Most likely the following review would not have happened if Matteo from Falce Press would not have sent me the EPK for the album. And it would have been my loss, cause I would have missed out on a great black metal album. Vultur comes from Italy, (the island of Sardinia, more exactly) and it has been out there for 20 years now. During these 2 decades the band has released only 2 full lengths, but they compensated with a fair amount of demos, EPs, split releases and compilations.
Cultores de Perdas e Linna (Stone and Wood Worshippers) is their third opus to date and it came out on the 28th of February via the Italian label Masked Dead Records. The album has been recorded in 2023 but the band decided to release it only this year, so here we have it in all its glory. While preparing for this review I played this album a couple of times and I can assure you this is a real gem of underground black metal, so check it out right away and convince yourselves.
What makes Vultur stand out from the majority of the black metal bands is that their lyrics are written in a local Sardinian autochthonous language. The album’s artwork is also inspired from the local folklore, more exactly from the Sardinian popular mask “Su Boe” (caratzas in local language), one of the most important characters of the Sardinian Carnival tradition. The bovine mask on album cover, frightening in its simplicity, seems to bewitch both the listener and the band members with its malefic, empty black gaze, making the latter play their music as if under its spell.
Vultur doesn’t lose time on this record and in 35 minutes they take you on an epic and fierce journey, heavily anchored in a traditional black metal style, where folklore legends and forgotten traditions are brilliantly brought back to life through relentless blast beats and abrasive guitar riffs. Out of the 8 tracks featured on this album, 7 are written and played in the Sardinian Campidanese language and address themes about Sardinian occultism and folk superstitions, which back in the days have been heavily reprimanded by the christians. The last track on the record, Nemini Parco, is sung in Italian and Latin, so those who speak these languages can get a glimpse of the lyrics.
Even if the tempo is mostly fast and extremely furious, Vultur knows precisely how and when to slow things down a bit, adding a bit more balance and melody to the overall terrifying picture (the second part of Su Spegu, the instrumental Arestis or the middle of the title track). The production on this record is top notch, each instrument is clearly audible and I really like how Maristella‘s bass fills your ears with its crunchy chords, something that doesn’t usually happen on many black metal records.
What stands out from the first listen is the way the band builds and maintains a distinct atmosphere all throughout the record while still keeping it true to themselves. Yes, their music evokes the spirit of the mid 90s Scandinavian scene (Dissection, Gorgoroth, Marduk to name a few), but the lyrics, compositions and vision add a strong personal touch and a much deserved authenticity.
Cultores de Perdas e Linna is a great collection of songs played in the purest tradition of cold and chilling black metal, with lots of fast and aggressive tempos cleverly mixed with melodic passages and guitar solos. The drumming is ferocious and represents the backbone (and the highlight) of this record. I absolutely love Lorenzo‘s performance on this album, his insane style is almost stealing the show. Attalzu‘s hateful vocals are THE perfect black metal vocals as they summon the mysterious and ancient traditions the band sings about in its lyrics. Though these lyrics are incomprehensible, at least to my ears, they have power and they sound like some magical incantations chanted during an occult ritual.
To sum it up, Vultur‘s Cultores de Perdas e Linna is a great black metal album, written and performed in the purest tradition of the genre. It sounds and feels way better than many of the albums out there, released by more renowned black metal bands, old or new. If you like black metal records with no fillers, great musicianship and interesting concept / lyrics, then this one is definitely for you. Totally recommended!!
VULTUR – “Cultores de Perdas e Linna” Track List:
1. Su frastimu
2. Eternu trumentu
3. Su spegu
4. Femina mala
5. Arestis
6. Cultores Lapides et Lignea
7. Umbras
8. Nemini Parco
VULTUR LINE UP:
Attalzu – guitar/vocals
Nicola Spaziani – guitar
Maristella Spanu – bass
Lorenzo Balia – drums
scrollsofdarmoth.com 
Leave a comment