It’s strange to look at the sky at night and realize the stars you’re seeing emitted that light eons ago. There are worlds we’ll never see, never hope to visit, and what is illuminating the overnight hours might not even be there any longer. The universe is so vast, that who knows what lurks beyond, in the reaches no human ever could hope to traverse?

Swiss cosmic black metal trio Darkspace also cannot physically go to these places, though the music they’ve made over a quarter century of existence might make you think otherwise. They’ve been silent for the past decade, taking universal sojourns in their heads, and now they’ve returned with their fifth full-length record “Darkspace – II.” At 47:12, it’s their shortest album by far and the first that’s comprised of just a single track. The band—guitarist/vocalist Wroth (also of Paysage d’Hiver), guitarist/vocalist Yhs, bassist/vocalist Zhaaral—creates a dreamscape of an adventure, a track that settles into your brain and makes you able to envision these mysterious pockets, chilling your mind and body.

“Dark -2.-2” starts like a strange transmission reaching out from well beyond our galaxy, a woman’s voice warbling, something that snakes through the entire 47-minute song. Pressure builds as the voice continues to worm into your brain, drudging through a hypnotic sheen as the drum programming belts, gushing energy, the beams frying. A synth cloud surrounds as the growls curdle, the atmospheric trauma settling in, zapping and cooling, sometimes pulling way back, entering a dreamlike vortex. Growls retch as the spaciness grows sooty, the keys washing down like a great wave, the playing chugging and trudging as the alien strength builds. The keys get murky just as things grow more dramatic and regal, soaring past worlds, lathering with power, driving with more force into the distance, swarming with majesty that sounds like it’s about to break. The mesmerizing powers cascade, beats circulate, and the faceless voice returns, disappearing into the ice.

Darkspace inhabit a universe all their own, and “Darkspace – II” continues their mission into the coldest, most isolated stretches of the great beyond to witness an existence we can’t even imagine. As a several-movement singular piece, the band is demanding your attention, and they’re likely to get it with their all-immersive approach to cosmic black metal. The decade-long wait was more than worth it, and this album is further proof that this three-headed beast is operating on a level no mere mortal can realize.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.darkcyberspace.com/

To buy the album (U.S.), go here: https://shopusa.season-of-mist.com/band/darkspace

Or here: https://shop.season-of-mist.com/list/darkspace-dark-space-ii

For more on the label, go here: https://www.season-of-mist.com/