I admit that despite knowing the name I hadn’t really ever engaged with Dödsrit before this but with a PR sheet tossing ‘black metal hiking punks’ at me it kinda sets up expectations so when opener ‘Irjala’ comes at me with a melody heavy guitar riff and pacy drums and goes into some simply epic black metal with kind of pagan metal overtones I’m at a bit of a loss. The vocals are harsh and raucous, the tempo kind of pulsing with energy and a certain amount of melancholy in the feel. Nary a pinch of punk to be seen mind. So as this ten-minute epic goes on I ditch all thoughts of finding the ‘crust’ promised and just go with what I have.
And yes, ‘epic’ is a great place to start. It’s the kind of sound that stands somewhere in that grey area where black metal fades into pagan/Viking metal. I mean this is the sort of tune that has a crowd bouncing around in moments at a gig. Full of life and a deep well of emotion it is a great opening. Fellwarden with no clean vocals, just pushed faster by the likes of someone like Heart Of Ages era …In The Woods or Vorna. Something like that. Moments of bleak introspection. The feel of stillness in the cold mists. It takes balls to open up with a ten-minute song, but this is all kinds of enthralling and indeed welcoming. Easy to open up to but far from ephemeral.
‘Nocturnal Fire’ has a certain folk bounce to it, that low-key celebratory feel before whipping up another epic black metal riff amidst a swirl of drums. I guess there’s a feint punk touch to the pacier sections but no more than any black metal band really and the arrangement and the feel of yearning for some lost part of nature is the overriding feel. Whatever, it too is an exemplary song.
A short, sylvan madrigal like instrumental ‘Ember And Ash’ leads us to another instrumental, the longer ‘Utmed Gyllbergens Stig’, another folk infused, swaying opening with notes to tug your heartstrings higher as it leads you on a majestic hike through the landscape.
‘As Death Comes Reaping’ begins with an ominous, slow sound. I feel the clouds closing in somehow, bad weather and rain on the way. The pace picks up slightly but the mood remains utterly grim with a little (but not too much!) post black metal touch to the driving sound before the black metal reasserts itself. The instrumental section rides of superb guitar leads and just makes you feel as though you are lost in something stronger than yourself, the delicate acoustic section giving a moment of introspection that gradually steps out with purpose only to fade into the delicate distance.
‘Celestial Will’ sends us away with a rousing, rising opening. Strident vocals, affecting melody and a strange feeling of loss.
Though I’m still at a loss as to where the crust comes in, it doesn’t matter. This is a fine, fine album with emotion worn proudly on its sleeve. It wraps around you and without resistance just takes you through its world. Yearning so deeply it hurts, moments of true grandeur and passages of aggression or anger as strong as the quiet moments are delicate. Long songs but a perfectly judged album length this is just a little gem.
If you’re the kind of black/pagan metal fan who likes their soul to be bared, then sit with Dödsrit for a while. These Swedes will not disappoint you.
(8.5/10 Gizmo)
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