Review by Daniel for Lunar Aurora - Andacht (2007)

I've had a lengthy relationship with German black metallers Lunar Aurora after first discovering their first two studio albums through the tape trading scene in the mid-1990's, both of which I quite liked without ever being tempted to claim them as essential. I wouldn't return to Lunar Aurora for more than a decade after that, finally catching up with them again with 2007's "Andacht" around 2009 & being suitably impressed with the improvements Lunar Aurora had made to their sound over the years. "Andacht" sees Lunar Aurora reaching somewhat of a peak in their quest to create a more atmospheric soundscape than I remember from their early works with the use of keyboards being prominent but not overused. The use of drum programming is noticeable but fairly well executed & certainly not intrusive. The more aggressive moments are the most enjoyable for me personally which is hardly surprising. There are a few sections where the band move in a direction that kinda resembles folk metal without actually using those cheesy folk melodies & they represent the weak points of the album. Some of the more keyboard-heavy sections can sound a touch overblown too & (as is often the case with me) the most popular song on the record "Findling" is also the one that I find the least appeal in. Regardless of that, the majority of the six tracks are very strong examples of the atmospheric black metal subgenre in what is a very consistent album that will no doubt offer strong appeal for fans of Paysage d'Hiver, Nagelfar or The Ruins of Beverast.