ALBUM REVIEW: Marduk, "Viktoria"

By: Richard Maw

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 22/06/2018

Label: Century Media Records

Black metal continues to be one of the most divisive and politically charged of metal's sub genre's, but there is also fantastic music to be found from the genre's biggest and best players. Marduk are amongst the elite.

“Viktoria” CD//DD//LP track listing:

01. Werwolf

02. June 44
03. Equestrian Bloodlust
04. Tiger I
05. Narva
06. The Last Fallen
07. Viktoria
08. The Devil's Song
09. Silent Night

The Review:

Sweden's premier WW2 obsessed black metallers are back with a vicious counter attack against the controversy that the band have faced in recent years. A more underground proposition than Watain, Mardukhas always been amongst the best in their chosen genre. Opener “Werwolf” is truly venomous and makes use of an extremely well suited production. As I am always at great pains to point out, I am no expert on the world of black metal (or anything, for that matter!) but I know what I like and this is one such record.

Nine tracks of 3-4 minutes each; varied in tempo and approach is what you get. I think this even outstrips the fantastic “Frontschwein”of a couple of years back; it's feral and exciting stuff. This is how lack metal is supposed to sound: raw, uncompromising and very, very cold.

If you are a fan of Marduk, much like any band, you probably have your favourite album (“Panzer Division Marduk” seems to always feature on such lists- as it does for me), but this one may well be up there for old and newer fans alike. It's dramatic- hear “Equestrian Bloodlust” for proof- not afraid to slow down when necessary and offers up some seriously impenetrable blast sections as well. As the best black metal often does, it also retains an almost punk like approach to the writing and the sound; rough and ready (but not “Transylvanian Hunger” rough!) and features some interesting stops and starts via slow cymbal counts- a cool trick.

Picking out highlights is tough, as the quality is uniformly high, but if you want an example of where Marduk are at this time around, then try out “The Last Fallen” or the title track- both are reliably vicious, albeit in different ways.

If you like black metal of a certain type (Scandinavian, classic, trve etc) then this is absolutely a record to hear and own. If you have ever liked what Mardukdid in the past, you'll like this. If you are more into modern post-black metal... leave the hall. Black metal continues to be one of the most divisive and politically charged of metal's sub genre's, but there is also fantastic music to be found from the genre's biggest and best players. Marduk are amongst the elite.

“Viktoria” is available here



Band info: facebook

ALBUM REVIEW: Wolves in the Throne Room- ‘Thrice Woven’

By: Daniel Jackson

Album Type:Full Length

Date Released:22/09/2017

Label:Artemisia Records

There’s a kind of theatrical gravitas throughout ‘Thrice Woven’. It’s supremely confident, gravely serious, and stunning in its ability to pair serenity and sorrow with pain and anger.

‘Thrice Woven’ CD//LP//CS//DD track listing:

1. Born From The Serpent’s Eye

2. The Old Ones Are With Us

3. Angrboda

4. Mother Owl. Father Ocean

5. Fires Roar in the Palace of the Moon

The Review:

It’s human nature to want to have new experiences. We’re always looking for something different. Whatever aspect of life we’re talking about, things are always moving. Sometimes the perception is that we’re moving forward, but there’s almost always movement of some kind. The same is obviously true of musicians and artists.

Wolves in the Throne Roomtook their music in an entirely different direction with 2014’s ‘Celestite’. The album was all over the place, ranging from light synthy ambient music to caustic drone and plenty more between the two. The reaction to the album, from fans and press alike, covered a broad spectrum too. Some hailed the band for their artistic freedom, some spurned the album for its failure to fall in line with the band’s previous work, and everyone else fell between those two points.

With ‘Thrice Woven’, Wolves in the Throne Room have essentially retreated to familiar ground, while bringing back some of what they found in the great beyond. Were it not for some of the synth work and dramatic atmospheric elements at work throughout, this album might be Wolves in the Throne Room’s most traditionally black metal album since ‘Diadem of 12 Stars’. A lot of the riffs and tremolo leads would feel right at home in a 90s scandinavian black metal context. “Born From The Serpent” features a section in the first half of the song that could have been on any early Marduk or Enthroned album.

The production too feels like something older. The drums in particular have a very dry sound, which is out of character for Wolves in the Throne Room. The snare has a crisp, thin feel to it, like on Sacramentum’s ‘Far Away From The Sun’. The guitars have a hazy texture to them, though you could call them muted or dull. It would feel constricted and spaceless if these compositions were any different, but here it fits surprisingly well. The guitar leads aren’t in a constant battle with everything else, struggling to shine through in the mix. They’re right up front and clear as day, pulling everything else along with it. What the production sacrifices in sounding massive, it makes up for in clarity.

 There’s a kind of theatrical gravitas throughout ‘Thrice Woven’. It’s supremely confident, gravely serious, and stunning in its ability to pair serenity and sorrow with pain and anger. It harnesses all the bleak melodrama that made ‘Two Hunters’ such a compelling album, and puts it into a universe that’s rooted in a style of black metal they’ve avoided until now. And yet, it never crosses that boundary into second wave worship. This album is a testament to just how deep and rich black metal can be as a genre. I hope they stick around in this space a little while longer.

‘Thrice Woven’ is available digitally here and a CD/LP/CS copy here.

Band info: Official Site || Facebook