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This is 'Liberation through Amplification.'
The Hunt is bleak, dark and quite beautiful, highly evocative of
nature and all that is fresh and clean. If this sounds like your kind of thing,
it will be. This is a fantastic record.
“The Hunt” CD//DD//LP track listing:
1).
Invocation
2).
The Trial
3).
The Dance
4).
The End
5).
The Hunt
6).
The Break
7).
The Run
8).
The Gloom
9).
The Truth
10).
Močvara/Мочвара
The Review:
Ulvesang play folk- or neofolk/dark folk to
be more accurate and hail not from Sweden or Norway but from Canada- still the
Frozen North, so quite fitting. The two piece specialise in very dark but
pretty acoustic textures. Being as this is an instrumental work (or without
lyrics at least), what images it conjures up are a matter for the individual
listener, but I would imagine that many listeners would find the sound and
atmosphere here to be evocative of the forest, leaf and stream and all that is
natural.
It
is perhaps odd to some that this might fit right in alongside black metal, but
not for me. It is bleak, it is dark, it is quite beautiful- similar to the very
best of the black metal genre. Fans of Winterfylleth, eagerly
awaiting their forthcoming acoustic record, and fans of the more ethereal work
of Ulver and so on will find much to enjoy
here.
The
opening intro of “Invocation” sets
the mood and the mood does not falter from there on, whether it be the
bitter-sweet “The Trial” or the
wistfully bleak “The End”- the
textures are richly dark. However, the feel is not necessarily cold; there is
melancholy and bleakness but the album is never grim; maudlin might be a better
description. The ten tracks are all highly evocative of nature and all that is
fresh and clean. If this sounds like your kind of thing, it will be. A
fantastic record.
Today's guests released one of the albums of the year
in 2014 with the brilliant “12 Areas”, indeed
Colchester-based instrumental sludge/post-metal band Telepathy are one of
the underground's best kept secrets.
They play unique and ambitious music, not so much songs, rather complex compositions,
music to get
lost in, the perfect juxtaposition of beautifully mellow and hideously brutal
passages which they execute with a remarkable intelligence. Telepathy are musical
conjurors, employing masterful tricks within the construct of their music,
which they deploy in unpredictable ways throughout their art and that is indeed
what they create, art in the truest sense, you never know what’s coming around
the corner but you can’t wait to find out.
With their demo EP "Fracture" and 2014 debut album "12 Areas" (Devouter Records/Tartarus Records)
receiving rave reviews, the band are on the cusp of creating their masterpiece
and their dedication to do things DIY, subscribing to their own rules, the band
are in a unique position of being embraced by fans of post-metal, hardcore,
sludge and progressive music alike, which is testament to the bands imaginative,
off-kilter and ambitious musical expressionism.
With Telepathy having
begun recording their second album and with a short European Tour set to kick off
next week, as we enter the final quarter of 2016, the band are confident that
they’re sonically better and in the throes of some much needed momentum than will
catapult their unquestionable talent to become one of the biggest and best
talents the UK has produced. Let us get
Amped & Doomed with the instrumental transcendents that are Telepathy.
SL: Can you give us an insight
into how you started playing music, leading up to the formation of Telepathy
Rich
(Guitars): I began playing music back when I was around 12/13,
I remember vividly my mother gifting me with a boxset of the first 8 Black Sabbath albums
for doing my 11+ (British school exam) and wanting to do nothing else but learn
to play the guitar and write music after that!
From there I learnt to play, and went through the
usual high school bands playing Kyuss covers and some formative original material. My first
semi-serious band was playing local shows and recorded a two track demo whilst
I was studying music technology at college, but ended soon after. That’s when
three of us in Telepathy
met and began working towards something more experimental, and representative
of our collective taste in music.
Piotr
(Guitars): Myself and everyone in the band, were always
interested in and inspired by all sorts of music. From classical, electronic
and dance to the heaviest metal. I
believe it took specific characters to meet and start creating the music that
this band plays. We all definitely have a love of instruments and sound, from
guitar to the synthesiser and of course, the belief that there is no such thing
as impossible.
Ted (Bass): I’ve been
interested in performing since I was very young. I used to write plays and
perform them for my parents; I sang in the school choir and also took acting
classes for several years. I actually started playing guitar when I was around
11 years old. My step-grandfather had a room full of vintage Fenders that I was
fascinated with. It was a jingle on a kid’s after school TV show that inspired
me to ask him to teach me. The jingle was just someone ripping a rad bluesy
solo and I thought it was so cool. I actually hadn’t played bass guitar in a
band at all until I joined Telepathy.
SL: Can you remember who or what inspired you to pick up
the guitar, bass? Are there any bands, guitarists, bassists currently on the
scene that continue to inspire you and push you to try new things?
Ted: I’m not necessarily impressed by a player’s technical prowess, what
matters to me most is how hard the player throws down. I caught Slabdragger at Red Sun Festival in
Cardiff a couple of weeks ago and Yusuf’s performance blew me away. I play
pretty hard but he’s on another level. Glenn from Grand Collapse is probably one of the best
drummers in the UK right now for me; that man can shred.
Piotr: It was
simply the love of the sound of heavy guitars and epic melodies. Since I was a little kid it has always grabbed
my attention. Guitar wasn’t my first choice, it was thanks to my parents and
older brother who introduced me to playing guitar, and the fact that people
around me listened to good music. During
that period I heard many bands and artists for the first time like Jimi Hendrix, Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin and Pantera.
Rich:Sabbath,
Soundgarden, Kyuss and the Melvins were my
earliest inspirations to play guitar and write music. Out of the current active
bands, we’re of course inspired by the bands we get to share the stage with,
recently we’ve really enjoyed Svalbard and Conjurer, always tight and giving 100% each time. I’m also
really loving SubRosa
and JK Flesh
at the moment.
SL: Whilst we’re
on the subject of inspiration or heroes for example, do you have 5 records that stand out as favourites, what influence did
they have upon you and what is it about those records that particular resonates
amongst others?
Rich: Here’s a few favourites and one new discovery. The list is always expanding.
Mamiffer: “Mare Decendri”
I had the
good fortune to catch Mamiffer
along with JK Flesh
and Sumac in
London recently and they really stole the show for me. This album is a masterpiece: beautiful
arrangements, a deep and rich sound and a haunting atmosphere.
Beach
Boys:
“Pet Sounds”
The
density of the arrangements and how experimental the song structures are still
amazes me and continues to be an influence on how I craft songs. It’s an
eye-opening album for me, in the sense that music can be so inventive, dynamic
and compositionally experimental and still pack a huge emotional punch.
The
Cure:
“Pornography”
An
incredible album. Darkness permeates through every song, it could have only
contained “One Hundred Years” and it would still be one of my all-time
favourite records. Robert Smith is one of the most under-rated guitar players
of all time for me.
Botch: “We are the
Romans”
A classic.
“C Thomas Howell as the Soul Man” is one of the best hardcore songs
ever. Hydrahead Records
in particular has been, and continues to be, a big inspiration for me.
Fall
of Efrafa:
“Owsla”
A genius
first chapter in a conceptual discography. This record opened up a whole world
of underground crust and post-metal for me, along with the DIY subculture it
was birthed out of.
Piotr: It’s hard to choose only five, so I’ll only name rock albums.
Metallica -
“...and Justice For All“,
A big
inspiration on song structure
Pink
Floyd
- “Dark side of the moon“
Without a
doubt, amazing melodies.
Tool - “Lateralus“
Just
genius, isn’i it?!
Deftones - “White pony“
Atmospheric,
great drum beats, it is what I would call romantic metal, if that makes sense.
Micheal
Jackson
- “Bad“
Because it
needs to be mentioned as one of my first musical influences.
Ted: There are too many albums that I could list in my top 5. These are just
a few that spring to my mind immediately.
Pentagram- “First Daze
Here”
Led
Zeppelin-
“IV”
Black
Sabbath-
“Sabbath Bloody Sabbath”
Fleetwood
Mac-
“Rumours”
Converge- “Jane Doe”
SL: Can remember your first
electric guitar, bass?
Piotr: Yes, and it’s still on my bedroom wall, an Epiphone Les Paul.
Ted: Yes, It was an old Encore
Strat copy that my Dad bought for me I think. Pretty standard but it
did the job for a few years.
Rich: Yes. It was
a Stagg, in that old ZZ Top shape. Truly a
terrible guitar, The neck broke within a couple of months!
SL: What guitar(s) bass (s) are
you using today and how did you gravitate towards the guitar you currently use?
Rich
& Piotr: We both use Ltd Ec1000’s. We both really love Les Pauls and humbuckers, and the
Ltd’s are great, hold low tunings really well and are fairly light for Les Paul style guitars.
You can also pick them up at a reasonable price second-hand which is a massive
plus. In all honestly we are both continually expanding our sound, and for sure
there will come a time for different guitars and pickups
Ted: In Telepathy I use an Epiphone Explorer bass.
SL: What do you like about the
guitars you currently use and has there been any specific modifications to
it?
Rich
& Piotr: No modifications currently other than a basic
set-up to allow us keep our low tuned strings stable. We’re both toying with
idea of adding a single coil pickup though at the moment.
Ted: I love it because I’ve never seen anyone else use one and it’s just a
massive, gnarly lump of wood that looks rad when slung nice and low. I’m going
to have to change the pickups in it at some point because it runs so hot that
you get a lot of feedback if you play too close to your rig, so playing on a
small stage can be problematic.
SL: What amps and pedals do you
currently use? Do you use a combination of
amps, or a full half stack? Talk us through your set up both in the studio and
in the live environment?
These are all in a constant state of flux, but here
are our current set-ups..
Rich:
Guitar > Tuner - Vox Delaylab - Maxon od808 - Empress Heavy – Little Big Muff - Boss RV-5 > Orange Rockerverb 100
and Orange PPC412
cabinet
Piotr:
Guitar > Tuner – Digitech Whammy – Empress Heavy – EHX Micro Synth – EHX B9 Organ Machine – MXR Analog Delay – TC Electronic Flashback Delay
(mini) – EHX
Super Ego > Fender
MH Head and Cab.
In the studio, we’ve been tracking with Jaime Gomez
at Orgone Studios
who has a wealth of vintage gear. We’ve tracking with an 80’s Marshall JCM800 and Peavey 5150 blended for
heavy guitars and a silver
face Fender Twin Reverb for cleans. We’ve used our own boards and
guitars, except for some clean passages on which we’ve used a hybrid super
strat Gomez has knocking about. We’ve also used an old EPIPHONE acoustic Ted
has which sounds amazing. For bass we used a vintage Ampeg SVT and Fender P Bass.
SL: What one pedal could not live
without and why?
Ted: My Boss TU-2
Chromatic Tuner. Can’t go wrong with it.
Rich: Aside from a tuner, my Empress Heavy. It has two great, responsive gain channels
and has added in a lot of the low end that my Rockerverb was missing on its gain channel,
via its brilliant weight control. It’s also been great to EQ to different rooms
with.
Piotr: Tough one... I guess it must be
my Mxr Analog Delay
– it’s just too good!
SL: What are your amp/ pedal settings?
Rich:Orange
clean channel, bass about 2 o’clock, mids and treble around 12 (dependent on
what room we’re playing). Very loud. I use the Heavy Empress for both a crunch channel and
distorted channel
Piotr:As of this moment I’m using
my Fender MH
amp, my settings are around 12 o’clock for clean gain, with a lot of bass,
little treble and about half on the mid channel. When it comes to pedals, it is
the Heavy Empress
that adds all the heaviness, with similar settings to the amps just with less
bass and more gain.
SL: What tunings do you use and
why, and as a result is there a specific brand / gauge of string you prefer ?
We tune to BEDGBE for guitars. Ted tunes toBEAD, it’s like standard 5 string tuning but without
the high G. He prefers that tuning because it allows him the freedom to move
through the scales without having to worry about any dropped strings. We all use
Ernie Ball strings generally.
Piotr:Ernie Ball
Heavy top Slinky Bottom
Rich: I use Power
Slinky’s but exchange the two lowest strings with a .42 and .54
Ted: I recently switched to Ernie Ball Power Slinky, they’re 110’s and I was using
130’s before. They’re just a lot better to play than the heavier ones SL: Do you have any
advice for up and coming guitars players, bands?
Practice, do whatever the hell you want musically
and most importantly play from the heart.
SL: Do feel
there are deeply held misconceptions about being in a band?
I’m sure there are many, most of which are based on
70’s excess and the boom years of the industry.
SL: Moving on a little then, what
can you tell us about any of your current projects, tours, cds, etc and anything
else band related we should know about?
We can tell you our next record is nearing
completion. We have been recording periodically throughout the year with Jaime
Gomez Arellano (Cathedral,
Paradise Lost,
With the Dead,
Sunn O)))
& Ulver,
etc)
We’re about to hit the road in Europe and have some
great off-shows coming up around the UK, including Noizfest in Manchester in October.
SL: What springs to mind when you think about the completion of your upcoming
record and how is the mood in the camp at present?
Well, currently we’re
demo-ing overdubs and textures to add when we return to the studio on 23rd
August. We’re all incredibly proud of this new work, and the mood in camp has
never been better, especially after the addition of Ted on bass. We’re
currently buzzing to get back on the road in Europe for some headline shows and
a performance at Incubate
2016 in Tilburg.
SL: Who are some your favourite bands you have toured with and what have been
your proudest moments and/or performance of your playing career?
It’s tough to name just a few moments or shows, but
playing Desertfest
this year was pretty insane, there was a queue out to the street to catch our
set at the Black Heart
which was pretty crazy.
Incubate in 2014 was a similar situation, we ended up headlining our stage due to
a cancellation, and playing to packed room in Tilburg at such a prestigious
festival was an honour.
More recently, it’s been rad playing shows with Rosetta, Svalbard, Conjurer, Grand Collapse (two
words: water) and Latitudes.
However,
the thing we take most pride in is that everything we’ve achieved up until this
point has been 100% our own work, and we have never compromised our vision in
any way.
SL: What can
fans look forward to from you over the
next 12 months? How is your schedule
shaping up?
The release of a new record and A LOT of live shows.
Watch this space.
SL:Finally, do you have any final comments/word of wisdom you’d like to bestow upon
us?
A big thanks to The Sludgelord for the continued support!
Born
from the embers of endless hours of improvisation; the music of Khaldera
is the reflection of what is created on the spur of the moment. Something that
is beyond the grasp of rational thought, Khaldera creates a distinct atmosphere with
carefully designed guitar lines, visceral drumming and solid fretless bass
playing. Mesmerizing and fateful drones with transcendental qualities swell
into cathartic destruction just like a peaceful stream swells into a violent,
cleansing river.
Situated
seomwhere amidst the gentle hills of the Swiss Plateau, Khaldera self-released their
debut EP “Relief” in 2013 (mixed and
mastered by Aaron Harris and Chris Common respectively) before being signed to Czar Of
Revelations and are due to releasetheir follow up EP “Alteration” on 26th August
2016
With
the release only a few short days away, today at the The Sludgelord, we are streaming
“Alteration” in full and you can check it out below.So if you’re a fan of instrumental pychedelic
ambient rock and dig the sound of Russian Circles, Isis, Cult Of Luna, Ulver, Earth, Tool
and Minsk, then
this could be the EP for you.
“Alteration” will be released via Czar of
Revelations on 26th August and is available here
Album Type: Full
Length (Reissue) Date
Released: 20/05/2016 Label: Napalm
Records
This album does to me what people describe psychedelic drugs as
doing for them. In my opinion this is mandatory listening. There are precious
few albums that matter this much to me, and I can only hope that if someone
hears this album for the first time this year, it has the same kind of impact
on them that it’s had on me.
“Nemesis
Divina” CD//DD//LP track listing:
1.The Dark of a New Age
2.Forhekset
3.Mother North
4.Du som hater Gud
5.Immortality Passion
6.Nemesis Divina
7.Tanscendental Requiem of Slaves
The Review:
I
know it’s supposed to be poor form to write about yourself when writing about
an album. “Nobody cares about you, they care about the album!” is a
recurring point made on Twitter. I get it, and when we’re talking about new
albums, I usually agree with it. Please know that if you’re strict about that
particular rule, this isn’t going to be for you. I don’t really have a
structure for this, nor do I have any direction. I’m just going to write about
an album that’s meant more to me than virtually any other. I’m writing about ‘Nemesis Divina’, an album in its 20th
year of existence, recently reissued via Napalm Records. I’m going to talk about why
this album matters so much to me, and why I regard it as being one of the best
black metal albums ever made. If that’s not interesting to you, close the tab
and no hard feelings. Fair enough? Ok, let’s get started.
As
was the case with a lot of the bigger second wave black metal albums of the
90s, I found out about ‘Nemesis Divina’
through a compilation CD. In this case it was the ‘Gods of Darkness’ compilation, which was issued by Nuclear Blast in 1997,
the same year the album got its release in the United States. Back then, the US often got black metal albums quite a bit
later than Europe. Many of these great albums
didn’t see broader distribution in the US until Century Black came to the rescue and became the North
American home of some of the greatest black metal albums of all time. Along
with ‘Nemesis Divina’, Century Black was the
American home for Mayhem’s ‘De
Mysteriis Dom Sathanas’,Emperor’s‘In The Nightside Eclipse’ and ‘Anthems to the Welkin At Dusk’, Ulver’s ‘Nattens Madrigal’, Gorgoroth’s first
three albums, and so many others. That black metal imprint for Century Media was so
vital to making prime Norwegian black metal available throughout the US
that it almost can’t be overstated.
The
song featured on ‘Gods of Darkness’
was, as you’d expect, “Mother North”.
In the 19 years or so that I’ve been listening to ‘Nemesis Divina’, the song went from being my favorite, to
over-playing it and getting burnt out on it, to then coming back around to
appreciating and understanding why people love it so much. “Mother North” is among the most popular
black metal songs of the nineties. When it comes down to it, the reasons for
its popularity are pretty simple. It’s loaded with hooks, and Satyr’s vocals
are comprehensible enough that people can learn—and follow along with—the
lyrics.
I’ll
admit that my 16 year old self might have found occasion once or twice to put
on my most dour black metal face and bellow “Sometimes in the dead of the
night, I mesmerize my soul…” in front of a mirror. In the previous
decade, high school kids were lip syncing and air guitaring to Maiden or Priest. But for
me, it was hours upon hand drumming on my knees to ‘Nemesis Divina’ or ‘De
Mysteriis Dom Sathanas’. It was easy to romanticize Norwegian black metal
as a teenager, even with all of the violence. But that was a non-factor with Satyricon. They
weren’t really a part of the drama that surrounded Mayhem, Burzum, and Emperor. They were just a band. The music on ‘Nemesis Divina’ created it’s own
mystique.
In
terms of knowing about the band itself, I really only had photos in the CD
booklet to go off of. The photo of Satyr, Frost, and Nocturno Culto (credited
as Kveldulv on this album) in front of what, in retrospect, a ridiculous blue family
photo/school picture backdrop. Satyr is seated upon an old wooden chair with
markings along the sides and thrusting a partially intact skull toward the
camera. Frost and Nocturno Culto stand beside him, wielding stylized axes, and
Frost is decked out in some of the most unwieldy spiked gauntlets ever worn by
arms. They were basically just giant nails in place of where the half inch
spikes had been. It was ludicrous. At 16, I imagined Satyricon were
just like that all the time. They didn’t have jobs or families or pets or
regular human lives. Instead, they just lived in a secluded Norwegian forest,
where they dedicated all their time to black metal and ancillary activities. 16
year old me didn’t want to think about Satyr ordering a coffee, or Nocturno Culto
punching a clock and working like I would do the following year. I was like a
young child who watches pro wrestling and doesn’t really understand that
wrestlers were often very different from the personas they played on
television.
But
all these years later, none of the image or package has anything more than a
passing nostalgic value. Today, the music is what matters. Sure, it’s the music
that conjures those fanciful memories, but more than anything it’s about the
constant realization while listening to it, that Satyr, Frost and Nocturno
Culto captured lightning in a bottle back in 1996. ‘Nemesis Divina’ is one of the few albums, of the thousands of
albums I’ve owned and thousands more that I’ve listened to, where there isn’t a
track I skip on purpose. From the opening downbeat of “The Dawn of A new Age” to the final droning keyboard and guitar of
“Transcendental Requiem of Slaves”
it all has resonance, and it’s all important to the album overall.
Everything
works together so well. There has never been a black metal album so well
arranged. Frost is especially important here, as he’s virtually perfect at
coming up with musical drum fills and accents that play into the riff and often
enhance it. It’s those random tom hits on the upbeats, or the intricate
patterns he uses all over the album that bring more to ‘Nemesis Divina’ than any drum performance has brought to any other
black metal album since the genre’s inception. The riffs themselves are burned
in my memory for as long as I live. I could write 20 hundred words about each
song and individual riff, but I doubt there are many of you left reading this
as it is.
There
are few albums that have brought me anything close to the same amount joy that
‘Nemesis Divina’ has. Put on your
headphones, let the world burn around you if it’s going to, and exist only in
the world Satyricon built
with this music back in 1996. When I listen to this album, I get fucking
existential. I’d rather live in the universe this guitar work compels me to
imagine. This album does to me what people describe psychedelic drugs as doing
for them. I’m well passed the point of being ridiculous now, but let’s just say
that my opinion of the album is that it’s mandatory listening. There are
precious few albums that matter this much to me, and I can only hope that if
someone hears this album for the first time this year, it has the same kind of
impact on them that it’s had on me.
At this juncture, Myrkur has proven to be capable of material that
is truly special, with the sort of vivid musical imagination welcome in any
genre, metal being no exception. What’s most exciting is what an even deeper
exploration of this kind of folkish black metal, rich with creativity might
yield a couple of years from now.
‘M’ CD//LP//DD track listing:
1. Skøgen Skulle Dø
2. Hævnen
3. Onde Børn
4. Vølvens Spådom
5. Jeg er Guden, I
er Tjenerne
6. Nordlys
7. Mordet
8. Byssan Lull
9. Dybt i Skoven
10. Skaði
11. Norn
Myrkur is:
Myrkur
| Piano, guitars, vocals
Teloch
| Bass & additional guitars
Myrvoll
| Drums
Guests:
Ole-Henrik
Moe | Íslensk fiðla, hardingfele & violin
Håvard
Jørgensen | Acoustic guitar
Tone
Reichelt | Horn
Martin
Taxt | Tuba
Chris
Amott | Additional guitars on "Mordet"
The Review:
When
originally sitting down to write this review, the first two hundred-plus words
of it came out as an angry tirade directed at anyone expressing the opinion
that Myrkur being a woman is a detriment to the
music, or are saying anything about “hipster metal” or “metal tourism”. In the
interest of addressing the “issue” but not letting it overrun the review I’ll
just say that if a woman making metal music bothers you: you’re an idiot. If
you’re worried about metal tourism: shut the fuck up. I can guarantee you’ve
failed your carefully constructed “metal” persona every day of your life in
some way or another just by living your life as anyone would. Enough.
With
that out of the way, ‘M’ is an
always good and often great album. The improvement between last year’s
self-titled EP and this year’s debut full length is substantial. In my review of the ‘Myrkur’ EP last year, I essentially said that while there was
promise, Myrkur wasn’t quite “there” yet. With ‘M’,Myrkur
arrives fully-realized, and much more well-rounded. It’s by no means a perfect
album, but it musically satiates my thirst for music in the style Ulver’s ‘Bergtatt’,
which Ulver themselves have no intention of
revisiting. That isn’t to discount Myrkur’s own
inventiveness and artistry, which is ever-present throughout the whole album.
Some
songs work better than others, though I’d still describe the least effective
song as above average. At the top of the pyramid, we have “Skøgen Skulle Dø”, which may be the most scintillating opening to
a metal album this year. After some light, plaintive choral singing; the song
erupts with resounding toms and piercing fiddle. It conjures the sort of
roaring atmosphere that so many surgically-recorded folk metal bands seek to
capture but clinical production techniques won’t allow.
Another
fantastic highlight is “Onde Børn”,
which has the strongest Ulver influence of
anything on the album. A more accurate assessment might be to say that it
shares an adjacent space to Ulver’s music, working
a familiar-enough vibe into the song to warrant comparison, but different
enough that it can stand proudly on its own. In that sense, it’s in good
company alongside "Les Feuilles De
L'olivier" from Les Discrets’ debut
album ‘Septembre Et Ses Dernières
Pensées’. “Mordet”, on the other
end of the emotional spectrum, is a snarling and much better-conceived
counterweight to the album’s overall tone. Where “Onde Børn” is something of a pleasant musical fantasy, “Mordet” is driven by traditionally
bleak black metal songwriting with added musical theatrics. Blast beats, dissonance
and rage keep the album from losing steam at the midway point and also serve to
keep the album away from treading the same water for too long.
The
weaker moments on the album come in the form of songs like “Byssan Lull”. While they
are easy on the ears, they also leave an impression of agreeable filler rather
than vital to the whole of the album. Perhaps that was the point. The album is
perfectly lean at thirty seven minutes, so perhaps a couple of these
two-to-three minute interludes are meant to keep the album over thirty minutes.
They’re never really detrimental, but perhaps they might have been better
utilized as pieces of the proper songs instead. It might have also been better
to make use of the two choice songs from the EP. They could have been used here
in place of the aforementioned interludes and had a much greater impact with
the richer sound of ‘M’.
Even
with a few less-than-memorable moments from a couple of filler tracks, the bulk
of ‘M’ contains some of the best
material I’ve heard this year. At this juncture, Myrkur has proven to be
capable of material that is truly special, with the sort of vivid musical
imagination welcome in any genre, metal being no exception. What’s most
exciting is what an even deeper exploration of this kind of folkish black
metal, rich with creativity might yield a couple of years from now.
You can pick up a
digital copy here and a CD/LP copy here.
