Thanks for stopping by to check out my review of Bloedmaan's Circle of the Moon.

I remember back in 2022 when the debut album, Castle Inside the Eclipse, made its debut via IFP, and I've been pretty much in love with the sound ever since. I must say that I was pleasantly surprised when I first saw that the release date was actually in 2026, as there was a two-year gap between Castle Inside the Eclipse and Vampyric War in Blood, whereas this time there was only one.

As I said in my interview with Ronarg, I think the first album set a very solid foundation. Whilst Vampyric War in Blood went heavy on melody, this album, in my opinion, takes all of those aspects and builds on them with a slightly crisper overall production, which I also learnt, in the words of Ronarg, was owed to Wolfthrone Studios and the band Ondfodt.

For me, Castle Inside the Eclipse was my top Bloedmaan release, but after no-lifing Circle of the Moon for the past week, I'd actually say that this new offering has surpassed it.

My favourite tracks on the album, in order, are "Come Oh Night Eternal", "On Dragon Wings" and lastly, "Spell of Thralldom".

"On Dragon Wings", in my opinion, has easily the warmest-sounding guitar chords found on the album, which really help that signature tremolo-picked riff, alongside the "boom-bat" style drums, shine through.

Each of the above tracks has its own standout characteristics. For example, I think "Come Oh Night Eternal" has by far the best introduction, with that incredibly infectious opening riff and the melody over the top. The power chord progression underneath fits so fucking well that it's been my new song to learn on guitar this week, switching from the chords to the tremolos and even throwing in some improvisation.

I also really enjoyed the non-screamed vocal parts here, which gave it a mystical edge, whilst "Spell of Thralldom" has the best natural progression, with an amazing transition around the halfway mark of the track.

I'd also like to spend a few words discussing the artwork for Circle of the Moon, which, for the third time now, has utterly blown me away.

I've said this in many reviews before and will continue to do so, but I really am a sucker for a well-thought-out and well-executed piece of artwork, especially when it does nothing but absolute justice to the music, which, in this case, it absolutely does.

The incorporation of Castle Inside the Eclipse and the continuation of the same style as the previous two albums are both grand. Again, I feel it's brilliant when bands/projects with a deep aesthetic and storytelling element, as Bloedmaan does, do their music justice through the visuals and storytelling behind their albums.

For me personally, this album has surpassed both of its predecessors. Of course, each of the three albums in the Bloedmaan discography has its own characteristics, as I touched on briefly at the start of this review, but overall, I feel this album has taken all of those amazing elements and made them generally stronger as a whole.

I'd give this album a monumental 9.5/10, and it's my top IFP release this year.