Well, it’s just about October. The trees are dying, the sun is going down earlier, the weather is getting chillier… in short, shit is bleak, dude.

And we can think of no finer soundtrack to this gradual reminder that the world is a horrible place full of death and loneliness than De Praestigiis Angelorum, the debut album from France’s VI! Featuring current and former members of Aosoth, Antaeus, and Aborted, VI definitely know how to bring the misery; their music spirals (just like their album cover!) and hypnotizes, reaching through the listener’s chest and touching his or her heart with its frigid finger, letting him or her know, “Hey, it’s okay that your soul is so very, very bitter — our souls are bitter, too.”

Man, this is a good record!

MetalSucks is proud to debutDe Praestigiis Angelorum, which you can stream below! It comes out this Friday, September 25 on Agonia Records. You can pre-order physical copies here and digital copies here.