It almost feels useless reviewing a band that has recently split up due to difficulties in the band. The Dutch black metal formation Irmin has decided they will quit, after the release of their upcoming full length. For now, I will tell you a little bit more about their last demo The Summoning.

Irmin has a pretty big history compared to the amount of releases on their name. They have won Metal Battle in 2006, which is a grand metal band contest in the Netherlands. After this event, they went to the studio to record a full length, but they weren’t satisfied about the result, so this album was never released.

Now for the present. The Summoning contains five tracks which are all very diverse. They have recorded the demo itself and although the production isn’t spotless, it’s clean enough. The black metal Irmin presents has a very thrashy edge, but also stands out because of some of its melodic parts. The two voiced vocals are a bit peculiar for a black metal band, because the screams are extremely high pitched, taking turns with a more regular scream. Very distinctive! On top of that, the guitar and bass parts really come across as if they have put much consideration into every second of music.

It doesn’t need any explanation that this is always a good thing, although in this case it seems to work against Irmin. The music doesn’t sound very cohesive and some out of place guitar solos make me doubt whether this band was even able to come to a whole as a band and not as individuals. I’m curious about the full length that Irmin will release after The Summoning, hoping this band will actually sound like a band after all.