Hexjakt - Blessing of the Damned

Hexjakt is a doom metal band from Sweden who formed in 2024.  Their latest album, “Blessing of the Damned,” is their full-length debut; they released their self-titled EP earlier in the year.

I wasn’t familiar with the band before being sent their promo and wasn’t sure what to expect.  So what did I get?  Deep, dark doom that’s so heavy that it feels both surreal and uneasy.  Is hell real?  I don’t know but if I had to walk through, this album would be a soundtrack to what I could only assume is my impending doom. 

Across the album, Hampus’ riffs settle in like the hardening of concrete. Toni’s bass turns each song into an anchor, slowly dropping to the bottom of some unfathomable depth.   I’m always impressed by drummers in doom bands and Dan brings it hard, creating rhythms that are always interesting even through the darkest, most abrasive points of the songs.

The album opens with “1000 Crows,” and that title brings up all kinds of images in my head. The eerie beginning is like death circling over the wounded, a slow but inevitable buildup to a dying future.  The song builds by layers, the bass and drums building off the atmosphere and opening the door for sweltering riffs to blight out the sun. 

The album gets darker and more horrific the deeper I go.  “Void Throne,” is one of the most monstrous songs I’ve heard in this second half of the year.  The riffs are pure darkness, crashing against my eardrums as the bass and drums hammer the sounds further into my psyche.   I’m not sure who does the vocals as their Metallum page lists both Hampu and Toni on vocals, but these yells are raw and almost sound painful.  Just before the 3:17 mark, the drums push the song to an explosion, with the fall out being the bass drops that would probably register on the Richter scale. Clean guitars cascade over these huge lines, creating a new kind of darkness.  I love this.  THIS IS DOOM.

“The Act of Dying,” also uses clean tones to a chilling degree with an opening that is unnerving yet captivating.  I like the parts where there is a brief break in the music so the vocals and ring out.  These moments are very demanding, offering an intense version of doom rather than sullen melancholy.  This all builds up to the last minute and half or so that consists of hypnotic pounding from each instrument, like a monster trying to break through my door.  Absolutely insane! 

The highlight of the album has to be the nearly 14-minute epic “Cathedrals.”  This is an opus of hellish punishment and one not soon forgotten.  It’s slow, crushing, and has the tempo equivalent to slowly rolling up a tube of toothpaste.  But instead of popping and the carnage quickly subsiding, the grind is never ending.  Godzilla sized riffs create a song that embraces its intensity, even has the drums and bass push it further into a bottomless void.

Hexjakt’s “Blessing of the Damned,” is a visceral, ferocious doom metal that shows the true power of a doom metal band who goes above and beyond to provide a truly underground, pulverizing experience. 

Rating:  Excellent