Subtitled as "A Tale About Hatred and Total Enslavement," this is a four song cassette with some lengthy song titles, which I am not going to quote here. Besides, they are in Polish anyway. I was going to say a few words about the music, but the band themselves do a damn fine job of giving you an insight on what their music has to offer. "Arkona plays: Pure Underground Zeta Reticulian Black Metal. No keyboards, no female voice. Only Destructive Sound of Holocaust." Well folks, that just about nails it. Arkona indeed do not fuck around. The only thing they do fuck is your negative opinion, as the liner notes proclaim elsewhere. Everything else follows the quote above.

This recording session took place in 1995 (but was released by Pussy God only in 1999), presumably right after the band completed their "Imperium" album, but there are major differences between the two. On "Zeta Reticuli" the band certainly increased the level of extremity. The absence of keyboards made it sound more primitive than the above-mentioned CD. The songs acquired more speed, and the vocals - more savagery. Plus, the guitars lost their fuzzy background and instead became thicker and darker than on "Imperium." All this might seem like regression to some "sophisticated" listeners, but even if you want to call it regression, then it is regression in the best possible way that is sure to please any purist. Raw, hateful, truly underground black metal - this stuff is the real deal, and it nails its gist point-blank: you are either with us or against us. Long live the underground!

© 2001 boris