Ihsahn
After

With this new full-length album, Ihsahn communicates the end of his first solo trilogy, a journey that began immediately after the Emperor with the albums "The Adversary" and "AngL".

Clearly, in "After", there are many continuities with the previous works, memories of a constructive and evolutionary path that, today, delivers us a mature artist, capable of independently proposing a complete and complex musical vision, with great technical-instrumental mastery.

The black metal of Emperor is almost no longer present here, it must be said. After all, it wouldn't be ideal to be judged and appreciated only for what was done as a teenager, almost twenty years ago, and this applies to every artist, I believe.

As for the album, the first thing that stands out is the quality sound blend, created by an expert choice of sounds, and excellent mixing (Jens Bogren).
Ihsahn's songwriting is, as usual, very articulate and varied, offering changes of tempo and atmosphere, moments driven by walls of sound (8-string guitars) and moments of relative acoustic calm. And if in "The Adversary" the special guest was the great Garm (Ulver, Arcturus), in AngL Mikael Akerfeld (Opeth), here we have not a human vox, but the sax of Jorgen Munkeby, from the Norwegian Shining, who heavily makes his presence felt, offering phrases, improvisations, and sounds that really make the final result of the tracks in which he appears quite unique. The session men called for the rhythmic section are Lars Koppang Norberg and Asgeir Mickelson from Spiral Architect, who, obviously, do an excellent job, combining high instrumental skills and great executive sensitivity.

All of this to emphasize how this album is not the classic example of extreme metal, but a work of different conception and aspiration, in some ways tending towards certain enlightened '70s prog (King Crimson), albeit with a strong metallic backdrop (e.g., "A Grave Inversed").
"After" is distinguished by a certain underlying structural homogeneity, forming a cohesive musical concept, but in which significant changes in register can be found, such as the more meditated and acoustic tracks ("After", "Austere") and the two "suites" ("Undercurrent", "On The Shores") real gems within an already notable album.

In the bonus DVD included in the packaging Ihsahn appears truly at ease as a one-man band, showing his competence and preparation with the naturalness of someone who is calmly following his path.
There is no intention to amaze with special effects, but only the desire to carry forward a personal discourse of research, which may or may not be of interest, but which certainly must be respected for the commitment and dedication shown.

Beyond personal tastes, one of the best "metal" albums of this first half of 2010.