MetalBite Review by Jack on 6/11/2001
Labeled, as the mother of all supergroups, comprised of members from bands such as
Arcturus, Ulver, Enslaved, Gorgoroth, Immortal and
Molested, Borknagar could be attributed to be trying to cash in on their supergroup status, this fortunately is not the case, as we are witness to a group of extremely talented musicians, some at the height of the musical prowess.
"The Olden Domain" is what really shot
Borknagar through the cannon into black metal infamy. ‘Epic metal’ tagged by guitarist and mastermind Oystein G. Brun. And epic metal is exactly what this music is. The lyrics sung by infamous vocalist Garm are of a Viking nature and tend towards nature as a pose to the great struggles of religions sung by other black groups. Garm’s vocals range from the standard black screams to operatic, beautiful clean chants, which are probably what he is famed for. Unfortunately for
Borknagar, Garm is no longer with them, as he spread himself too thin over other projects. Music is very fast paced and sets a good tempo to harbor Garm’s remarkable singing. Drums remain consistent throughout the 44 minutes of playing time. Guitars are quite awesomely played, quiet catchy riffs, and beautifully played acoustic parts reminiscent of
Satyricon’s "Nemesis Divinia" with fantastic melody.
No songs really stand out all that much, there are only 8 songs on the album, but range from between 4 minute instrumentals to 8 minute epic tracks. Personal favorites for me include
"To Mount and Rode", which has the most memorable chorus ever present in black metal.
"The Dawn of the End" has an awesome title and is encompassed by some lovely interplay between bass guitar, guitars and Garm’s vocals.
Bottom Line: This is
Borknagar’s best album and if they could hold down a permanent singer, (ICS Vortex and Garm have both gone, Vintersorg is now handling those duties) they would truly become a mastermind at the forefront of Epic and Black metal outfits.
Rating: 9 out of
10
