A year ago, Hungarian multi-instrumentalist Roland Neubauer returned with his black metal project Vrag, releasing the fourth full-length album Rendületlenül through the local label Filosofem Records, where he also puts out albums by his other bands – the highly respected black metal acts Witcher and Frozen Wreath. During a three-year pause, Roland took the time to gather new ideas for this project, whose focus remains firmly on atmospheric black metal. This is the core of his music – a dark, primal atmosphere straight from Hungary’s mystical forests, but without the crushing heaviness or horror; it carries a faint touch of melancholy and ethereal vibes instead. It’s the kind of dangerous beauty that’s best admired from a distance – get too close, and you’ll sink into the swamps of your own darkness. There are only brief echoes of depressive black metal here, yet positivity is still in short supply.
The name Vrag itself has a double meaning: in Serbo-Croatian it translates as Devil, while in Bulgarian and Russian it means Enemy. So one word unites both satanic and misanthropic undertones – a perfect match for a black metal project. There are no ethnic or folk elements here, yet the album feels pagan-tinged, with nature’s influence present though pushed into the background. The decision to sing in Hungarian adds a subtle folk hue to the music, but stylistically Vrag stays far from the pagan metal realm, feeling fully at home within atmospheric black metal realm. The same can be said about Witcher and Frozen Wreath – and the use of the native language only enriches the music. Sure, only speakers of that tongue will fully grasp the lyrics, but technology makes translation easy these days. In fact, Rendületlenül lyrics are available online, and as expected, there are no tales of rainbow unicorns or even odes to Satan. Vrag’s focus is more on existential crisis, inner darkness, and solitude – hymns of a philosophical misanthrope. The album’s title Rendületlenül translates as Tenaciously, which clearly hints at a stubborn struggle for survival – against the darkness of one’s soul and the absurdities of the modern social world.
The songs here are fairly long, though not in the extended ambient-laden way some atmospheric black metal bands prefer. Six to seven minutes is enough for Roland to create his signature cold and gloomy atmosphere that spreads through the entire 40-minute opus. The opening title track “Rendületlenül” immediately sets the tone for what’s to come – icy, bleak, atmospheric, melancholic. Like the closing piece “Önmegtagadás” it weaves in acoustic passages that romanticize and soften the sound, moving it towards luminous sorrow. “Ahol az érték megsemmisül” stands out for its melodic side, almost leaning into melodic black metal territory rather than pure atmospheric. The most mysterious track “Él a múlt” feels close to nature’s magic – an echo of ancient times reminding us that the past still fuels the possibility of the future.
There’s no progressive experimentation here, no avant-garde dissonance or odd structural twists. The melodies flow naturally, and while the songs follow the traditional atmospheric black metal architecture, they’re not predictable. There’s a spark of life within them, something organic that unravels the threads of musical ideas into a realm of abstraction. That spark keeps the listener engaged without overanalyzing technicalities or composition design. Yes – the sound is raw, the rhythm battle-like, the screams muffled, the guitar riffs colored by faint major notes. Everything seems structured, yet when you listen, it is perceived holistically – alive, breathing, cohesive, because of that inner spark.
Some black metal bands run on a spark of hatred or a spark of death, emitting completely different energies. Many lack any spark at all, sounding lifeless and synthetic. Vrag, on the other hand, glows with this subtle spark of existence. And though the vocals might seem monotonous at first, they’re filled with emotion, focused and narrow, not expressing a kind of hysterical expressionism, bordering on a schizoid state.
This year also saw the release of the long-awaited new Witcher opus “Öröklét”. Clearly, life on Hungarian soil is thriving, pushing extreme music in the native language further onto the international scene. The cover art perfectly captures the essence of Rendületlenül – a raw, ashen greyness, yet nothing distorts nature’s harmony: dangerous, untamed, mysterious. The artist was clearly inspired by the works of Theodor Kittelsen.
Atmospheric black metal has always been about immersion – whether into oneself, into darkness, into the depths of the space, or into the hidden corners of mystical nature. Rendületlenül is a perfect soundtrack for perceiving the unseen world even with open eyes – a world full of melancholic visions and the candid reality of our imperfect existence.
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