Black metal band UNRU have been going for 10 years. This is their second album. Ambient gloom and an unstoppable maelstrom of sound are what is promised here from these five lengthy pieces. The title translates as “The Return of the Repressed”.

The album starts with Kråkstad, a slow-burning, droning haunting piece. This is music from the misty mountains. The title song which follows has a haunting chorus but this is now dirty, merciless, extreme black metal of a raw and old school kind. The constant ring of battering thunder runs behind it. Neither of the tracks so far had been substantial, based on the fact that atmospheric as they are, they take a pathway and follow it. I had higher hopes for “Ein Hauch der Freiheit” (A Breath of Freedom) which comes in at just under 13 minutes. This time it’s more industrial in its blackness, with fragments flying and terrible screams. This depicts a world of extreme chaos, enhanced by a distant voice. It’s not just extremity. At one point it takes us atmospherically into a spooky twilight zone. “Hungersteine” (Hunger Stones) is a continuation, striking out as a calm before an expected storm. One thing that is clear is that UNRU are willing to linger, where other less experienced bands may not exploit the potential to soak us in atmosphere and move on too quickly. UNRU could never be accused of that. The haunting, distant voice reappears as a recurrent theme to provide a misty and maybe lofty feel to this slab of heavy melancholy. Ambient gloom it most certainly is. The mood changes as the scene shifts to an uncertain wintry wonderland of icicles and solitude. Of all the tracks so far the 15 minute “Hungersteine” presented the most vivid images to me, albeit gloomy ones. The scene expands majestically into a barren and despairing landscape. “Eintausend Stimmen” (One Thousand Voices) brings us back to the raw and extreme black metal. The piece follows a familiar pattern, expanding eventually into mystical grandeur and ending with an electronic drone.

Not much happens over the course of this 54-minute album, but it is clear that UNRU know how to create powerful and melancholic soundscapes. It’s inspiring in its way and technically it’s well executed but it requires patience and the willingness to spend this time in barrenness and gloom, however lofty it may be.

(6.5/10 Andrew Doherty)

https://www.facebook.com/unruband

https://babylondoomcultrecords.bandcamp.com/album/die-wiederkehr-des-verdr-ngten