February 2023 Feature Release - The North Edition

It is my turn to nominate a release for this months North clan Feature Release and with the weather still on the chilly side here in England it is a perfect time to introduce some Icelandic bm as this months fodder.  Svartidaudi are no more unfortunately but whilst they were around they produced some fine black metal n the vein of Sinmara, Deathspell Omega, Misþyrming and Blut Aus Nord.

Revelations of the Red Sword was their final offering in 2018 and in my opinion they went out on a high note.  So tell us what you think of this swansong release.  Write a review, or simply shoot the shit about it in the thread below.  We all love the banter and to hear each others opinions.

https://metal.academy/releases/9136

Great submission Vinny. "Revelations of the Red Sword" is a classy & sophisticated modern black metal record that very much sounds like it could have come from the French scene as it would sit pretty comfortably alongside the likes of Deathspell Omega & Blut aus Nord. The vocals aren't necessarily your dime-a-dozen black metal shriek & kinda remind me of early Gorguts at times while the instrumentation takes a dissonant route that's high on atmospherics & complexity. The tracklisting is extremely consistent with each of the six tracks being of a very high standard. Svartidauði wait until  the epic eleven minute closer "Aureum Lux" to really seal the deal though & it's a pretty spectacular way to finish off a very rewarding extreme metal release.

4/5

You got to hand it to these Icelandic bm bands, they are good at what they do. In researching this review, I had a look at a few names in the scene and from Abominor through to Zhrine, you are kind of spoilt for choice. Over the past five years or so, I have spent some considerable time with Revelations of the Red Sword from Svartidauði. I would say that in that half decade I have only grown more attached to its undulating dissonance the longer that I have listened to it. This statement is made more important by the fact that I will freely admit to hearing something new each time I listen to it.

This continued voyage of discovery is what keeps me coming back to the record. I almost con myself to some degree in thinking I am revisiting to enjoy those familiar moments when in fact I subconsciously know that I am here again to uncover yet more from this gift that keeps on giving. Decidedly French sounding in their take on the style (albeit a little less blunt than that particular geography), Svartidauði fill each track here with complex layers of dissonance that can take time to mould on the brain – hence my sense of constantly learning new things from this.

What you have here is thoroughly modern bm with some real depth to explore to boot. I cannot accurately plot into words how eleven-minute plus closer Aurem Lux makes me feel. It is one of the most complete pieces of music in metal that I have heard in a long time and is a perfect curtain call on a band who are sadly no longer together to give us anymore of this brilliance.

4.5/5

Svartidauði's is a name I have seen banded about occasionally, yet I haven't taken the plunge with them before, so other than the fact that they are Icelandic and the preconceptions that come with that, then I didn't really know what to expect. Well, for a quick summation, Revelations of the Red Sword takes the best of Deathspell Omega and Blut aus Nord and forge them into an energetic and invigorating black metal maelstrom. It has the edge that dissonance provides, yet it doesn't alienate a more conservative listener like myself by being overbearingly so, but rather it weaves a jagged wall of sound from the disparate threads of dissonance around the framework provided by the pummelling drum battery. And those drums are something to behold - Magnús Skúlason deserves much praise indeed for his constantly shifting, complex and technically superb skinwork that underpins the entire endeavour.

Further praise must go to vocalist/bassist Sturla Viðar Jakobsson whose basswork is great, but his vocals are even more so, sounding more like the howling roar of a wounded beast than the piercing shrieks more usually associated with black metal. The lead guitar work sounds exceedingly complicated and really does feel like guitarist Þórir Garðarsson is weaving disparate strands of sound from the ether and  providing a direct line of communication through to another dimension of reality.

I have found myself becoming irritated at times over recent years by the seemingly endless flow of black metal albums trading in dissonance, but what has come to me like the revelation of the title whilst listening to Revelations of the Red Sword is that what is really annoying me is that too many bands are treading the dissonance path without the necessary skill to do it effectively and so just sound, well, a bit shit. Svartidauði, however are the real deal and this is one killer of a black metal album and many thanks to Vinny for nominating it for this month's feature.

4.5/5