Dødheimsgard - Black Medium Current

22 Jul

22Jul

Dødheimsgard - Black Medium Current (2023)

Oslo

Norway

Black Metal (early); Avant-garde/Black/Industrial Metal (later)

No introduction needed for this old school black metal band from Norway- Dødheimsgard. They have branched out into a new style since their first album but still pack their customary punch. After two demos, one ep, one split and 5 full lengths under their name-comes a new album “Black Medium Current” released by Peaceville Records.

“Et smelter” starts with a melodic, clean acoustic guitar with layered clean guitars over the top. Clean singing with synth in the background gives way to an emotive riff starts that hit you almost immediately with drums hammering away. The vocals have an Attila and Maniac from Mayhem feel to them and excellent clean singing. the music switches at 5:29 mark into a more Avant-garde style kicks in with slow jazzy clean guitars with hymns. At the 7:19 mark, a shoegaze influenced post riff with keyboard notes adding an ambient feel to the music. At the 8:37 mark- the music changes into an industrial feel with an epic, experimental and progressive guitar solo at the end.

“Tankespinnerens smerte” offers more of the epic atmospheric post riffing with raspy vocals. This track switches into clean singing with epic reverb layered guitars, adding a progressive feel. At the 2:46 mark, the riffs switch into a trance underlay with clean guitars with clean singing over the top. At the 5:38 mark, the distortion starts to build back up again with an occultic spacey feel until the end.

“Interstellar Nexus” starts off with an Avant-garde/Black Metal feel with the contorted, jazz influences riffs. A Pink Floyd vocal style with a trippy psychedelic dance beat in the background starts resulting in a very interstellar track making you feel like drifting around space watching the cosmos traveling. At the 6:37 mark- a musical shift occurs which sounds like you got hit by a wormhole finishes off this track.

“It Does Not Follow” displays a change of style into a space hard rock vibe from the 70s and a very psychedelic feel. This track shifts back and forth with tremolo and the groovy rock guitars, until the 3:36 mark where its hifts back into the DHG blackened Avant-garde sound you know and love. The music slows into a drum and bass trance with synth until the end.

“Voyager” is a dramatic intermission of a grand piano playing with trance background with a single vocal saying, “Death is all I have, it’s all I want, it’s all I need”.

“Halow” starts with a depressive sounding riff filled with melancholy. The vocals are half clean vocals and half raspy with spacey, trancey synth in the background. At the 2:39 mark, the music slows with only a bass guitar with keyboard notes. At the 3:10 mark, this track jumps back into the avant-garde riffing style of DHG. At the 8:00 mark, this track finishes with trancey grand piano with deep vocals in the background until the end.

“Det tomme kalde morke” is the evilest sounding start of the album yet. The track started off with fury of hellfire riffs and blast beats until the track slows down. At the 1:40 mark, a black n roll influence can be heard. At the 2:40 mark, saxophone plays in the background. At the 4:47 mark, the experimental influence comes out with atmospheric space trance until the end.

“Abyss Perihelion Transit” starts with a dark, slow, ambient guitar that resembles space progressive rock of the 70s. The distortion kicks in and then shifts back to the trancey electronica with the raspy vocals over the top. A shift into clean singing with a black-post riff in the background repeats a few times throughout the track. At the 6:40 mark, the pace slows with rocky, clean guitars and vocals until the end of the track.

“Requiem Aeternum” has an atmospheric feel with grand piano and violins combined with harmonized choir vocals. If a track was to be in a Steven King movie- this would be it.

Overall- if you like your black metal progressive, Avant-grade, trancey, psychedelic, experimental and forever changing this one is for you. Until next time- keep the black, brutal and thrashy flames alive.