Review by Jack on April 14, 2002.

Cold, filthy and with indiscernible lyrics, what more could you ask for from a Norwegian ‘true black metal act? Not much more, Khold’s latest album in “Phantom” is short and direct, it delivers a quick, frosty jab to the guts and then retreats back into hiding. With only 9 songs and spanning only 33 minutes, Khold are clearly not around to waste a valuable hour of consumer listening time. Khold do they what they do, leaving absolutely shit all time for procrastination.

Make no mistake, folks, this is not your typical black metal ala Burzum and Darkthrone, there is so much melody and a unique identity in “Phantom” that one would swear Khold had been slaving away at the black metal caper for years and years, slowly perfecting their trademark groove with each new album. The reality is quite the opposite, Khold are only in their second album and already seem to be firing on pretty much all cylinders.

I have absolutely no idea in depth what the lyrics of “Phantom” cover, but from the translations of the Nordic song titles into English, one gets the feeling that there is a strong, deathly medieval theme concurrent through the bulk of “Phantom”. To further give off the theme of medieval witchcraft and superstition, vocalist Gard goes about his growls in a truly exceptional manner, perhaps possessing one of the most potent gargling, black metal roar/screams in the metal profession, I can’t praise his performance on “Phantom” enough.

My only real gripe with “Phantom” is that Khold seem to lose their way a little towards the end of the album, and don’t really have a complete arsenal at their disposal. ‘Ord I Flammer’ and ‘Vandring’ don’t really possess the song writing ability presented on the awesome track ‘Hekseformular I Vev’ and the opener, ‘Dodens Grode’ or ‘Death Crop’.

Bottom Line: “Phantom” is a worthy successor to “Masterpiss of Pain” and Khold are exploring some very interesting ideas. Maybe with a third album, Khold will rise even further and stand atop a bloody pillar with their victims adorned before them.

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Originality: 8
Musicianship: 8
Atmosphere: 8
Production: 6.5
Overall: 7

Rating: 7.5 out of 10

Review by Felix on September 10, 2019.

Some metal bands use EPs for (mainly strange) experiments and the metallic punks of OHL seem to think that this is a good idea. Adrenalin, the title track of this EP, has nothing in common with the usual approach of the Teutonic veterans. It's a melancholic track which would fit very well in a smoky bar at midnight. The bass guitar delivers the melody, the guitars seem to be borrowed by an average ska band. Deutscher W. presents philosophical lines and asks himself where the sun will sink on his last day. Well, probably in the West, but who knows? All in all, this might be an acceptable out-of-the-box song, but another example of their high-speed metal punk bastards would have been much better.

Nevertheless, I am happy that one of the 500 copies - exactly number 167 - has found its way into my flat, because the B side features the real OHL. Pretty fast rhythms, sharp guitars, clear contours and conventional song patterns deliver the real adrenaline. Partly menacing lines meet the well-hung dark scenarios of Deutscher W.'s lyrics. In particular "Ihr seid der Feind" shows the typical OHL way of proceeding in a very strong way. This song, as well as the closer, deals with the radical part of the Islam and this is still a delicate topic for a German band. But OHL have always made their point of view almost painfully clear and so it is only logical that the first track on the B side also deals with religious confusion.

In accordance with the last full-lengths, the sound relies on clarity, pressure and directness. OHL have found their sonic design and they know that it does not make sense to change the best. So, everything is fine with the second part of the EP? Well, honestly speaking I miss a song one can find on YouTube which originates from the recording session for Der Feind meines Feindes. Too bad that they ignored this song about Turkish propaganda again... On the other hand, this vinyl remains Erdogan-free - and this guy makes much bigger experiments with his country than all metal bands have ever done.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10