Uada’s “Black Autumn, White Spring” Is Your New Seasonal Favorite

When most folks think of black metal from Portland, they think of Agalloch and their campfire-friendly acoustic guitar-heavy jams. And with good reason — that band has made a huge impact on the black metal scene as a whole, and their hometown has always been a significant part of their musical personality. But for those of us who lean more towards aural hellfire than moonlight, Portland’s still go plenty to offer, specifically Uada.

I’m not surprised that I’m so taken by Uada’s newest single, “Black Autumn White Spring”, given that they share members with Infernus, whose Grinding Christian Flesh made a big impact on me last year. But while Infernus go for that cutthroat thrashy sound, Uada delve more into the atmospheric side of black metal’s early incarnations. “Black Autumn…” manages to be both diabolical and deep, like a better-informed and more melodic version of De Mysteriis-era Mayhem. The result scratches the infernal itch perfectly, and will hopefully be embrace by both old- and new-schoolers alike.

The band’s new album, Devoid of Light (nice and simple), is due out this spring on Eisenwald, with mastering by Toxic Holocaust’s Joel Grind and band photography by True Norwegian Black Metal’s Peter Beste. Check out the band’s Facebook for more info.