Barghest/False - Split

Gilead Media made the Barghest/False split available on their Bandcamp. This is an opposites attract kind of split featuring black metal with two distinct personalities. First up is Barghest and their punk and death metal infested take on black metal. Though both raw and blistering their two tracks differs somewhat in sound and dynamics. Barghest explained why in an interview that is no longer online

...they were somewhat the beginning and end to a chapter of the band. “Shifting Sands” is arguably my favorite track of ours that has been released so far and is also the first song we ever wrote. The other track, “Inhuman Hatred” was the last unreleased song from our original line up and a very rough recording at that...

False's part of the split is a stunning black metal epic. While much more complex than Barghest's offerings it is also quite accessible; False knows how to keep the listener’s attention from waning. Here's That's How Kids Die enthusiastic take on the song:

“Heavy as a Church Tower” encompasses everything I want from a great black metal track in one fell seventeen minute swoop; it transports me from this mundane existence to a freezing-cold underworld where Mephistopheles sits regally upon a throne of ice.

The split has deservedly gotten a lot of positive reviews. Here are a few, by Islander from No Clean Singing and by Andy Osborn from Cvlt Nation.