Just got these in, the limited edition double LP version of Gallhammer's latest album. It's a beautiful gatefold jacket with metallic silver printing and printed inner sleeves. And it is also sold out and out of print from the label, so these are the last copies that we are getting.

Gallhammer have turned into a cult phenomenon since their CD/DVD set The Dawn Of... came out, and otaku doomheads the world over have become obsessed with this cult Japanese outfit. For a band that took their core sound from the primitive proto-black metal of Hellhammer, Gallhammer have slowly evolved into something far more interesting than just another old school black/sludge tribute band, as their latest album proves; the all-girl trio of Vivian Slaughter, Mika Penetrator and Risa Reaper started off playing Amebix and Hellhammer covers before the members really even knew how to play their instruments, but as they have progressed from their 2004 debut Gloomy Lights through the demos and live performance collection The Dawn Of Gallhammer from 2006 to their latest, album numer two Ill Innocence, I hear Gallhammer further channeling a gloomy 80's post-punk sound through their sludgy downer metal. The girls have always cited a variety of influences and interests, and that's why Gallhammer have been such an interesting band, aside from the crushing riffage and ghoulish atmospherics. The band still sounds pretty fucking raw, but Ill Innocence has a lot of variety over it's ten songs, too. It's like they're channeling the experimental spirit of late 80's Celtic Frost, in a way. The opener �At the Onset of the Age of Despair� harks back to those gnarly Amebix/Hellhammer influences, lumbering through a primitive riff backed by Vivian Slaughter's shrieks, and "Speed Of Blood" speeds up into buzzing, Darkthrone style riffs and sloppy blasts. From here though the band moves into bleaker and more adventurous territory, and the song titles set the mood for their sound: "Delirium Daydream", "Ripper In The Gloom", "World To Be Ashes" and "SLOG" dynamically bring together atavistic black metal barbarism and mesmerising instrumentals, moody post-punk melodies and primal heaviness, wintery slowcore strum and ripping blackened punk. SOme of the album's heavier, faster crust assaults are found on "Killed By The Queen" and "Blind My Eyes", and "Blind My Eyes" stands out with some unexpected yelping vocals from the drummer that sound just like Yasuko from Melt Banana! This is way more than mindless Hellhammer-worship; there are smatterings of early Siouxsie And The Banshees and Joy Division to be heard behind the barbaric slow-motion doom, dissonant Amebix-style crust and plodding black metal. Highly recommended, and presented in a super-classy six panel digipack printed in silver metallic inks and minimalist artwork, with a thick booklet of lyrics and art inside.