siLLy puPPy Now here's something completely different. Have you ever wanted your favorite 8-bit era Nintendo video games music set to Black Metal? Well... me neither! But we get it anyway and it's actually pretty good if you can embrace the unorthodox eclecticism.

XEXYZ (taken from a Japanese game from 1988) also known as Rev, is a one-man band from Illinois, USA and this is his only album released so far by Dipsomaniac Records. It is some strange stuff indeed but actually works a lot better than it sounds. The video game music is the template which takes the place of the keyboards in setting depressive moods and interesting soundscapes. It is accompanied by fierce old-school black metal riffs and grim scream vocals in the style of early Summoning that give the overall project the proper black metal feel. The tracks range from the energetic with blastbeats to the atmospheric with minimal percussion. Song lyrics cover the game themes and the production has a very dark, raw and primeval sound.

Highly recommended for those seeking out the more obscure and eclectic nature on the black metal spectrum. Well mixed, well produced and definitely worth listening to for more than novelty's sake and at the short running time of only 28:26, it hardly outstays its welcome and actually leaves me wanting a bit more. Rev's other bands are Tjolgtjar and Enbilulugugal.