading Hand and Thomas Jefferson Cowgill (aka King Dude), a charismatic dark-folk artist with a strong personality from Seattle, is his spiritual testament.
The evolution of the Blutharsch sound, marked by a liquid psychedelia with Krautrock influences, had long since distanced itself from any references to the neo-folk imaginary, so I was surprised that he decided to make a record with King Dude. However, King Dude also has a past in the black-metal field as he was a member of Book Of Black Heart. He shuns (and I must say fortunately) political references in his music despite having played with Death In June (an acquaintance also of Blutharsch).
The album, titled Black Rider On The Storm, represents a sort of concept that tells the story of a Civil War veteran and his journey to the end of the night in search of those responsible for the killing his family. Musically, the first impression is that it is a King Dude record, dark and sick as usual, where the Blutharsch limit themselves to providing their contribution with prominent stoner guitars. The album is, in any case, splendid with King Dude (in the usual guise of a Johnny Cash in black) effectively evoking the dark side of America. The initial trilogy, consisting of the crepuscular “Hell's Canyon,” the title track, an engaging western ballad, and the frantic “All I See You” belongs unmistakably to the "Luciferian" universe of King Dude. But in other passages, the hand of Albin Julius's group is instead felt, as in the instrumental tracks “The Drifter And The Dog,” “Strange Visions,” and “Going To The Sun” where Krautrock memories emerge. “Spiritual Vampire” represents another of the peaks of the album with its frenzied progress. In “Bury The Knife” here is King Dude again with his typical and unmistakable style while “Dead Man” (where the American musician duets vocally with Marthynna) the atmospheres become particularly macabre, almost like American gothic.
Overall, in Black Rider On The Storm the sonic alchemy between King Dude and Blutharsch works, and the final result, powerful and dark, leaves a mark. R.I.P. Albin Julius.
Available on Bandcamp at the following link: https://derblutharsch.bandcamp.com/album/king-dude-dbaticotlh-black-rider-on-the-storm.
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