Helga : "Wrapped in Mist"

 The first song from this Swedish band hits you with a lot. It takes what artists like Myrkur and to a lesser extent Chelsea Wolfe does and runs it through a filter of progressive metal. Thus bringing closer to Marriages used to do, or even the Gathering. It is big sounding and has a wonderful blend of dynamics.  "Burden" soars through an opaque cloud of sound to simmer with the more post-punk guitars. Sometimes the atmosphere is so thick the song just breezes by, so I had to give "Water" a second listen to form thoughts about it . The vocals are very delicate. The song builds and while pleasing to my ears does not catch me the same way the first two did. 

There is a darker more Chelsea Wolfe-like brooding to "If Death Comes Now" . By the time it gets to what would be the chorus, the lightness of her voice floating into her upper register brightens things marginally. "Farval" is another step in a darker direction. Things begin to erupt into a more metallic seething with harsh vocals I was not expecting. They are mixed back into thick reverb, but I respect the fact they are willing to go there. The pulsing strum of "Alive Again" makes for a ghostly moodiness that requires a second listen to fully digest, the results were pleasing when I did pay more attention. 

By the time the album winds around to "Vast and Wild" things taken on a sound I can only call tribal dream pop. It mixes a Cocteau Twins like vocal whimsy with more deliberate percussive elements. At times this also for me recall Azure Ray when it comes to ambiance blended with pop. They even step on the gas enough to bring back the more metal dynamic along with screamed vocals in the distance to take some of the sting out. "Mountain Song' which is not a Jane's Addiction cover, hovering around a similar sonic speculation as where they just sailed from.  In their hookier moments, the vocals remind me of the Cranberries.  The title track has a more lingering feel than the Cocteau Twins, then it takes a turn as they are prone to do into folk music. It goes into metal in an almost Agalloch manner. I will give this album a 9.5, this band came out of nowhere and caught me with surprising, beautiful stuff. This is ironically being released by Season of Mist, on November 24th.