| After six years of lycanthropic reclusion, ONE MASTER return with The Names of Power—a new full-length album steeped in the esoteric belief that knowing a deity’s true name grants access to its power. Centered on the potency of language, each of the six songs explores its influence in a different realm: religion, heresy, cultism, solitude, the cosmos, and modernity. Spanning 54 minutes, The Names of Power marks the band’s first double LP, a milestone for this long-standing force in American black metal.
Active since 2002, ONE MASTER remain steadfast in their commitment to traditional black metal, but this latest chapter is their most dynamic offering yet. Expanding their sonic palette with mid-tempo passages, atmospheric dirges, and even moments of acoustic guitar, the album is unmistakably ONE MASTER—but also full of unexpected turns, without ever straying from their core essence.
The Names of Power is the first full-length from the band's “Mark IV” lineup: founding member Valder (guitar, vocals), longtime contributor Black Wolf (guitar, bass, all leads and solos), and Eponymous on drums, appearing on a full-length for the first time. Though not present during recording, new bassist Grave Dog—a longtime ally who contributed artwork for Reclusive Blasphemy—now completes the current formation.
This is also ONE MASTER’s debut recording at Sonic Environments with Jeff Weed, bringing a production clarity that allows their sound to cut through more sharply than ever. Mastered by Will Killingsworth at Dead Air Studios, the final mix can be summed up as “crystal clear and bloody raw.”
To mark this defining moment, The Names of Power will be released to coincide with ONE MASTER’s return to the esteemed Messe des Morts festival in Montreal—an apt setting for the rebirth of a band long regarded as a pillar of New England black metal.
|
