Hot take, some Ihsahn solo material is better than Emperor, there I said it. Of course being a most notable and prominent figure of the Black Metal scene Ihsahn can be seen as a bit of a dividing force amongst the more elitist Metal community, trendy even. Yet much like Devin Townsend Ihsahn is a highly accomplished and talented musician, one who I often feel is somewhat forgotten about as a solo artist and vastly overshadowed by his classic work. Personally though whilst I have only dipped into the odd release I have always found his solo work to shine forth, allowing his music to flow freely, never more so than the blinding 2016 record Arktis. We now come to his eighth full length however, well eighth and ninth if you include the orchestral version of this self-titled record as a separate release. How does it play out though, more incredible songwriting or mere hipster Metal? Is there any need for an orchestral rendition? Let’s dive in.
I’ll be clear here and now I’m reviewing the main record, and will touch upon the orchestral version towards the end. So, the album opens with the cinematic Cervus Venator, an actual delight that leads into the metallic The Promethean Spark. The building suspense in this song is truly epic and when Ihsahn’s powerful Blackened vocals come in it’s huge, not to mention the absolutely crisp cleans which prove both harsh and clean vocals can co-exist outside of an awful Metalcore context. Some of the Classical elements come off as almost Folk Metal, reminding me in places of Finntroll, which is unexpected but not really a bad thing. Pilgrimage To Oblivion takes things a notch higher, the guitars and drums feel a lot more aggressive and the orchestration is amped up to a Symphonic Black Metal level of ridiculousness, fine by me. The song is also pretty heavy on the hooks, from all angles, riffs, orchestration, vocals, honestly so far this album is extremely tight. Twice Born gives more of those punchy riffs and hook laden lyrics. There’s a very sort of Prog nature to this essentially Extreme Metal record, but I would say it’s mild, by which I mean there are sections to each song that are more mellow, building to a big hit, something that works exceptionally well with the Classical undertones. Showing off a more melancholic tone is A Taste Of Ambrosia, a song laced with sadness but also a sort of air of victory, the sort of score you might expect during a final battle scene in a Fantasy film.
Using the term intermission seems appropriate for this record, and this is to be found especially in Anima Extraneae, a beautiful, relaxing piano heavy break from the swirling chaos, perfectly placed. Blood Trails To Love, brings back the epic power and some outstanding clean vocals, truly magical, and yet more of that Finntroll-like Folk. The consistency of this album is something I find really impressive, it’s almost as if Ihsahn has crafted the confines of his music into a neat box, never breaking from the themes but creating enough variation in each song to make it standout and not become generic. I made the comparison to Devin Townsend at the start of this review and I do feel the musicianship is very resonant of Devin’s work. That similar idea of playing with unconventional musical elements to make something which can only be described truly as Metal, a thoroughly genre non-specific journey, something that can be extremely hard to do. Exuding yet more influence is The Distance Between Us which occasionally gives me Cynic vibes, perhaps one of the best tracks to exemplify the mixture of atmosphere and armageddon. To really hammer home the ultimate cinematic climax we have the almost ten minute composition At The Heart Of All Things Broken. This song allows Ihsahn to experiment with further Prog themes, honestly I think this album should have more lengthy epics, but that is a very minor criticism in an otherwise quite flawless album. The final act comes with Sonata Profana, the end credits if you will, another Classical, yet if I’m being hyper critical predictable end to this astonishing record.
The final question that remains is what does the orchestral version of the album offer, well honestly not a lot. It’s much like what Cradle did with their Midnight In The Labyrinth album. A cool addition for absolute diehard fans but for your newcomer or casual fancier little more than a bonus track like add on. That’s not to say it’s bad at all, but I’m not really one for that sort of thing, I often find myself missing bonus songs out of albums, unless of course I’m a next level fan of a certain band. Although that said the lack of vocals in the orchestral version does lean into it being a purely Classical record, which is a quite nice touch, I mean I really like Classical music so it works for me. That said when you’ve heard the Metal on top, the orchestral version can feel less fleshed out, overall this is a work that Ihsahn should be insanely proud of though.
(9/10 George Caley)
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