RIITIIR

Enslaved – E Review

Enslaved – E Review

Enslaved is Norway’s biggest and most successful (currently active) metal band. They have garnered a following of intensely loyal fans who adore their every release with the fervor of the newly converted. In fact, I once counted myself a huge fan. There was a string of records that Enslaved released between 2000’s Mardraum: Beyond the Within and 2008’s Vertebrae which are practically unassailable. Not every one of those albums was perfect—Isa and Ruun were both only great records when sat side-by-side the excellent Below the Lights and Vertebrae, but they were consistently addictive listens from a band that could do no wrong. And I, along with everyone else, lathered Axioma Ethica Odini with praise, only to declare it one of my biggest disappointments of the year in 2010. I meh’d the hulking RIITIIR, and ¯\_(ツ)_/¯’d its follow-up In Times, declaring it a testament to the excesses of the modern recording industry. In sum: Enslaved went from being one of my favorite bands in 2008 to being a band whose newest release almost didn’t get reviewed by me. But with all the ranting and raving about how E is the best album they’ve put out in a while, I couldn’t keep myself away.

Enslaved – In Times Review

Enslaved – In Times Review

“Longtime readers of this blog know that I have a fraught relationship with Enslaved. Once one of my favorite bands, these Norwegian Viking metallers’ releases between 2003’s Below the Lights and 2008’s Vertebrae make for one of those unbroken strings of heavy metal glory that few bands ever unleash. Unfortunately for me, since 2008’s masterpiece, the band has released two records (Axioma Ethica Odini and RIITIIR) which left me cold.” So, what’ll it be? Will In Times be another disappointment for Ye Olde Angry Metale Guye?

Enslaved – RIITIIR Review

Enslaved – RIITIIR Review

Enslaved has really secured its position in the highest tear of metal bands in the world. Though they started out long ago in the second wave of Norwegian black metal, nothing they’ve done since the late 90s has really represented that faction of their existence. Instead, they’ve become one of metal’s shining examples of a transition from the extreme to the progressive. While doing more to maintain their extremity than a band like Anathema or Katatonia have done, the band’s last full length Axioma Ethica Odini and their EP The Sleeping Gods both lacked extremity while pushing out the borders of the band’s progressive bona fides. I wasn’t sure of what to make of Enslaved’s RIITIIR when it first arrived – but while the record is ostensibly different than the band’s previous work, that mellow, bong-water stain of ’70s progressive rock continues to push further and further from their black metal roots. For the better?