SÓLSTAFIR : "Hin helga kvöl"

 

I'm old enough to remember when this band from Iceland used to be black metal. They have been on this more rock n roll road for some time, so the direction never surprises me. The vocals are emotive and have more edge than your average rock band, The use of atmosphere works really well, as they start off the album with a strong dynamic balance. On the title track, they also remember when they were a metal band as their drummer really starts getting it. As things build up they even catch a groove that makes me think of Slayer. "Blakkrakki" has more punk drive to it, though the guitar melodies bring it into a more straight-up rock n roll-like place with its more Motorhead-like nuance. 

"Salumessa" ebbs back down to an almost more psychedelic place, with dusky shadows holding sonic space. The way the effects sit on the vocals makes me think they are winking in Pink Floyd's direction. At the very least smoking a lot of pot."Vor as" feels like a more soaring build-up from the previous song. "Freygatan' breaks things down to piano which I was not expecting. it shifts into a power ballad. The vocals are a little pitchy in places, but the overall vibe works. It's like Kvelertak covering Pink Floyd. 

"Gryla" is raw and emotive, but has a grunge-tinged clanging of the guitars. The chords ring like something from Neil Young's heavier Crazy Horse years, The vocals have a wild howl to them while being mindful they are playing rock not metal. The way things keep getting spacey lends more weight to my weed theory. They begin to gather more metallic steam on the buzzing blur of "Nu Mun.."  I appreciate the intensity, but it's not the album's best song. The last song finds them working in more of their ethnic folk roots. However they are still smoking a ton of weed, so saxophones and synths are pulled out to make the most of the mood. They lay the ambiance on thick and jam this one out. I will give this album a 9, I like the direction they are going here, and think the more weed-influenced songs are better than when they try to rekindle the metal fires. 

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Death is June -Devine Defilement : "Age of Atrocities"

 

Thanks to the inner webs the brutal style of death metal known as "slam" has found its way to Iceland. Not sure why this band requires two vocalists for what Corpse Grinder does on his own, but perhaps the truth will be found later in the album. The first song is just sonic blunt force trauma, but fans of this sub-genre do not require more stimulus than what is being dished out here. I find this sort of thing to be done better by bands like Left to Suffer but I am only one song into it, so let us hear how the rest plays out. I can say I will have a more critical ear after the number wears off from my first exposure to their brand of metallic violence. 

I would say this is my least favorite genre of death metal but bands like Sanguisuggabogg have won me over before, but this band does not possess their knack for groove. I let the album play and the next thing I knew after being hit with a bunch of down-tuned thick guitar tones the songs began to run together until I realized I was already at the 5th song. Meaning dynamically five songs it everything sounds the same and I can't one song from the next. Though they have nailed down this sound. They are even playing a great deal of the right riffs, and adding things like dissonance at times to get a more sonic sound, but the guitar tones are machine-like because of the effects being used and I am not feeling the emotion of who they are just hearing what they intend to be. 

There is a little more deliberate crunch to "S.C.U". I hear a little more of the second vocal on this one, it's higher almost black metal-like, but I am not sure why it requires separate vocalists to do both. They begin to crunch into nu-metal grooves by the time we get to "Betrothed to Blasphemy" a cool title, but there is no way to make out the lyrics with that gurgle. The pig squeal thing now feels dated. Most of the songs are around the three-minute mark so you are not in pain for long. At best on a song like "Embedded in Filth," it sounds like Cannibal Corpse filler songs.  "Wraith" starts off as a blast fest despite the guitar going in a different direction with doomy guitars. They cover Slipknot's " Sic" for the last song, while they do not sound to be a huge influence on this band you can hear I suppose. They do a better job with it than expected, they need to take more notes in the songwriting dept from Slipknot. I will give this album a 6, it's not my thing, but if you like slamming grindcore it might be yours. I love Cannibal Corpse and they are not far removed in some ways they just missed out on writing something hooky no matter how heavy you are. 

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SKÁLMÖLD : " Ýdalir "

 It's been a minute since we have reviewed any viking metal , so lets dive into the 6th album by this Icelandic band. The first song sets the stage for a high energy brand that carries the roar of the throaty vocals. The guitar playing in more melodic than you might expect, without diving into the more folk centric strains of the genre. They continue racing forward on the second song that finds a more screamed vocals starting things off and a sung baritone bellow chanting. They bring in dynamic changes to offer everything you might want from the genre without devolving into drinking songs. I would say there is less theatrics than what Amon Amarth does. There is also a little less thrash to suggest they might be more influenced by both Manowar and Bathory depending on where you are at in the song. 

What they do not do is wandering off into folk atmosphere or throw themselves into black metal passages, instead sticking to a very deliberate manner of song writing that still maintains a great deal of drive. This works for me as there is already a great deal of extremes in metal out today so to find a balance that lends it self to melody always works in my book. There might be a surplus of guitar solos, but they work to break things up in the songs. The whole boat full of singing Vikings feel comes into play by the third song, though it feels less like frolicking than what most bands do. Bands like this do not hit a groove in the conventional sense metal bands do , instead they latch onto a solid gallop. I think one of the things that works for me with these guys is how they are marginally darker than most bands drinking from this mead horn , which is enough to give the needed menace. When they come close to frolicking with cheer there is more balls to and keep the triumph from turning to glee. 

At times there is a pronounced Iron Maiden influence when the guitar harmonies lead into the gallop. Though it's never like they are ripping off  "To Tame a Land". Heavy chugs come at the right time to ground them. Five songs in and I am really surprised how good this album is. Granted it's not something I am always in the mood for, but excellence in execution for sure. "Sklud' finds them at their most deliberate which lends it's self to giving the vocals more purpose. There are a few moments when they play it a little too safe, and epic becomes redundant. The ten minute closing epic being one of these. I will give this album a 9.5, not sure how much mileage I am going to get out of it, but I have to recognize how well done this is, if you are a fan of this sort of thing this album is a must. It drops the 18th of August on Napalm Records. 

ÓREIĐA : "the Eternal"

This Icelandic black metal project embarks on an impressive excursion into atmosphere that is moving rather than pondering. Record labels are quick to compare things to shoe -gaze or post-punk since the acts who broke from their cvlt status into more mainstream recognition, followed such a path. I do not think Thor here is seeking to jump on any such band wagon,  The melodies merge from the din of sound in a more post-rock manner. There is a more folk inspired melody that drones in the sonic storm that is brewed up on the second song. He allows things to drone more when the album opens , but the second song drops to a more subdued minimalist folk guitar sound. There is a chanted vocal tone that rings out as the song swells, but aside from that vocals do not play a role. 

"the Climb" finds the buzzing tremolo guitar that is more traditionally black metal sounding taking a larger role. There is a great deal in play in the sound of these songs that reminds me of Burzum's more atmospheric post-prison work. "the Climb" feels like it conforms closer to what you expect from black metal instrumentation, and is not as impressive as the first two songs, that take more chances with the sonic swathe they create. "the Apex" finds a balance, it plunges into a darker mood , while still digging into a heavier mood, with a denser wall of guitars attacking. This is set against the back drop of more melancholy melody that echoes in the back ground. The synths on this song work well to create a more dismal shading. The absence of vocals, which I imagine would be the more typical black metal rasp, does not leave the voice expected. 

More authentic than Russian Circles forays into more black metal influenced moments, though they are three highly skilled musicians and this is one guy. Thor sounds like he is more of a guitarist, the way the cymbals hit feels programmed , so it is not fair to weigh him against three people. Not that there have bot been many great one man black metal albums made, they just do not normally weight up against full bands, yet what he does here might fool the casual listener. The last song drones with a great deal of feeling, and makes you wonder how vital is the standard black metal rasp. The vocals tell more of a story and provide the static layer of emotional, not sure how much this would benefit from that but I like what is happening in it's current state I will give this album a 9. 

Black Metal History Month - Altari : "Kröflueldar"

One of my goals for this month is to dig up bands that are black metal but unique. This band from Iceland meets this need in many ways. Have not covered any Icelandic Black Metal in a minute and seeing how these guys are on Svart it should be to think outside of the box. There is a darker more melodic throb. The bellowing vocals are the most black metal thing about the opening track. What I like about this album is two songs in and it is clear the darkness of the overall sound is the most black metal thing about this, as they are not hitting you with the normal metallic onslaught of blast beats. For that reason, there is something more honest in the sound. 

If you are wanting black metal to sound like Mayhem, this might not be black metal at all. I assure you this is. Even with all of the post-punk influence.The third song has a creepier feel and more tension to the slink of guitar as the vocals have more of a tortured rasp. Though it is not to say they are not above deviating from the genre altogether as the song after this shows. Female vocals hover against an ambient landscape that feels almost more like an interlude than the previous songs. They come back from this reprieve darker and more ominous. With a very organic guitar sound that works off a natural reverb, the note ring out magically. The vocals are more reverbed drenched , but rather than copying the cavernous cvlt sound they are continuing to do their own thing. 

As the album progresses they continue to get darker and sonically heavier. The vocals remain the only element that follows the protocol for more traditional forms of black metal, The stay at a pained bellow. The drummer's restraint and the guitarist ear for melody being the band's strengths. I will give this album a 9.5 and see how it grows on me, while the songs have a mood, the vocals do not lend themselves to being the hookiest in terms of really wearing this album out, but I can leave it one and just let it play all the same. This album drops in April.

 

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Bjork : "Fossora"

 There was a time when I was a huge Bjork fan. However, her 2004 album was the last I really dug. To her credit she is already miles ahead of most of today's music, just due to the fact she only has one co-writer on three of the 13 songs. Her writing is very subtle as it takes a couple listens for the opening track to grow on me. She still retains a surreal quality to her sound as the minimal approach to her arrangements owes more to jazz, run through a glitchy filter of electronics. The lyrics to "Ovule' would not be out of place at a self-help seminar. "Mycelia" is like an instrumental interlude, but it is created with vocalizations. "Sorrowful Soil" is the first song where the inspiration of her mother's death feels apparent. It is layered vocals creating a swirling harmony. You might compare this to Imogen Heap, but Bjork was doing this before her. 

Her choice of melodies challenges listener used to pop music, in many ways a song like "Ancestress" is more like musical theater. Lyrically in contemplates her relationship with her mother. The beat does not come in until much later in the song, as it flows off the angular vocal. "Fagurt" is more of an interlude, but "Victimhood" is an interesting song.  She goes against the grain when it comes to what the narrative is for women these days. It makes sense, after all at 56 she is older and wiser. I should not be surprised to find "Allow" reminding me of a Icelandic fairy song, as it drifts without much to anchor it. Her ode to mushrooms, which inspired her new albums, leans more toward her Broadway side, but on mushrooms.   

"Freefall" is an interesting song that takes he kind of odd turn that for Bjork is pretty typical, if there is a typical for her. The title track that is also about mushrooms, takes an even more obtuse and jarring turn. But it is so weird I dig it. Then the album closes with mom, maybe mushrooms have helped her work through the grief, those are the two modes of this album. She closes the album with the most delicate moment yet. I will give this a 9.5, as she succeeded in capturing her vision, most of this album has to grow on me but even at its most languid it is still close to perfect

 

Gothtober- Kælan Mikla :" Undir Köldum Norðurljósum"

This album was timed just right.  Darker than I remember these gals from Iceland getting before, but I am not mad about it. Sure the accent is bound to bring Bjork comparisons. I wish Bjork had gotten this dark. The opener has the right amount of drive. On the second song the vocals come more to the forefront and their melody drives the song. There are crazy layers of vocals in the background that sound like screaming witches , helping to make this a perfect Halloween album.  At first it sounded like their were going to the well twice on the third song, but it turns out to be more organic and they are driving the verses with an actual bass guitar. Sung in their native tongue the melodies are infectious enough for you to sing along even if you are unsure what they words are. I think this also gives her the ability to use her voice more like an instrument. 

Midway into the album things begin to take on more of a dark wave feel. Things become more concise in how the more traditional layers of vocals and synth interact within the space in which they are mix. Guitar begins to surface and it is more reverb heavy Cure like guitar. "Sirenur" goes back to a more atmospheric route. The beat is not the album's strongest kinda feels like they are just using a default ethereal dark wave pre set. "Stormurrin" has a thudding bass to balance out the pan pipes and other dreamy elf sounds. Almost more new age than dark wave. The song after this has more wine in it's languid sway. 

Alcest joins them for " Hvitir Sandar" . This collaboration sounds almost exactly as you might imagine it would. Though Neige employs his screamed vocals that are further back in the mix. Musically it is a hypnotic shoe gaze with a big crash.  'Saman" is more like a dark folk ballad, but it is well done for what it is, even if what it is puts the bulk of the weight of the composition upon the vocals. I will give this album, a 9, I really enjoyed what they do here. If you are a fan of the more ethereal side of dark wave with a healthy side of Nordic folk mixed in at times , then this is more than worth your time. 

 

Solstafir : "Endless Twilight of Co-Dependent Love"

 I have given most of their albums a solid listen as this Icelandic band has always been interesting. When the drums hit more of a groove at the end of the first song it does feel more like Kvelertak. Their is a raw agressive quality to what is going on though I am not sure I would call it metal. Rougher around the edges than your average prog rock band, though these guys have certainly progressed throughout their career. If they went back to playing black metal at this point it would be regressive. The second song has more of a groove and more melodically sung vocals . It is moody rock n roll. I can hear what to my ears sounds like an "Obscured By Clouds" era Pink Floyd influence. 

"Rokkur" is more laid back in some ways , but more intense in the way the vocals emote. Their attempt at something in the realm of Brit pop occurs on "Her Fall From Grace" which despite it's atmosphere sounds like Shining butchering a cover of a random song by the Verve. Butchering doesn't not mean doing a terrible job here, though the abandon this song is sung with sometimes puts their feelings over being in key in a few places. This apporach however works for what they are doing here. They do throw themselves into a twisted rock version of black metal with "Dionysus". This is not as regressive as I thought it might be showing they are still forward thnking even when they take steps back into their past. The vocals are more shouted than screamed. "Til Moldar" is at the other end of the spectrum and is a lazy floating psychedelic lullaby. The almost more stoner rock song that follows this one is a good balance of the two sides they just showed us the relaxed coud of pot smoke vibe with enough rock balls to drive it. 

"Or" has a bluesy feel to it. In some ways it flirts with the blues much like Nick Cave does. Addi's voice is much different than Cave's . Where Nick would give us a dark smoky narrative , Addi emotes with raw abandon. The guitar is really great in this song. I had to give the last song "Ulfar" a few listens to really abosorb it. It has some palm muted drive but falls more on the dynamic side of prog , but with rock groove. I will give this album an 9, it's a very effort for them that pushes forward with their vision keeping their indentity in focus. 

Null : "Entity"

Iceland is known for black metal. Some punk comes from the region as well, but most of the Icelandic band's I have covered are black metal. This band is comprised of musicians from Black Metal bands. Notable one like Mispyrming and Carpe Noctem. They are instead playing doom. Ok perhaps blackened doom. The first song however leads in with clean vocals before the snarled one come in. There is a black metal explosion mid way into the song, but I think they are intending to make doom they just revert black to their natrual state. Even way this is blended strikes me as cooler than their normal projects. The second song is slowed down but works off a similar sound that is played with a more deliberate throb. I thought it was the same song since the sounds are of the same color.

My hope for this album is that  they change some touch and add sonic nuances . They gained my attention and being monochrome is the way to lose it.They third song still embraces the anguish. The cold angular melodies have more in common with depressive black metal. I have alays asserted their is a place where depressive black metal meets doom and this is an example. The sonics of this sonng compensate where perhaps drone overtakes composition. It reminds me of Urfaust is many ways, The sung vocals and how they are in a baritone moan. The tormented vocals have become more dominant as the album progressed. Their are some unison chants that prove they can make harser vocals more deliberate. The depressive atmospere continues to shroud their sound on "(em) Pathetic" . I often bring up the egregore of a certain area when it comes to sounds. Their are certain regions where climate , lifestyle and mood influence the sound. Think of it as nature vs nurture.  I think the cold coastal vibes of Iceland are all over this.

I am all about the sound they summon, but as you know my gripe can be sound vs song. Any one can produced a sound with the right equipment dialed in the correct way with a producer versed in such a sound., Songs on the other hand are what comes from the inside. This is where the funk can not be faked.They begin to gain energy with which comes the tremolo picked stylings of their black metal pasts. We are back to more wailing and gnashing of teeth for the final song. I will give this album a 9, I need to give it a few more listens . While it does have some familar elements , overall it feels like it's own thing which in heavy music these days is becoming rarer.

Gothtober - Legend :" Midnight Champion"

Imagine if their was a entire album inspired by the "Cry Little Sister" song from Lost Boys . Your dreams have come true. The world slept on this 2017 album that an internet wormhole took me to. The vocals are fucking spot on . They blend dark wave rock. In some ways it makes me think of if the band Blue October actually dressed up for Halloween and became a goth band. Who knew this much goth was coming out of Iceland?  When they commit to the more electronic elements they kill it. The song "Time to Suffer" is incredible. It is better than the less inspired Depeche Mode like ballads. Which do not suck they just can not compare to when they are more in your face. The groove to "Captive" continues to prove my point in regards to what is their strong suit.

The title track proves they can go into more down tempo moments , though there is enough of a dynamic shift to make it worthwhile. "Scars" finds even the vocals getting more aggressive . This owes more to 90s rock than metal, but is effective. "Liquid Rust" leans more into the electronic side of the band that I compared to Depeche Mode earlier. I think they are just doing a better job with it this time s it is moody , but not a ballad. Crunchy power chords do bubble up in time. More of an electronic pulse is summoned for "Gravestone". Vocally it is more subdued, though more melodramatic and reminds of H.I.M more than Depeche Mode. The melody is silky smooth.

They hold fast to the more electronic side of what they do with the closing track "Children of the Elements". The beat is more powerful than the previous song. Not industrial but influenced by perhaps.  The vocals are more in a Depeche Mode direction again. Builds into something like the harder alt rock moments of the 90s , before crossing over into metal. I will give this album a 9, it's unexpected and worth your time if you miss the darker moments of 90s mainstream rock. 

Sólveig Matthildur : "Constantly In Love"

It might sound like the easy way out to compare a female singer from Iceland to Bjork. I won't leave it at Bjork, because it is like if she decided to collaborate with Zola Jesus , the results might be similar to what goes on here. It would however be Bjork's more minimalist experimental side, rather than the knack for punchy pop hooks that propelled her earlier work. The album has an odd drift as before I knew it I was five songs in. I think the song before this "Tomas" was the first to really find it's groove. The vocals float with the atmosphere, rather than locking in to create defined verses and choruses. The electronics sometimes help provide structure more than others. On "My Desperation" it feels like the vocals are doing their own thing separate from the music laying underneath them. It borders on dark wave and I can hear this appealing to fans of goth. There is almost a looser Switch Blade Symphony feel at times. "Your Desperation" is more of a shadow of a song , so I do not reengage the album as active of a listener as I could be until the pulse of  "Tomas" which as I said is the first song to find a groove, thus leading me to become more invested.

I like the darker mood the synths create on "My Father Taught Me How To Cry". While it's nicely hypnotic it's not until midway into " Constantly Heartbroken" that it bends a knee and conforms to being a song. There is more that hooks me into "Dystopian Boy" . The lyrics are easier to make out and flow better with the synth moving the song. It might be the best song on the album. Deb Demure from Drab Majesty lends their voice to the song, but it disappears in the mix. Regardless this type of thing is certainly going to appeal to fans of Drab Majesty, so that is an easy sell. "Utopian Girl" must be the call and response to the previous song. Though it is not as catchy and dances alone in it's own murk. It does gain some sonic steam as the song gradually builds to add a greater dimension of dynamics than the bulk of the album has.

There is a better balance of many of the elements that have already been in play over the course of the album. There is the moody atmosphere. There is a dreamy electronic throb and soaring vocals over it. More Zola Jesus in nature and while is tries to hypnotize more than move your body, there is enough to grab a hold of. Overall I like the picture she is painting with the sounds on this album. I am unsure really how many repeat listens I would get out of this because It would make more sense for me to listen to Zola Jesus when I am in the mood for this kind of thing. I'll give it an 8.5.

Black Metal History Month - Kaleikr : "Heart of Lead"

With the album's title it seems fitting more me to review this on Valentines. This band from Iceland comes from the ashes of Draugsol. So despite how heavily they might ride the line between death metal and black, they have a history with black metal so belong here this month. The vocals are often layered with more shouted vocals against the growls . Think everything I have read on this band so far focuses on the progressive element and two songs in I am hearing that as more nods to classic metal than anything close to Opeth. The drumming is spectacular though can comes across as on the busy side. There is more of a jazz inflection to the guitar solo that opens "Of Unbearable Longing". This is just well rounded playing. I would say there is more of a progressive influence on these guys and they are creative enough to push past boundaries in order to come up with riffs that don't sound like everything else.

Despite it not being that dark I like how the synths sit against the palm muted tension of  "Internal Contradiction" . We get more into Opeth's zip code on the maze of riffs that winds around "Neurodelirium" .  By this point in the album they are beginning to get set into their formula and I am beginning to know what to expect. Lots of syncopated punches and catchy chugging. They do speed up into blast beats normally once per song , though the second act does find them getting heavier with each song. The title track is more distinct due to the clean guitar tones at the beginning. Sung vocals that are more of a whisper also surface here. It takes a meaner turn and might be the most black metal song on the album.

The last song feels like an extension of the title track . It's many of the same tricks they have already visited earlier in the album. With that said they are very well done and there is little doubt these guys are talented musicians. My only complaints it this could be darker in order to have more of a black metal feel. Other than that it's an enjoyable listen, not sure if it is something I would listen to on a regular basis , but I will give these guys an 8 as they excel at what they do.

Catching Up with 2017 - Rebirth of Nefast : "Tabernaculum"

This one went under my radar , it's a band from Iceland that released this back in March. While they are a black metal band I am drawn in by the fact that they lay off the blast beats until five and a half minutes into the eleven minute opener. Instead they opt for a darker creeping brand of deathly doom. They have dissonant guitar melodies layered over the blasting when it does burst in. The vocals are more of a an agonized croak that is in a lower death metal range. They slow back down into the dissonant abyss they churn out. Normally I don't like long songs , but this some how works for me. If they had blast beat their brains out for 11 minutes then that would not have flown as much.

They do come straight at you with blast beats on "the First Born Of the Dead". Around the two minute mark this slows for another return back into the darkness. More deliberate spoken vocal and sung vocals are layered in a call and response before the guitar solo comes in. At the six and half minute mark the song breaks down into an even more gloomy riff. "Alignment Divine" finds them falling more neatly into what is expected of modern black metal. They continue with the blasting on "Carrion is a Golden Throne". This song features what by the midway point is the album's most melodic moment a break down where the vocals take on more of a whisper.

There is another storm of blasting going into "Magna, Mater, Menses" . Following the formula that seems to be developing they ebb back down into the misty mountain hop of gloom and then kick up a few blasts here and there.It's clear if they shaved off some of the atmosphere at the end of these songs they could condense a few minutes and make things more concise. They close the album with "the Dead Age of Hollow Vessels" which sounds like it should be about millennials based of the title alone, but the lyrics are obscured in the growl. The drop the raging earlier in this song than the others, which is strange considering this is the album's longest song. At this point the atmospheric excursion into melodic dusk is now expected, but sonically still interesting.I'll give it an 8.5, unlikely to make my top 10 black metal albums of the year list, but if you like dark and melodic black metal working off a cloud of dissonance then this is worth your time. Iceland has a pretty decent track record when it comes to black metal and these guys are a worthy addition.

Solstafir : " Berdreyminn"

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I like some of the more bizarre artistic turns my favorite bands have gone in. I am a big fan of Disco era Kiss and New Wave era Alice Cooper. I like even the glam rock days of Celtic Frost. So the turn this band has taken might not phase me like their long time fans. Though I am not as emotionally invested into their path as i am Kiss or Alice Copper.  like this fact it sounds album is a weird shift for the Icelandic band  like a cross between the Cure and Neurosis colliding . The song is upbeat despite it's crusty edges. The production is a little weird The guitar shifts in where it sits in the mix, the drums almost sound like they are programmed, but this could be the fact they are playing almost a dance beat to create this illusion. They blend pop hooks with the some kind of prog inflections that Muse uses , but the vocals are less Queen like and a emotive yet gruff baritone that seeks to reach beyond it's range. "Hula" finds the atmospherics becoming much thicker and darker more sonic shadow cast over the song before it relaxes down into dreamy reverb filled guitar line that has almost more of a shoe gaze edge to it before the vocals come in. The vocals hold a firmer melody than someone like their country men in Sigur Rios. Distorted chord ring out in the background, but it would be hard pressed to call this rock much less metal.

It's not until "Naros" that something chugs into place that ties this band to their metal roots.It reminds me of where many metal bands found themselves when trying to find their identity when alternative music got big. The song that follows is some what of a power ballad as it starts with a more delicate piano piece and works it's way up gathering intensity as it progresses. They lay it on thick with the keyboards going into "Dyrafjorour" then bring in a very Pink Floyd guitar solo. David Gilmore is one of my favorite guitarists so if you can bring him to mind that is saying something. Though their guitar tone is far from being as immaculate as his. The vocals are sung in Icelandic which doesn't translate well to the melody they are trying to employ. So this puts the song's fate in the hands of a guitar melody that brings us back to our rule here ....cool riffs alone do not make a good song. The "Us & Them" ambiance is cool and all, but doesn't knock a home run.

They are back in a more Floydian direction on "Ambatt" which finds the softer vocal touch working form  better than some of the more rock tinged moments. There is a slight jammy tone to how this song unfolds. When the over driven guitar melody slides in they have hit one of the album's stronger dynamic places. "Blafjall" has a more aggressive pulse that eventually turns into a more metallic chug, but aside from the heaviness, it doesn't connect as soundly with me as some of the albums other songs. The final two minutes of this song find the band taking off in a way that might remind you of their earlier days, but it's almost too little too late in that regard.At the end of the day it depends on how much you embrace the changes this band has under gone over the years, if you have been along for the ride up until this point it will seem like a very natural progression to this point. In any case I'll give this album an 8.5.

Draugsol :" Volaða Land "

Iceland high school must have thrash metal pumping in the boys locker room because it always seems to be a huge influence on the black metal that comes out of that region. The album is really well produced and the massive chugs carry a ton of weight to them and help this album pack more of a a punch. The drummer is an absolute monster so that doesn't hurt their case as a force to be reckoned with. It is the more melodic groove that the touch upon in the middle of the second song that makes me want to take these guys more seriously than just being another bunch of lug heads who throw mean riffs at you as fast and furiously as they can. The blast beats are a thing and they do play it straighter than most of the black metal bands I get more air time out of . When they really start ripping it out a lot faster they sound a little more death metal in places. The vocals also tend to stay in more of a growl than a scream, but calling them blackened death might be a little bit of an exaggeration. But it is also like the blind men and the elephant depending on what section of what song, your idea of what these guys are might shift. They don't keep a perfect balance of melody interjected into their music and the furious aggression is the prime emotion rather than darkness, so we do not see perfectly eye to eye when it comes to what makes for the best black metal. But something can be said for the feral intensity and the clarity of the guitar work. Things are not a blur of notes that come across more like a frequency than string being attacked in a way to make defined riffs. The cleaner guitar tones sound really good and make me wince a little when they blast out in a blur of speed to forsake them. The bass player becomes audible at certain junctures, but the drummer is clearly dictating the fate of these songs. The guitar at the beginning of the last song is moodier in tone and the drums groove a little before throwing restraint out of the window yet again. The mid paced moments hold more impact for me when the guitar is allowed to ring out. Anyone who considers themselves black metal can after all play a blast beat. The melodic elements are no more evenly balanced on the last song than they are at any other point in the album, but the guitar sound is more varied which accounts for a lot. Actual sung vocals come toward the final moments of this and they are low and gothy so you know that earns them points in my book. For what this is these guys are impressive enough to peak my interest and keep me listening with some level of intent. I think this is worth an 8 for now, though I am not sure how much play time I will get out of this. .6

Draugsol : " Volaða Land"

It is 2016 so we are officially done with obligatory blast beats when it comes to black metal. What I am now going to be looking for when I review black metal bands are who is breaking the mold already created years ago by bands like Darkthrone and Burzum. I own their albums if I want to listen to them I have them. This band from Finland is trying to find a safe place between striking out on their own and conforming to the expectations. To be an outsider genre black metal has been doing a lot of conforming. Things are dense and dizzying on the first song following the darker opening piece that is not quite a song with it's own two feet. When the band locks into a chug I think they prove they are more powerful than when they are flying past you at 180 bpm. The guitar solos add a melodic layer to the more abrasive ending.

Two and a half minutes into what is being called the third song they hit what I looking for. The vocals stayed raw and abrasive, while they begin to slow down and employ some catchy riffs. They can't restrain themselves for ever and go back into an even faster blast beat. We get a clean guitar tone that opens the next song and that gets them points after considering my new mission statement when it comes to black metal in this day and age. They stay a more mid paced course that is sonically more powerful than when they tried to throw everything at us at such a break neck speed. The vocals shift into more agonized cries that the more death metal roar that preceeded them.  The following song they start off with a strummed acoustic and tread a murky water of dense heaviness for the sake of being heavy versus writing sound songs.

The last song has a more melodic structure and is dark while adhering to a more conventional metal structure that is interspersed with the more predictable blast beat sections. A low goth like vocal comes in at the end of this song to provide more colors. I'll give this album an 8. It tries hard enough to pave it's own left hand path. This doesn't come out until next year.  So at least 2017 is already off to decent start in terms of black metal.

Black Metal History Month- Nadra : " Allir vegir til glötunar"

Here is a another argument against the more politically correct notion that geographically all black metal is created equally, as this is another band out of the Northern European region that kills it due to the ice running through their veins. The coldness resonates differently than most black metal , but it is there.  This Icelandic black metal bands comes out of the gate blasting with a feral snarl. There is a punk like  sneer to some of the undertones. Sure they are spastic, but the flailing is pretty heart felt and convincing. There is a more majestic metal feel to "Sal". The guitar are raw, but well layered. This album has an interesting production quality that should please the grimmest among us, but is still easy to listen to and doesn't impede the melodic qualities. This album is not fucking around. They do hit the brakes on the third song which is a sprawling fourteen minutes and wallow in a slower more miserable existent that owes more to depressive black metal than the rawer savagery they hit you with at first. The vocals wretchedly spew forth, sometimes dipping into a lower growl. They vary the intensity of their blast beats not always throwing themselves into them with such reckless abandon.

They go into an even faster pace on "Sar" that will have your head spinning. They do hit some punches against a sonically heavy wall the sharply blinding guitars construct. They have you at the rapid tempo they seem to like lashing out with until they break things down to an acoustic guitar and chanting for a minute then the whirlwind stirs things back up again. If it wasn't for the attention to detail with little things like they breakdown, they might have lost me in some of this chaos. The guitar solo at the five minute mark is pretty impressive and was just what the song needed to give another layer. The riff that follows it sings with more melody almost a folk metal quality.I'll round this one up to an 8.5. At times the speed gives their sound a uniform feel, it's the flourishes sprinkled in that make this stand out more than the feral spirit that attacks your ears.

Misthyrming : "Söngvar elds og óreiðu"

It makes perfect sense that Fallen Empire has something to do with this album. This Icelandic metal machine throws everything they have at you with hellish intensity. Grim Kim Kelly picked this as one of her top albums of the year and while I normally respect her taste she also listed that god awful Cloud Rat album as being one of her top picks so I am no longer sure about her. The second song on this album is darker and more cavernous in its cacophony of carnage. They grow more discordant and roaring with something eerie going on within the layers of tormented murk. The fourth songs is really just a noise interlude. The next actual song has a Burzum like rumble to it. This Varg influenced sonic drone goes in a slower more gloomy direction with the double bass picking up under neath it. They begin to become unhinged and allow the song to swell back up into blast beats.

They eventually gather up into a gallop and engage in a very rough hewn version of viking metal. This transitions into one of the albums heaviest song which drapes the blast beats in dissonance before racing off into a thrash like tremolo stream. This gives the song a very dark ebb and flow. The drums drop down into a more tribal pound before hammering down the double bass again. This is more of a death metal moment, but the droning sonics of it all keep it rooted in black metal. This is the album most intense moments and one of the sonically heaviest moments of any album you would have heard this year.

The album ends with a brief atmospheric outro, that is more noise than not. Overall these guys nail the unholy grail of being just as heavy sonically as they are metal, though the do churn out some of the things you expect from black metal, but manage to make many of them sound darker. I can see from a production stand point how some one might mistake this for death metal since it is so bellowing , but more introspective in its aggression and offering different shades of dissonance to paint the blackness with. I'll give this a 9.5

Kontinuum : " Kyrr"

I really dug this Icelandic bands first full length "Earth Blood Magic"  that took the prog direction Enslaved went in a more Tool like direction. On this album they have continued to evolve as the  guitar tone is more relaxed  and there is a slight post-punk element to the tense approach the vocals take. Not unlike say Beast Milk the vocals are clean sung in a more cautious baritone, it's evident this is another step away from black metal and into an almost hard rock direction. The vocals are also getting more like love in the production department when it comes to how they are layered on the  choral builds. The exotic scales of the clean guitar opens the second song with is dark but not metal. They return to singing in their native tongue. A powerful baritone bellow marks where they could erupt into the choruses. These are gradually built into rather than punched.

They continue more relaxed and melodically introspective in more of a Katatonia vein. Big chord ringing out with subtler guitar melodies laying beneath it. The bass line takes over the title track as the guitar floats around it. The vocals go up higher, almost tenor range. When they sing in their native tongue it helps keep them from sounding like an Icelandic A Perfect Circle, particularly when they play with drive but using clean tones which really brings out this influence. "Lone" is an introspective interlude that doesn't stray to far from the ground they have covered. Things pick up with "In Shallow Seas" . They hold the palm muted chug as the baritone vocals linger over it then soar up higher as it closes in on the chorus. It has a enough classic metal influence to give it power , but doesn't sound dated, despite a slight "Into the Mirror Black" inflection the vocals take on, though not going up as high as Warrell Dane.

They end with a big metal anthem. The vocals have a stronger cadence to them almost like something you might hear on a folk metal album. They are well executed and well produced over the duration of the album and are one of its strengths, which is a rare quality in metal today. The guitars go back and forth with the loud soft thing but not limited to sticking to any formula. This album is neither as heavy or experimental as I went into it expecting, but they succeeded in creating some solid middle of the road moody hard rock. If you need a gateway drug to get you from Tool into real metal then these guys are a good doorway. 'll round it up to an 8.

Arstidir Lifsins : "Aldafoor Ok Munka Drottinn"

This trio features members of Helrunar and Carpe Noctem, so you know they are going to get at least the  viking parts right. It starts off with a twelve minute epic the first three minutes build up to the metal being introduced. Largely there is a chorus of baritones bellowing out the vocals, but these give way to black metal snarls. The first and second song run into one another like this is a Wagnerian opera. Like opera the magnitude of the scenes they are creating here is impressive, but there is not a lot to really engage you into the songs. The album sounds great. Every thing is well played. the most original...no.

While at best this band might be referred to as blackened folk metal, the third song has some old school black metal nastiness to it. The bass playing is is impressive on it as it raises to an audible level most black metal bass players stay submerged beneath. Here the theatrics which take center stage rather than trying to recreate any pagan folk elements are dynamically right on time and work with the song rather than making it feel overblown. The fourth song is more of a dirge paced hymn. The drums build it up into a blasting nasty blast beat. It slows into a pretty powerful pound.

Epic gets over used, however it applies here as these songs are arranged with orchestral precision. At times you will think now this is how the soundtrack to the Hobbit should have sounded like." Not all of the low vocal chants work with equal success, in fact as the album progress it sometimes makes the song too atmospheric as there is noting to grasp onto until the drums come in in certain passages, though when the drums drop in the do so with quite a crunch. Though some of the spoken word sections make some of the atmospherics almost seem excessive it makes for a crazy dynamic shift when it goes into one of the most frenzied blast beat you will hear on any black metal album. Sometimes these more folk sections are handled in a more Negura Bunget manner, but they are more string based giving it a more symphonic metal feel. They come across more like interludes than being connected to the songs.  When the operatic baritones are thrown into the albums more metal moments it does give the album more personality than the two dozen black metal albums sitting in my in-box. There are times when the harsh vocals sound like they are being traded off between two different microphones, and this effects gives a fresh take on it. Which is what that style of vocalizing is beginning to need as they average harsh vocal performance is beginning to lose it's edge so we are becoming desensitized to it.

This album has a lot going on and the fact it all comes through really clearly is a testament to the skill it was mixed with. This album has a very honest and reverent feel to it, there is not the sense that these guys are just running around LARPing as vikings. These guys are capable musicians, the drummer stands out and can deliver some first class double bass on command. Metal is supposed to be big and over the top, so bands like Manowar and Bathory should be proud of what they helped bring about. The closing song sets a powerful chug against the chorus of chanting baritones. Midway into the song there is a cool break, that gives it the dynamic edge the songs needs after all bombast doesn't seem as bombastic with something to contrast it to. Just in time for the new season of Game of Thrones, you could smoke a bowl, mute the television and leave this playing and get a whole new perspective on the show. I'll give it an 8.5 as it drifts into the background and doesn't hook me in, but it is an impressive piece of work and if you are a fan of viking metal one of the best releases from that sub-genre to come out this year.