Nasheim’s Solens Vemod came out as part of an unfairly good release drop from the German label Northern Silence that also included Woods Of Desolation’s As The Stars and Ered Wethrin’s Tides Of War. All three of those killer albums came out on Valentine’s Day, giving even the grim a reason to celebrate. Anyway, Solens Vemod, eleven years in the making, is the first full-length from the Swedish one-man black metal Nasheim, and it’s a masterpiece. Rich, dark, and ice-cold atmosphere defines Solens Vemod, an album that spends more time brooding than it does blasting. But when it does blast, it rips, as on “Jag fyller min bägare med tomhet,” and “Atta v ödets trådar väva sorg,” the latter a gorgeous track that rages forward before finding a seemingly perfect groove. It might not be the norm to call out an album’s cover art in a year-end list, but credit is due to the gorgeous painting of an owl striking prey in a snow-covered, Aurora Borealis-bathed forest that graces the face of Solens Vemod. A majestic, icy, nocturnal scene where danger looms, it perfectly captures the mood. –Wyatt [LISTEN]