Horna – oh my Satan, am I the only one who is getting older and older? Okay, it is cold in Finland, but I did not know that you could be frozen there and thereby gain eternal youth. Now I have listened to “Hymni I”. It starts without warning, intro or other gimmicks. These nine minutes are an outburst of ice-cold energy one can actually only create with a lot of juvenile fanaticism. I don’t want to beat around the bush: this song alone is reason enough to listen to and buy the album as soon as possible. I hardly can imagine a black metal fan who will not like this track. It just embodies the morbid beauty of the genre more or less perfectly.
“Nyx - Hymnejä Yölle“ does not seek new definitions for black metal. Instead, its six compositions are a kind of declaration of love to the genre – especially its Scandinavian form. Horna roam with the listener through endless, dark forests, feel the magic of the night in snow-covered clearings and create an uncompromising, brutal form of spirituality. If there's one thing the tracks don't lack, it's a dark, oppressive depth that lends even the wildest sequences a mostly outstanding atmosphere. Almost needless to say, the less violent sections also score with a sinister, slightly macabre mood. „Hymni III“ is an almost shy black metal song, but it reveals an unexpected inner strength. For the older ones: it reminds me somehow of „The Immoral Wasteland“, one of Holy Terror’s best pieces… this was also a rather casually played track, but really great due to its well-hung melody lines. Here we find the same attributes, only in a black metal surrounding. Some parts of „Hymni III“ are almost catchy, but still totally black, and this is a charming combination.
Horna commute masterly between sheer excess and controlled damnation. „Hymni V“ attacks with high velocity and full speed and so it follows the course of the opener. Some howling-haunting background vocals add another flavour and lend the five minutes massacre a higher level of individuality. Yet they remain the exception; it goes without saying that this track – as well as the others – is equipped with throaty, roughshod and passionate lead vocals. They are an important building block and the same goes for the well-defined production. “Nyx - Hymnejä Yölle“ does not challenge the rawest black metal records ever, but it is far away from sounding too smooth. Horna visit us with a professional sound which fits their pretty outstanding status, no more, no less. There is a nice dose of sublime mysticism in their mix and this feature adds a lot of value to the output.
The song-writing really works on this album, more than on some of their previous albums. Almost all guitar lines make an impact and none of them sounds stale or recycled. So I awaited the final storm after the first five songs. But the closer takes a completely different direction. It is a kind of camp fire black metal. Only acoustic guitars, pretty defensive, nearly harmonic yet still spooky vocals, a few beats and some atmospheric tones appear. Maybe this is a polarizing song for some people, but I neither love nor hate it. It marks the weak point of the album, but this does not say much in view of the strength of its five competitors. From my point of view, “Kuoleva Lupaus” is an acceptable experiment, nothing for my “Horna Best Of” mix tape, but a courageous and unpredictable track. Six instead of nine minutes would have been enough as well, but come on, who cares about these details. After all, “Nyx - Hymnejä Yölle“ definitely deserves your attention, because it is one of the best Horna works ever.
Sample: youtube.com/watch?v=uoSC4w0mLF4
