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Vitsaus are a vicious pair of bastards from Finland who here, on their full-length debut, thrust a cold, icy blast of old school Black Metal into your ears, throwing two fingers up at any who oppose them. Sielunmessu is a bleak, frosty tundra that washes over you in many waves, and while bitter in execution, there is a rich resonance to many of the riffs, and some ghost-like melody that haunts you listen after listen. The production on this short record is cruel and raw, just above demo standard, with buzz-saw guitars, tin-can drums, and vocals that tear up the mic. It's Black Metal in its purest form, very much in the Darkthrone and early Ulver vein, with moments which match the musicality of Taake and the sheer violence of Blut Aus Nord. The first two tracks are masterful Black Metal cuts, full of menace, melancholy, and memorable passages. However, the following two (they are all sung in Finnish, and therefore pointless to name) are merely average, and rather clamorous. The final track picks up that initial majesty and takes the album out with a bang, proving that Vitsaus (which means 'pest', by the way) can easily hold your attention, and show they are good for it.

Fans of harsh, wintry Black Metal played in the lo-fi style will lap up every moment of Sielunmessu. And I'm sure with a couple more albums to their name Vitsaus could make some noise in the most shadowed corners of the underground.