Angry Metal Guy

Ulver // War of the Roses
Rating: 2.0/5.0 — Oh Nattens Madrigal where have you gone?
Label: KScope
Websites: jester-records.com/ulver | myspace.com/ulver1
Release Dates: EU: 2011.04.25 | US: 05.03.2011

Ulver is one of the greatest metal bands ever. If there were a “Big 4″ for 90s metal, Ulver would be one of them because those first three records, Bergtatt, Kveldssanger and Nattens Madrigal (for the uninitiated) are absolutely essential Norwegian black metal records (obviously Kveldssanger isn’t black metal per se, but it is still an awesome record). But, of course, that same experimental drive that pushed the band into black metal also pushed them out of it, and Garm has been very critical of the scene since leaving it. That said, Ulver is also like Katatonia or Anathema in that their post-(extreme) metal music has been widely accepted by metalheads largely because of the already existing cred. But I get the feeling that War of the Roses will try that patience. Continue reading

Falkenbach // Tiurida
Rating: 3.0/5.0 — Sleepytime campfire music for reluctant vikings
Label: Napalm Records
Websites: falkenbach.de | myspace.com/falkenbachofficial
Release Dates: EU: 28.01.2011 | US: 02.08.2011

The new year sees cult hero Markus Tummers aka (Vratyas Vakyas) and his one man project Falkenbach rise from a long wintry slumber to release Tiurida, album number five. Those familiar with Falkenbach will know they/he specialize in sometimes epic, folk-heavy viking metal influenced primarily by Bathory and likely Ulver as well. Being that their last release, Heralding – the Fireblade, was a rerecording of the old demo material, they haven’t released new material since 2003′s excellent Ok Nefna Tysvar Ty. That’s a mighty long time to keep fans waiting for some new stuff! So has the time away changed the style or vision? Has the endless wait by long suffering and loyal fans been amply rewarded with musical treasure? Well, gather all ye around the merry campfire and let me tell you the tale of my review whilst playing yea old mandolin. Please don your hoods and chant along appropriately. Continue reading

Nàttsòl // Stemning
Rating: 2.5/5.0 — Footnotes to Ulver
Label: Lupus Lounge / Prophecy Productions
Websites: myspace.com/nattsolnorway
Release Dates: EU: 11.06.2010 | US: 07.13.2010

Norwegian metal is famous for two things in modern times: the rise of modern black metal, and more recently, Norway’s fall into disrepute within the metal scene. Since the latter occurred, we have often been hailed with the new band that is somehow breathing new life into the old scene or still making black metal in the old style—and the next band to be hailed in that line is Nàttsòl, whose debut album Stemning hits European shores in June and the American shores in July. Nàttsòl we are told, breathe a new and icy life into the dead Norwegian scene that has been a disappointment to us all since the early 2000s. Surely, they’ll be the ones! Continue reading

Oskoreien // Illusions EP
Rating: 4.0/5.0 — Great! Looking forward to a full length.
Label: Unsigned (Name your price for it at Band Camp)
Websites: oskoreien.bandcamp.com | myspace.com/oskoreienband
Release Dates: Dec. 31st, 2009

Oskoreien is another one of those DIY projects that I was directed to which delighted me to check out. There was a time when you, as a metal guy, probably got friended by Oskoreien on MySpace, when the creator was in full-on promo mode. The tracks that I remembered hearing were very much in the Ensiferum / Wintersun kind of vein. Lots of sweep picking and sort of melodic death influences. So when I got my hands on the Illusions EP I wasn’t sure what to expect.

Turns out that Mr. Valena had released something I wasn’t expecting at all: basically post-black metal. Illusions opens with a short acoustic passage and then launches into the first 13 minute track, a piece called “Transcendence” in good form. The melodies are solid, but simplistic. The guitar work on here isn’t like Ensiferum or Wintersun at all, but instead much more black metal: trem-picked over blast beats and minimalistic, with very little ornamentation. This doesn’t mean, however, that there is no musical sophistication here—just the opposite, in many ways this material feels much more sophisticated than Velana’s earlier work (not to say that it was bad, mind you). The ability to take simple passages, simple harmonies and beautiful chord progressions and make them shine like he has shows a solid understanding of composition and just an all around good ear.

These tracks are quite atmospheric, as one could expect. They land firmly in the Ulver and Agalloch territory with reference to both the acoustic guitar style and composition styles. Jay’s voice is also very similar to Garm’s old singing voice in the early Arcturus, Ulver days like what one hears on Kveldssanger and La Masquerade Infernale. He has a very forceful, vibratoless kind of delivery that is equal parts beautiful and creepy. Sometimes it sounds a little bit too forced for my liking, but it fits the atmosphere perfectly. And let’s face it, he must be doing something right if I *want* to listen to 23 minutes of music split into only two tracks.

My biggest complaint about this is the production, but not in the way that one would expect. The guitars have a lot of reverb on them, which sort of pushes them back in the mix and with the drums so high in the mix, but also so obviously a drum machine, it feels a little jarring sometimes. These are quality samples, but they have that sort of modern “tinny drum” kind of sound that I think should probably be avoided. Other than that, this record shines. Both tracks are well-composed, well-performed and worth checking out. And, once again, it’s a “name your own price” kind of deal, so I strongly suggest you go and download the thing and donate to Oskoreien‘s future.

Petrychor // Dryad
Rating: 4.0/5.0 — Solid post-black, intelligent and interesting
Label: Unsigned
Websites: petrychor.bandcamp.com | myspace.com/petrychor
Release Date: February, 9th, 2010

I frequently complain about black metal these days. Partially this is because I think that a lot of post-black metal is fucking boring and partially ’cause the not-post-black metal is also fucking boring. In general, black metal is in a place where nothing really that interesting is going on. Sure, there are bands out there that are putting out good material, but for the most part the signed stuff is  so-so and the classic bands are disappointing with new material and the state of the scene, in my opinion, is pretty sad. So I was pleasantly surprised to get turned onto this piece of art by the Californian do-it-yourselfer just called “T”. The project is called Petrychor and displays all of the things that I would hope to hear out of this budding scene sort of embodied in a single 3 song EP entitled Dryad.

There are two sides to this project melded into a single overarching concept, from what I can tell. The first, the piece that opens this record, is the epic and beautifully played steel string acoustic playing with a sound that deftly matches the old growth forest on the front cover of Dryad. A sound that is clean and fresh, but steeped in mystery and subtlety. The second side of Dryad is one of atmospheric, heavy but still crisply melodic black metal. Due to the production the music moves in waves, rather than any kind of technical precision that you see in other metal genres. The guitars, drums, bass and keyboards work together to build massive, epic walls of sound that flow smoothly while still being thick and forceful.

Of any band, I’d still say that Petrychor reminds me of early Ulver more than anything else that I really listen to. It has the same appreciation for beauty, the same intellectual acuity and the same dark core that drive me back to listen to Bergtatt, Kveldssanger, and Nattens Madrigal over and over. However, unlike other bands, most notably Agalloch, who have followed in the footsteps of the early Ulver work, this material is not derivative at all. “T” demonstrates a willingness to wander from the herd and to write a unique and, frankly, oddly catchy style of black metal that I’ve never really heard before. This individual is an excellent guitar player and writes solid melodic solos and the use of drum machine, particularly in the middle of the track “Gamma Leonis” indicates to me that T really doesn’t give a shit what the “trve” or “kvlt” types think.

I look forward to seeing what more Petrychor has to offer. It’s been a long time since any underground work has moved me to such exclamations and that’s the reason that I decided to write this review without any request for promo. This album is free for anyone to download at the project’s BandCamp profile (linked above) and I strongly suggest you go and download it and give a listen. And it’s definitely worth throwing 5 bucks at, I think. My only complaint is that there are no lyrics included anywhere for my perusal, but this is well worth the price of admission and your time.