With each release this Norwegian act has unleashed there has always been something different, a twist to keep fans engaged, but it is fair to say that this third album offers something above and beyond all previous sonic constructions. That element is the incorporation of keyboards, which is nothing new at all of course, but what Vredehammer has done is blend the keyboards into the songs to create a modern horror story that harks back to the 80s when the synth drenched sound tracks infested that movie genre.
Many acts just add these elements as intro pieces but the band has completely ingrained the sound into the song writing producing a very different listening experience indeed. Those keyboards greet you on the opener “Winds Of Dysphoria” and immediately you’ll be envisioning multiple 80s horror flicks before the track absolutely annihilates with a scathing blasting assault tempered by the bands unique guitar sound, which I adore I might add. The relentless approach is utterly demented at times as the song runs the gauntlet of thundering double bass that assails in waves as “Aggressor” shifts the speed to mid-tempo. The drum work is earth shattering, with a massive sound as the song drives the listener down a more death metal vibe as the intrinsic catchiness manifests via the riffing.
“Suffocate The Light” is stupendous as it launches with devastating blasting that has a double kick blast beat style before those keyboards inject a darkness and panache you will not expect. Indeed the power and intensity they produce create an EBM feel only this is far heavier and denser of course. The mid-break sequence is sublime as the drum fill reinstates the songs intensity before surging in dramatic deathliness with the title track. Again those keyboards add enormous levels of atmosphere producing a cinematic style, such is their texture before the break into a bleakness that rears up with the double bass, courtesy of new skin pounder Kai Speidel formerly of Nordjevel.
There are no weak songs here, just songs I like more than others and one of my favourites is “In Shadow” which has a thrashing fervour at first before the song obliquely switches pace with a bludgeoning incessant asphyxiation, as those keyboards are embedded to great effect again. The stop-start riffing phase is awesome as the tunefulness of the song appears brilliantly before the sublime atmospheric elements reappear. I also really liked “Any Place But Home” because the song utilises the keyboards so efficiently, without them sounding forced or clichéd. As the song crashes in with that awesome drum work it then diverts into a brief ambient phase before the riff shifts again. Slowing down substantially is “From A Spark To A Withering Flame”, the track harnesses a far more moody riffing style that has a sinister atmosphere as the keyboards are very subtly added at first before they push through the mix. The song is possibly the most strange and beguiling of the release but no less intense as Vredehammer have created a masterpiece of unique sonic extremity.
(9.5/10 Martin Harris)
Leave a Reply