Released in 2007, Hangman’s Hymn is often viewed as Sigh’s best album, and that’s perfectly understandable. It’s a mind-scrambling release that set the standard for all that followed, yet it is well known that Sigh main man Mirai Kawashima had negative feelings towards its production and some of the playing. I Saw The World’s End – Hangman’s Hymn MXXV finds the current incarnation of Sign revisiting that record to give it a full service and overhaul and ensuring it’ll still sound special many years hence.

Those of a nervous disposition or who wear headphones should take care when playing first track ‘Introitus/Kyrie’. It arrives without warning and immediately pummels the listener to dust. I’m usually dubious when band’s reinterpret and rerecord past works; it has a touch of the Stalinist about it. Albums represent a moment in time and memorialise a band in their creative arc and any retrospective tinkering can disrupt that curve. Secondly, fans have such an emotional connection with albums that any kind of tampering can break that special bond and for some, it is an albums flaws that make it so special. However, I’m pleased to report that ‘Introitus/Kyrie’ put any doubts to rest and by the time we reached second track ‘Inked In Blood, I was totally sold. The production value, when compared to the original album, is on a whole new level and those classical allusions are really brought to the fore, especially the operatic interlude ‘Dies Irae’ where it sounds as if a fleet of Valkyries are bursting from your speakers. In terms of musicianship, too, the band have raised their game and this new edition is far more direct and razor sharp. Gone are the days of gritty, lo-fi black metal (not that there was anything wrong with that), I Saw The World’s End now sounds crystalline and we can hear every guitar line and drum beat in all its sonic fury. It makes for a more encompassing listen, meaning this album hangs heavy like a funeral shroud.

The original Hangman’s Hymn album was akin to a riddle wrapped in an enigma. There were so many different elements in play that one spin was never enough to process all its various facets. In fact, as with Nietzsche’s Thus Spoke Zarathstra one lifetime is not enough to explore all its nooks and crannies. The main triumph of this rerecording is that it has kept that intrigue in place: this is still a wild and rumbustious listen, yet it is also easily accessible and, as with the original album, will be a gateway for many into the realms of black metal.

Was it a wise decision to revisit Hangman’s Hymn? The hell it was!

• I Saw The World’s End – Hangman’s Hymn MXXV is released via Peaceville on 13th June 2025.

Track List:

1. Introitus/Kyrie
2. Inked In Blood
3. Me-Devil
4. Dies Irae
5. The Master Malice
6. The Memories As A Sinner
7. Death With Dishonor
8. In Devil’s Arms
9. Overture
10. Rex Tremendae/I Saw The World’s End
11. Salvation In Flame/Confutatis
12. Finale: Hangman’s Hymn/In Paradisum/Das Ende