{"id":832750,"date":"2026-05-30T16:59:17","date_gmt":"2026-05-30T16:59:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/832750\/"},"modified":"2026-05-30T16:59:17","modified_gmt":"2026-05-30T16:59:17","slug":"riverflame-lunar-crusades-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/832750\/","title":{"rendered":"Riverflame – Lunar Crusades Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"There\u2019s little better in life than a young band swinging for the fences on their debut record. Not content to play it safe just to get a foot in the door, they push themselves to their limit and make a statement right out the gate. Greece\u2019s Riverflame <\/strong>aren\u2019t exactly that\u2014the band sports members of the established bands Hail Spirit Noir<\/strong><\/a>, Ponte del Diavolo<\/strong><\/a> and Owls<\/strong>\u2014but there\u2019s nonetheless a fire behind their newest project\u2019s debut record Lunar Crusades. With guitars and synths by Haris, vocals by Romain Nobileau, bass by Abro and drumming from Hakon Freyr Gustaffson, Riverflame<\/strong> forged five tracks of second-wave-influenced atmospheric black metal with the aim of sounding \u201cboth visionary and nostalgic.\u201d These are well-mapped depths to dredge up, so it\u2019ll take some creative turns here to sound forward-thinking. Does Lunar Crusades make those turns and shoot Riverflame <\/strong>straight to the moon, or does it leave them drifting untethered out in space?<\/p>\n

Let not Riverflame<\/strong>\u2019s designation as atmoblack lead you to assume Lunar Crusades is bereft of riffs. To the contrary, Lunar Crusades seethes with ice-cold melodies in the vein of Dissection <\/strong>reaching for the grandeur of Summoning<\/strong>. Typical tremolos and blast beats are here in quantity, at their grandest on \u201cThrough Mistlands of Unearthly Worlds\u201d and most electrifying on \u201cWhere Dragons Once Ruled,\u201d but Riverflame <\/strong>also employ other sounds like twin leads (\u201cLunar Crusades\u201d) and acoustic guitars (\u201cRiverflame\u201d) to keep their riffs fresh across their epic song structures. Haris\u2019 riffs have beastly muscle behind them, giving Lunar Crusades that melodic-yet-bludgeoning quality that recalls Kvaen <\/strong>for me as well as the free-spirited fun of Stormkeep<\/strong>. Similarly, Nobileau\u2019s vocals are deep, husky, and biting, keeping Riverflame <\/strong>a vicious force even at their most wistful (\u201cBefore the Eternal Night\u201d). Abro\u2019s bass is unfortunately understated throughout most of Lunar Crusades, but throw in Gustafsson\u2019s pummeling tom fills (\u201cWhere Dragons Once Ruled\u201d) and relentless kicking (\u201cRiverflame\u201d), and Riverflame <\/strong>become as ferocious as they are atmospheric.<\/p>\n

\ufeffLunar Crusades by Riverflame<\/a><\/p>\n

But Riverflame <\/strong>are atmoblack, and they shaped Lunar Crusades primarily through sweeping, long-form epics. Evoking Summoning<\/strong>, Riverflame <\/strong>use miscellaneous synthetic instrumentation to bridge gaps between riffs, imbue the music with faux-medieval grandeur and add dynamics to their lengthy arrangements. Throughout Lunar Crusades, you\u2019ll be treated to harp (\u201cLunar Crusades\u201d), horn (\u201cRiverflame\u201d), atmospheric ooh\u2019s (\u201cThrough Mistlands\u2026\u201d) and, among others, harpsichord (\u201cBefore the Eternal Night\u201d). Riverflame<\/strong>\u2019s atmospherics slather \u201cThrough Mistlands\u2026\u201d with an eerie mysteriousness that put me in mind of the Ico soundtrack<\/a> and give even the comparatively truncated instrumental \u201cLunar Crusades\u201d a fantastical opulence akin to Caladan Brood<\/strong>. Even the narration works! Read deep, low, and theatrically, Riverflame<\/strong>\u2019s narrator elevates the dramatic undercurrent of Lunar Crusades and together with their synthetic orchestra does wonders in elevating the blistering black metal towards Riverflame<\/strong>\u2019s cinematic ambitions.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

While Riverflame<\/strong> aren\u2019t short on ideas, Lunar Crusades nonetheless often feels like butter scraped over too much bread. Riverflame <\/strong>does a lot to mitigate over-repetition, such as switching up the drums beneath a riff whenever it loops (\u201cRiverflame\u201d) or introducing a riff on acoustic before the distorted guitars (\u201cWhere Dragons Once Ruled\u201d), but in the end, there are only so many ways you can play a handful of chord progressions before things start feeling played out after a while. Every song except \u201cLunar Crusades\u201d is 8-10 minutes and all but \u201cBefore the Eternal Night\u201d feel ready to wrap with about two to go. To its credit, Lunar Crusades is surprisingly concise, sitting at thirty-nine minutes long and, though the DR is thoroughly average, the mixing isn\u2019t overly compressed and makes for an easy listening experience despite the refusal of commercial song structures. But ultimately, it often feels like Riverflame<\/strong> taffy-pulled Dissection <\/strong>songs into Summoning <\/strong>proportions to fit their vision, making Lunar Crusades feel a bit thin by the end.<\/p>\n

Lunar Crusades is a very fun album and hopefully a strong foundation for Riverflame<\/strong>\u2019s future. It occupies that space of self-aware nerdy black metal like Stormkeep <\/strong>without falling into self-parody, and I was never truly bored with Lunar Crusades during my time with it. I hope Riverflame <\/strong>isn\u2019t a one-off side project for these guys, because there\u2019s real potential here for a great record. If Riverflame <\/strong>can finish songs as strongly as they start them on the next album, it\u2019ll kill. Lunar Crusades is an easy recommendation for fans of melodically inclined atmospheric black metal, even if not every track is all gas the whole way through. Now, go light your nearest river on fire and ride!<\/p>\n

Rating<\/strong>: Good!
DR<\/strong>: 7 | Format Reviewed<\/strong>: 320 kbps MP3
Label<\/strong>: Code666 Records<\/a>
Websites<\/strong>: riverflame.bandcamp.com<\/a> | instagram.com\/riverflame<\/a>
Releases Worldwide<\/strong>: April 24th, 2026<\/p>\n