That is pretty good I must admit. Even considering the fact that the influence of Emepror's "Anthems to the Wilken at Dusk" is all too obvious here. After all, not every black metal band could really say that it plays "almost like Emperor", and they do play pretty damn well, at that. Another important point is that it is a German band we are talking about here, and sad as it is but the German black metal scene has never been overly inventive. Well, each rule has a pleasant exception. The complex cobwebs of guitar riffs, entirely crazy drum beats, well-timed keyboard arrangements, excellent soloing - all of that, as well as a whole lot of other things is what one may find on "Abstract Maelstrom Paragon." And although it is probably still pretty early to say that Hidden in the Fog could righteously claim the recently abandoned imperial throne, nonetheless, earnestly, I have to admit that so far I have not heard anything more convincing in this key. In the closure it is also worth point out the quality of the recording itself, which is quite good especially for a self-produced record. I says go for it, lads! And, all you at record labels… take notice.

Ramon Claassen’s words of praise: forgive us for doing it the long way... in the summer time when the weather is fine I usually don’t give a fuck about Black Metal. Bands like TWISTED SISTER, DIO, MAIDEN or SAXON (my “Sunshine Reggae”), and a good beer – that’s what I call summer feeling! But HIDDEN IN THE FOG simply rule supreme! I mean, melodic Black Metal on summer festivals in the dark is okay but traditional or even the rather sophisticated stuff HIDDEN deliver simply requires a certain spiritual level I can’t reach with the sun shining warm on my belly, the birds singing and the bees buzzing. But let me tell you something: with their new album HIDDEN IN THE FOG did not only manage to put me in a Black Metal mood, no, even the sun stopped shining and right now we’re drowning in rain, haha! No, seriously, I always intended to call HIDDEN the only true heir to EMPEROR’s throne (okay, let’s wait for the new SIRIUS record) but somehow their previous albums never quite reached that level. Maybe a DIMMU level with a completely different approach, though. Now, with “Abstract Maelstrom Paragon” HIDDEN present themselves incredibly mature. First of all, let me brag about their phenomenal skills a bit: the sound has become professional, orchestration and instrumentation are miles above average and the whole album was written in partiturs! Still, the band doesn’t forget the non-musicians among their fans: everything is well structured so that nobody gets lost. HIDDEN IN THE FOG seem to have slightly different influences than EMPEROR, though, especially in the classic sector as they sound lighter and maybe a little more cutting. But their true achievement is that their music creates images in the one’s mind: listening to the title track for example makes me see a Demons’ ball with distorted figures dancing in a palace of ice. They’re slaves to the music for as soon as the band starts blasting, the creatures are forced to slaughter each other until the song becomes mellow again, making them dance together once more. Yeah, I know I’m sick but what really makes me furious is the fact that as far as I know the band still doesn’t have a record deal! Unbelievable! Don’t you dare and hesitate getting this piece of excellence, try to catch ‘em live as well and visit the band’s great website now!
F. Cthulhu E.’s praise: this certainly is an album that is bound to re-define Black Metal standards in the German scene. Moreover, I predict that HIDDEN THE FOG will be one of the next German underground acts that will arise from the pits and receive their well-deserved recognition and public appreciation. That is for sure. Why that is so? Well, the band has been standing for high–standard material for quite a while now, but this album surpasses all the previous recordings they’ve accomplished so far. I don’t think there are many acts in the Black Metal scene that can compete with this complexity, this subtle juxtaposition of symphonic ingredients and varying Metal attacks (parallels to EMPEROR and LIMBONIC ART are evident in this respect…). Let me just quickly comment on the five entities that constitute this jewel: 'Introitus' – the intro as you may guess. Warped synth sounds with a snarling voice hovering above… very spherical. 'Mirages Of Redemption' – the first actual track on the album… very complex interweaving of melody lines, partly some fragile oriental leads. A worthy opener so to speak. 'Nautilus (Swimming Through Oblivion)' – this track is introduced by acoustic guitar pickings that are accompanied by polyphonic male vocals… very melancholic. There is an exceedingly solemn and festive interval in the middle of the track, which adds a very special note I think. The bass-work is brilliant in this song, quite playful actually. At the end the track is resolved by progressive chord-work, which suits the bizarre atmosphere just right. 'Abstract Maelstrom Paragon' – again there are quite progressive chords. This time at the beginning of the track. The oeuvre develops into an intricate and complex masterpiece of black magic. Finally it is rounded off by a major-resolution, which I deem very festive again.'Dignity’s Fall' – this song is so very fierce and dynamic. Very fast drumming at rates… one can sense that Botis, the drummer, is a CRYPTOPSY freak, hahaha. Just in brief an evaluation of the musicianship and its qualities – I think the guitar-work, Ghash and Gorbag are doing, sounds so skilful and precise, the sound is a pleasure, too… no further comments. As a I mentioned above, the bassist, Draug Carcharoth, is doing an extremely filigree job as well. He doesn’t just support the guitarists but he evolves his own secret life in the compositions… exquisite! Botis, the drummer, is doing such a good job, too. Very tight drumming (except for a few rolls… but these flaws are minor in nature!)… the only thing that bugs me is the bass-drum sound. I think it somehow doesn’t fit into the very good overall sound of this record. It’s too cold, too technical… if you know what I mean. But that is personal taste. Then the singer (???), Ghash, who’s also playing guitar – he sounds so very wicked and venomous. I reckon he gargles little snakes every morning to get into gear and vomit forth these ghastly vocals. My opinion? Definitely a must-have and a very promising release of these Black Metal masters… buy or die! (...)

HIDDEN IN THE FOG is a German Black Metal band. You might know them since they have already release one demo and two CDs and they have shared the stage with bands like Agathodaimon, Nagelfar, Gardens Of Gehenna and others. Their work here is very good and interesting. I'd say they belong to the new wave of Black Metal that wants the bands to add many keys and melodies in their sound, thus making the music symphonic and pompous. They achieve this but it doesn't work against the aggression and the evil atmosphere. There are many fast moments and the music is intense from the beginning to the end. I liked the fact that they try to insert some emotions which makes the music sound a bit melancholic at times. Another special thing about this band is the vocals. Most time they are classic Black Metal vocals, but there are also many narrations, scream vocals and some choir moments as well. Last but not least, the production is excellent. A very good CD by a promising band.

This CD is already the fourth release of the german band HIDDEN IN THE FOG. After a demo tape and two quite successful CDs they open a further chapter of german Black Metal history with the album "Abstract Maelstrom Paragon". It becomes evident immediately, that HIDDEN IN THE FOG play on a very high technical level. The whole sound is enormously complex and roars furiously from the speakers. The guitar-riffs are always properly hard, however they’re packed with delicate, finger-breaking details. Many melodies occur, which almost fit into classical Metal. These melody-lines are so skillfully built into the songs, that they fully fit into the arrangements. The synths, which are very frequently used, provides further atmosphere. The synth-sounds are very individual, and so they cause some surprises within the songs. What impresses me much is that HIDDEN IN THE FOG keep beeing this aggressive, despite having so many melodies and technical details. The songs usually are played in an express-train’s speed. Double bass attacks can practically be heard nonstop and also infernal blast parts occur frequently. However the drummer is not limited to these commonly-known beats, but supplies creative and rhythmically demanding drum-patterns again and again. A further important “ingredient” are the vocals of course. Here, HIDDEN IN THE FOG use classical Black Metal scream-vocals. But people who have an idea about this band know, that they would not be content with this alone. So they offer far more, e.g. polyphone clean chants. This gives an emotional impact to the songs and increases the orchestral feeling. This CD convinces me from the beginning to the end and offers an acceptable playing time (33 minutes). The production is a killer one and also the cover is really tasty. (...)

HIDDEN IN THE FOG is a german black metal quartet which was formed in 1996 and which could already draw some major attention from the german underground. This did not only happen through various live-shows, but particularly because of the so-far published CDs. And the four musicians prove lastingly on their current output 'Abstract Maelstrom Paragon', that they understand their trade. Before the recordings, they seem having studied the second THE KOVENANT album 'Nexus Polaris' exactly, for the sound and also the complex conception of this CD force a comparison to this milestone of the newer Black Metal history. HIDDEN IN THE FOG proceed very variable and with lots of ideas. Blackmetal-screams, death-growls and clean chants occur as well as numerous breaks, which lead the songs into new directions again and again. So it's not very easy for the listener to follow the changing sounds on the first attempt, because the problem with 'Abstract Maelstrom Paragon' is the fact that simply too many fragments are packed into the individual songs. Particularly the song 'Nautilus (Swimming Through Oblivion)' is overloaded with too many riffs and does not come correctly to the point. Here, there's left some work to do for the band, because what is offered here on the musical side is amazing: sound-track-like exiting synth-work, highly-complex rhythms, melodic guitars etc., so it's all that I expect from an excellent progressive Black Metal band. HIDDEN IN THE FOG only have to bear the reproach, that despite all technical abilities and good approaches everywhere, less would often have been more, so that the 33 minutes are not always characterized by harmonious arrangements. But fans of (in every form) extreme Metal are served excellently with 'Abstract Maelstrom Paragon'. (...)

Ein regelrechtes Meisterwerk haben die Magdeburger hier abgeliefert. Die Band hält null von Nischendenken und das merkt man ihrem Sound auch an. Es gibt eigentlich keine Möglichkeit, die Songs von 'Abstract Maelstrom Paragon' irgendwie 100% einzuordnen. Aber was kann es schöneres geben, als der Musik einer Band zu lauschen, die Stile wie Klassik, Progressive, Black und Death miteinander verbindet und es auch noch schafft, dem Ganzen mit ihrem eigenen Stil und Anspruch ein dermaßen einheitliches Klangbild zu verleihen, dass man nur den Kopf verneigen kann. Ein derart komplex wirkendes Werk mit so verschiedenen Einflüssen ist ganz einfach noch niemandem gelungen. Orchestral, romantisch, melodisch, klassisch, verspielt, technisch verdammt versiert gelingt Hidden In The Fog mühelos ein Spagat zwischen Dream Theater und Dimmu Borgir oder der klassischen Harmonie und dunkler Klänge. Es gibt zur Zeit wahrscheinlich absolut keine Band die ähnliches vollbracht hat. Man sollte sich also unbedingt die nötige Zeit nehmen, sich den komplexen Songstrukturen und genialen Harmoniebildungen hinzugeben. Wer nicht bereit ist dies zu tun, wird eine der wenigen wirklich erwähnenswerten "außerirdisch" einzigartigen Bands dieses Universums verpassen. (...)

Schon irgendwie verwunderlich – Monat für Monat werden unnütze Tonträger von Labels auf den Markt geschwemmt, eine Band wie HIDDEN IN THE FOG hingegen dümpelt seit 1996 im Underground umher, weil ihr Potential anscheinend nicht wahrgenommen oder einfach ignoriert wird... Bereits um die vierte Veröffentlichung handelt es sich bei 'Abstract Maelstrom Paragon', aber schon seit ihrem ersten Demo beweisen HITF eigentlich, dass man sie nicht in eine Schublade mit anderen durchschnittlichen Demobands stecken kann. Mit „Abstract Maelstrom Paragon“ scheinen die Deutschen nun ihren Stil perfektioniert zu haben und präsentieren 4 neue Tracks (+ Intro), mit denen sie ihre Avantgardestellung in der Underground-Szene untermauern. Zwischen der Perfektion auf EMPEROR‘s 'Prometheus' und der Kälte von SATYRICON‘s 'Volcano' treiben HITF extremen Metal auf die Spitze und zeigen ausgefeiltes Songwriting, technisches Können und eine große Portion an Individualität. Düsterer Bombast, sehr klassisch angehaucht, dann wieder Blastbeat-Attacken an der Grenze zur Kakophonie und dazwischen ruhige Akkustik-Passagen, machen jeden der 4 Songs zu einem Erlebnis für sich. Zwar scheint alles wie aus einem Guß, doch bietet jeder Track neue Ideen und Elemente, und so benötigt die CD auch einige Durchläufe, um sich dem Hörer erst so richtig zu erschließen. Kritik bleibt somit von meiner Seite nur spärlich gesät. Einerseits ist der Sound zwar glasklar und transparent, für meinen Geschmack jedoch fast zu steril, besonders die Drums klingen sehr nach D-Drum und zu wenig natürlich. Des Weiteren sind die Songs zuweilen fast zu überladen an Arrangements bzw. zu vertrackt, so daß das Material gelegentlich schon ganz schön anstrengend wird. Nichtsdestotrotz hätten HITF schon lange das Zeug zu einem ordentlichen Plattendeal, hoffentlich wird ihnen dieser ja durch „Abstract Maelstrom Paragon“ ermöglicht. Fans avantgardistischen Black Metals unbedingt anchecken. (...)

Der Nachfolger von "Promo 2001" zeigt die Magdeburger Black Metaller ein Stück gereifter, aber dadurch auch noch komplexer. War es schon nicht einfach, den Songkonstruktionen beim letzten Werk zu folgen, haben Hidden In The Fog noch eins drauf gelegt. Das beeindruckt den Rezensenten, lässt ihn aber auch einmal mehr in Verwirrung zurück. Selbst das Lesen der beigelegten Info macht einen nicht schlauer, wenn man ein Laie auf dem Gebiet der klassichen Musikkomposition ist. Erst nach mehreren Durchläufen des Silberlings wird es klarer, das Bild, welches Hidden In The Fog mit ihrer Musik zu übermitteln versuchen. Am besten, man orientiert sich wieder am etwas eingängigeren Gesang, der erneut variabel von keifend bis mehrstimmig clean zu hören ist. Ein Mix aus Black Metal und Klassik, wie auch irgendwie die Musik von Hidden In The Fog. Sehr verquere Melodien verpackt in hochkomplizierte schwarzmetallische Klangstrukturen bahnen sich wieder und wieder ihren Weg durch die Gehörgänge und versuchen dem Gehirn das Streben nach Perfektion in dieser Musikrichtung zu vermitteln. Wer hier zu schnell aufgibt, verpasst eines der eigenständigsten (und gleichzeitig kompliziertesten) Alben der deutschen Black Metal Szene. (...)