Seems like there are rumblings in the Dodheimsgard camp suggesting new material is recorded and on the way soon. As for members of the group it’s not like they have not been busy as it is. For a start we are still trying to get heads around bassist L.E. Måløy’s confounding recordings under the If Nothing Is moniker and now we have the debut album from this lot, following up their EP ‘Gjengangere i hjertets mørke’ from 2019. The reason for mentioning DHG is due to the fact that we have no less than 3 past and present members in the ranks here. Vocalist Vicotnik should need no introduction to lovers of the weird and wonderful in the likes of Ved Buens Ende, Strid, Manes, Code and Fleurety is joined by ex-bassist Cerberus and DHG, Nidingr drummer Myrvoll. Completing the quartet is guitarist Haarvard who has done past time with Satyricon and Ulver, so a bit of a Norwegian supergroup in essence.
Proving a slight head-scratcher at first, once a couple of spins have taken place this proves not quite as confounding as some of the other bands mentioned have proven to be in the past. There’s nothing subtle in the way of introduction here and the second play is pressed the band prove they “want it darker” as ‘Jeg vil ha det morkere’ barbarically blasts in. The production is nothing short of damaging in its pumped-up obliterating heft and once the singer joins the fray with rabid growls his Norse snarl is totally dictatorial. You could be under the impression that the whole album is going to continue in a similar vein but once having got this track out their system there is actually quite a bit of variation and it is far from one-dimensional over the rest of the playing time. ‘Løgnenes Abstinenser’ expands upon the underlying dark melody and indeed quickly gets its talons in via a magnificent and upbeat, jaunty rhythm. It’s a great song which really gets in your head and not one without a surprise due to the vocals going from harsh growls to harmonic clean parts. Here there be demons and angels, no less. More shapeshifting lies ahead and it perhaps is not a surprise that a track whose title translates to ‘A Light Fell In My Dark Corner’ should not go down a comparative DSBM route. Adding to the textures occasionally on this and other tracks are the accompaniment of Madeleine Ossum violin, viola & Kamilla Ræder Kvarstein cello who tinge the instrumental parts with a lilting folky shroud proffering no shortage of beauty to this darkness. Cerebrus gets well in on the act at the half-way mark here with a stalking thorny riff turning this stand-out number into one of two parts which perfectly entwine around each other.
It’s kind of akin to a snake shedding its skin and although rooted clearly in the traditionalism of the genre where members sprung from you never quite know what you are getting next. There are plenty of classic sounding guitar riffs and guttural barking vocals hitting the spot but also lighter, airier and fragrant moments to coast along to. One second you are being blasted away the next swooning to a snatch of neo-classicism, there’s even a moment that takes even further back in time and would not be out of place on a composition by 19th Century countryman and composer Edvard Grieg.
The end result is not just a highly enjoyable listening experience but also one that is going to intrigue and keep you on your toes as it unravels and reveals itself.
(8/10 Pete Woods)
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