Release Date June 12th, 2026
Format LP/CD
Genre Black Metal
Origin Poland
Thy Killing Hand is an anonymous Polish black metal duo whose public trail begins with the cassette releases “Scarlet Ceremonies” in 2023 and “Ixaxar” in 2024. “Infernal Commands” is the band’s debut full-length, issued by EAL Productions and distributed through NoEvDia. The band comes from the stripped, primitive end of black metal, using minimal ornament and an old, subterranean atmosphere as its main language. Its anonymity matters less than the continuity between those earlier tapes and this album.
The same interest in ceremonial dread, low tempos, corroded guitar tones, and funereal keyboards has now been expanded across a longer format. Little biographical information exists beyond the Polish origin and duo configuration, leaving the music as the only useful introduction. That brief history also explains why the debut arrives with an established direction and little trace of an early rehearsal committed to tape.
“Infernal Commands” advances through a stalking, dirge-heavy gait. The guitars rely on lean riffs, droning chords, and sour melodic turns, while the drums strike with a blunt, martial thud. Bass has a noticeable position in the mix, adding a hot metallic undercurrent beneath the guitars. Synths drift behind the main attack, and distant choral voices introduce a religious menace without turning the arrangements grand or ornate. The production is raw and deliberately
weathered. Distortion frays around the edges, the percussion remains physical, and the keyboards retain their ghostly character. Titles such as “To Receive The Final Task,” “Enter, Asmodeus,” and “I Am Third Revelation” point toward demonic command, ceremony, and corrupted revelation.
The restricted tempo range creates cohesion, although it also flattens the album’s central stretch. Several riffs circle the same idea longer than their payoff can support, and the synth and choir entrances become predictable once the pattern is established. When rhythm guitar, bass, and drums lock together, the album develops a grave hypnotic pull. When the compositions linger too long, its oppressive character starts becoming uniform.
Taken as a whole, “Infernal Commands” is a respectable debut built from primitive riffing, low-speed menace, prominent bass, and spectral keyboards. Its atmosphere has substance, and the duo rarely dilutes it with unnecessary decoration. The main issue is narrowness. Separate songs occasionally blend into one continuous descent, with few rhythmic changes or pronounced peaks to divide them.
Firmer editing would give several compositions more distinct contours. Thy Killing Hand has nonetheless produced an album with enough character to rise above routine imitation. “Infernal Commands” is grim, focused, and effective, though its limited pacing prevents it from reaching a higher tier.
|7.0
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