Two years after the series' first installment, the
Black Mark Attack, Vol. 2 compilation returns with further proof of the enterprising Swedish independent label's evolution away from its predominantly death and black metal origins. In fact, by 1998, the company's ever-expanding roster could count among its talent pool additional styles such as
World of Silence's melodic power metal,
Soulquake System's blunt deathcore,
Lothlorien's progressive death metal,
Lake of Tears' gothic metal-rock, and, perhaps most surprising of all,
Bathory leader
Quorthon's shockingly Seattle-like alternative rock. Thankfully, the collection also boasts excellent nods to the extreme metal old school, including
Auberon's technical excursions,
Mental Crypt's untarnished fury, and
Necrophobic's classic death metal. And weighing in at a healthy, damn good 14 tracks, this is one hell of a stand-alone sampler in its own right. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia