SVIPDAGR's debut full-length album, "To Torment the Men", offers a high-quality blend of black metal from Spain. The 15 tracks on the album explore a range of topics and moods, providing a visceral journey through the depths of emotion. Hard-hitting and intense, it's sure to provide an unforgettable listening experience.
Comes with an 8-page booklet with English lyrics.
Co-released with Necromance Records and Base Record Production both from Spain, and MPFR, all released as catalog ID svp2017.
Here we have Svipdagr “To Torment the Men” which is now their second release to date. This takes us back to the prime sounds of the 2nd wave styles of black metal with melodic verses, classical elements in the guitar playing, with chord strumming and single note speed picking and use of scales. Along with the odd subtle sounds of nature sampled in here too there are also small acoustic segments within the songs that paint the picture of a doomed kingdom in misery, and with the added in throat ripping, tormenting vocals that summon all life to cease, this completes this dark age fantasy. The tempos range from very slow stagnating drum beats that help create the darkness in these moments, to the mid-paced sounds of something awakening from the depths, to the full out blast beats that sound the calls of both triumph and death being foretold. Hints in relation to the older sounds and styles of Satyricon can be heard here at times and even though this has a slight lo-fi sound to the production, all is still very audible and effective for this CD of more than 45 minutes of music
Possibly as the first metal band from Spain that really caught my attention, I’ve been a fan of Itnuveth ever since their first album and I’ve checked out each piece they’ve put out since. Their pagan black metal sound is very harsh and quite unique, but I’ve always wondered if the members of Itnuveth ever wanted to do something different. As it turns out, they do and it comes in the form of Svipdagr, and their upcoming album is a tasteful piece that shows these musicians are truly active in their scene and look to become better overall.
Trying to see the members of Itnuveth doing anything outside of black metal was a concept that was quite the headache for me simply because I couldn’t see it unfolding that well, and with this second band of Svipdagr, I needn’t worry about such a transition as what this project goes for is unrelentingly raw black metal. It’s not much of a change, but it’s enough to allow the band members to do a little bit more in terms of intensity with their sound, and “To Torment the Men” is a solid example of what a simple change of pace can create. A piece of over ten tracks is what we’re given with this piece, and even though there’s a good amount of fluff that added some really short tracks of ambiance and such in between the black metal, Svipdagr still did a pretty good job taking everything into account. “To Torment the Men” has an excellent sense of what it’s going for, and we get plenty of fast paced black metal with hardly any rest from this record to really give the whole of the piece a demonic energy that not easy to ignore. The whole of the album isn’t as gripping as I’d like for it to be, though, but in the end, I still enjoyed “To Torment the Men” simply because it’s a different take from a band that I’ve come to really enjoy. Practically the same vocals, guitars, etc., but it’s just different enough to where it feels new and interesting, and not just a full blown second Itnuveth.
Change is good for just about everyone, and that can really apply to a band that’s been doing the same style for years while also putting out new material every single year. The members of Itnuveth earned their rights to try and do more, and Svipdagr is an excellent choice to go with for the members’ experience. “To Torment the Men” is far from a great album, but it’s definitely a welcome change of flavor and pace that I’d be more than happy to revisit on a rainy day.
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