There are many aspects of this band that led me to believe it was yet another 'underground unknown Darkthrone clone' I would soon be forgetting. I was very wrong in every respect. This is perhaps one of the best black metal bands few people have heard of. Vision, power, depth, emotion, sound, and style are all dripping off this strange album that defies easy characterization; the hallmark of any truly good work of art.
To begin with, the guitars here provide grating scars of distorted tone along a wall of standard black metal noise. Structurally and stylistically, the overall approach is solidly based in Darkthrone, sometimes sounding like an album that was never released from their golden age. However, every song on this album contains bizarre and minimal but epic twists and turns of mutated folk melody that take this album’s sound to those corners of the realm of black metal where bands like Kvist and Taake are known to trail blaze. Riffs here at times bear strong resemblance to Kvist, as repeated simple structures give way to unexpected shifts in direction and key, at times moving off and on the beat at seeming random. This style of controlled chaos is a definite plus to the guitarwork, giving it a feel of unexpectedness in such a copied and tired idiom. There are moments of clean guitar work that demonstrate the ability of the guitarist, and a few brazen passages where the noisy chords and microtonal melodies give way to a grand passage of bombast, without beating the listener over the head with emotive musical expressions.
Bass is actually given work as a separate instrument; moving in and out of the chord structure the guitars set up with organic and alien intent, adding significant breadth and depth to the harmonic quality of the songs. While the album’s bass generally retains the classic ‘tinny’ sound of older Norwegian black metal, there is enough bottom end in the thinly produced bass to give it some character and to divide it from the guitars. There is no technical mastery demonstrated on this instrument, but a lack is not noticeable, either.
Drumming here is minimalist, keeping in line with other more predictable Darkthone clone bands, as long sections of flowing melody are supported by mid-paced blasts and rolls that never seem to draw attention to themselves. There are a few unique rhythm patterns sparsely appearing with more traditional chord-driven riffs, but for the most part the drummer is never the star musician of this body of work.
What makes this album amazing is its usual and intriguing sense of …immaturity for lack of a better word. The cover art looks like it was drawn by someone in the 9th grade, and the musicians display no flashy technicality of any sort, as if the playing of their layered riffs correctly was challenge enough. While ‘immaturity’ connotates negative images, in this sense it works amazingly well to elevate this from being an excellent album played by decent musicians to being an amazing album. There is a distinct emotional feeling to this album that calls to mind feelings of hate, pain, and confusion one remembers from junior high and high school days. This is a far more apt soundtrack for the shooting at Columbine than some crappy pop-industrial drivel. The overall sound of this album brings out all the conflicting emotions about growing up different, from the wonder of discovering friends and music you actually enjoy to the overwhelming misery of realizing the world really is controlled by idiot sheep, and no matter how hard you fight, they always seem to win by sheer force of numbers. All these emotions and more pour through this release of cold and grim black metal, and grab the listener while screaming for attention.
Vocals on this track, given all the emotion mentioned above, are not that spectacular. It is the intangible combination of elements that create the feelings this album gives the listener. There is also an interesting progression to this album, as the first song starts out shaky and off-kilter, with many stops and starts and discernable changes in tempo and style. By the last few songs, there is a definite arc of sound and style being followed, as riffs and even songs flow more and more effortlessly together. Finally, the last track of the album jars the listener with a haunting clean guitar track that seems paradoxically elongated and short. It reminds me of the amazing last track on Taake’s first album, only without the rain samples. It is strange and hateful but also calm and beautiful…the very apotheosis of black metal.
This album is a gem far too few people have discovered. This is highly recommended for fans of harmonically advanced yet raw black metal in the best traditions of Darkthrone and Burzum.
Sample: youtube.com/watch?v=Aj0jZk1F5BA
