By now anyone with a passing interest in Black Metal and not just the historians should know the significance of 1349’s name so I am not going to be one of those reviewers that starts off pointing it out (what do you mean I just did)? Crap well it has been at least four years when it was last mentioned and at the time 1349 were at a bit of a creative peak releasing ‘Revelations Of The Black Plague’ in 2009 and Demonoir in 2010. Neither album were quite as expected from those of us that had been listening to the band since their formation and early releases. There was a fine line of experimentation involved in fact with the doom fuelled ambience and stygian atmosphere of Revelations…the line was not so much fine as completely crossed morphing the bands normal black cataclysmic barraging into the far flung, cold realms of space. Its quick fire successor did not allow this style to penetrate its main song-craft but did add more ambience as Temple instrumental interludes which gave it all a somewhat fragmented and out there aura.
The question is, have the group, who are still all intact from that time furthered their descent into bending black metal’s constructs? The band state they wanted to freshen their outlook and combine all the past elements with new ideas into a cauldron and stir it up, hence the album title, so what exactly have we got here?
Well it’s not quite a return to the full on pulverising hell of early albums like ‘Liberation’ but you may well breathe a sigh of relief to hear that the grisly quartet have pretty much dispensed of any more experimental parts, stripped things down and very much returned to basics with these eight new hymns of darkness. It’s even a case of dispensing with the meat and going with the might as far as the striking one word song titles are concerned.
After some ominous sounds like a crypt door being opened ‘Cauldron’ bombs in with thick spiralling riffs and those dreadful vocal rasps from Ravn. Frost’s drumming is momentous and powerfully batters away as the foul sermon is enforced with some weaving thrusts and melodic weaves, sticking in your head whilst knocking you flat out with its force. ‘Slaves’ is the choice of track to get a video made and give first taste of the album prior to release and it bounces in and grooves away with the vocals sounding dictatorial as they commanding the slaves to serve. It’s a heaving mass of sound and the cauldron has certainly been given a good stir by now and is well and truly volatile. It takes a few listens but does get to the stage where it could be considered catchy and the underlying guitar work glistens nicely under the massive drum bombast. There are times that I am reminded of Satyricon and not with the throwaway last album but before that, the fiery hellish rasping and haywire riffing of ‘Exorcism’ brings them to mind at their most spiteful and in doing so shows that 1349 have certainly not gone on to lose their way with this and if you consider they did, well they’ve well and truly found it again. There’s some fine solo guitar work here too courtesy of Archaon and Seidemann’s bass is meaty thick and well defined.
Slowing down very slightly Mengele’s tightens the noose and no doubt subject wise refers to notorious Auschwitz butcher Josef Mengele. This one really has the thick melody oozing out and makes it along with the suspected subject matter icy cold and atmospheric causing shivers down the spine all the way. As the drums ebb out ghostly tones and whispers make it all the more dreadful paving the way to the short ‘Golem’ to pile in fists flying and chaotically dish out maximum punishment for all of 1:40.
At a particularly well honed 38 minute total running length the album does not screw about in the slightest. Last number ‘Godslayer’ takes it out in blasphemous style and is for me the best track certainly combining all the essences together in perfect coordination; might, force, melody, darkness, atmosphere and hate being the key ingredients.
Obviously rejuvenated after their break 1349 are backing the album up with a small European tour in November, I bet some of these tracks are going to really deliver the goods live too.
(7.5/10 Pete Woods)
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