Review: Ashbringer – Subglacial

February 13, 2026

I’ve been a fan of Ashbringer since at least 2019, so I’ve been pretty excited to check out the upcoming release. What I’ve found is a diverse album which moves far beyond the atmospheric black metal tag attached to their Metal-Archives page. Rather, that genre distinction is a starting point for exploration. Emotions are a far better way to define this album anyway, as I find myself moved by many passages throughout.

Originally formed in 2013, the band has evolved in both style and lineup. Founding member Nick Stanger (guitars, vocals, synth) remains from those early days, with Nathan Wallestad (bass) joining in 2015, Jackson Catton (guitars, backing vocals, synth) joining in 2017, and Andy Meyer (drums) coming aboard in 2022. You can tell throughout the album that all 4 members have had time to gel. It shows clearly in the cohesiveness of the album, a record that is sprawling in some ways and could have easily been all over the place.

Perhaps part of the cohesiveness can also be attributed to the way the band approached the writing and recording process. Stanger and Meyer rented a house, which the band then used over the course of a year to write and record Subglacial. Stanger has this to say about the writing and recording process:

Our modus operandi of this record was as follows: we’re going to make the most ‘us’ sounding record we possibly can, and we’re going to do it completely in house, with gear we already have, without spending any money.

Indeed, Stanger is credited with production, mixing, and mastering, while the full band is credited with engineering the album, per the Bandcamp page. While overall, the mix is well done, there are a few spots where I feel there could be more punch. These are not necessarily the quiet moments and this is a quibble not a major concern. Beyond this minor concern, the album is very well put together.

Photo provided in the promotional materials from the label.

The album itself flows so well, seemingly wrapped around the title track as the core idea. The two prior tracks build up to this moment (or 8 minutes plus) of intensity, which is then carried forward over the remaining three. The track itself is a stunningly and powerfully beautiful catharsis of blackgaze, a style which most often bores me. Acoustic guitar starts it off, leading to the jangling tones so often found on the gazey side of the black metal spectrum. The drums, when they come in feature a steady drive with some gentle rolls and a hint of syncopation. The vocals are earnest and heartfelt, sounding at times like they would be at home on a post-hardcore album, as is typical with Stanger’s approach to the microphone, but it works so well here.

Lyrically, the track deals with issues of mental health, especially anxiety and dread leading to an inability to act, a very normal reaction to the times in which we find ourselves. Given that the band is from the occupied city of Minneapolis, these concerns may be more true for Stanger (lyricist) than when he first wrote the words.

Enraptured in the cruel embrace of silence once more

Waltzing with the bastard child of dread, inaction

While the spectre seizes ground

I hear it call me, I feel it beckoning

Tightening its grip on my neck

Just as the song evolves musically, the lyrical themes evolve into a greater sense of hope, a vision of a better future perhaps.

When the sun shines bright

And defeats the night

I’ll feel humble, at peace

When the lake is still

And the waters are clear

I’ll know I’ve found safe passage

The weight of the lyrical and musical content of “Subglacial” make it a difficult listen, as I really feel the emotion. I also find it cathartic and find myself wanting to go through that journey with the band.

Going back to the beginning of Subglacial, we find the album introduced by “My Flesh Shows Its Weakness,” which starts out with a near drone of deconstructed riffs and rhythms. They of course eventually come together, leading into some of the most driving material on the album, reminiscent to me of Offerings of Flesh and Gold, the 2019 debut by Bull of Apis Bull of Bronze, and potentially my favorite album of the 2010s. Once the track takes off at about the 1:30 mark, it becomes perhaps the most tight and straightforward on the album, at least until it provides its own interlude of deconstruction once again.

The album then proceeds into the more mellow “Waning Conviction” with plenty of acoustic guitar and impassioned vocals, followed of course by the already discussed title track.

In the second half, the album continues to build on the foundation already laid, expanding the blackgaze sound, but also leaning even further into both furious black metal riffing and post-hardcore sensibilities. Some of the riffing and guitar tones used, especially on “Send Him to the Lake” give psychedelic sensibility to the overall tapestry. Though the title track is the central sun around which the Subglacial sonic system spins, the entire album is consistently strong. There are no weak throwaway tracks.

To quote “Vessels” the album closer:

Inch by wretched inch

Falter by falter I will reach the surface

I will learn to heal

Subglacial is ultimately about overcoming the horrors of the world. Though an immensely weighty album, it is a release which calls for noticing the beauty of the natural world around us, the strength of solidarity, the joy inherent in the struggle to beat back the dark forces of our time. Join me in celebrating this monumental achievement by Ashbringer in their 5th full length release.