In The Woods...
Heart of the Ages

When In The Woods... were forming in 1992, the black metal phenomenon was already undergoing musical transformations that would make the genre increasingly complex and intricate. Just over three years after their formation, the band from Kristiansand released their first album, "Heart Of The Ages", which, along with "Aspera Hiems Symfonia" by their fellow Norwegians Arcturus, would trigger a further metamorphosis in extreme metal.

Although starting from a black metal base, the five Norwegians decided to incorporate elements distant from metal into their music: and so began the influx of influences from Pink Floyd first and foremost, especially regarding keyboards and atmospheres, and a bit of all progressive rock concerning the structure of the songs, which are very intricate and lengthy. The lyrics also veer away from the typical genre clichés, no longer centered on criticism of Christianity, and start addressing spiritual and nature-related themes.

Divided into seven episodes, five of which are significantly longer than 5 minutes, with peaks exceeding 14 minutes, "Heart Of The Ages" is one of those few albums capable of balancing the extreme side of music with the more delicate aspect. The more aggressive vein is primarily highlighted by the use of scream vocals by Jan Kenneth Transeth and a rhythm section able to impart the right dose of aggression and the necessary depth to the compositions. In terms of the more serene aspect, the real queens are keyboards and guitars, always ready to craft atmospheres that are at times dreamlike and elegant, with the former recalling the aforementioned Pink Floyd and the latter consistently building refined riffs tinged with a subtle melancholy that accompanies the listener throughout the album.

Of the seven songs, those that best encapsulate the band from Kristiansand's philosophy are undoubtedly the two suites, namely "Yearning The Seeds Of A New Dimension" and the fifth "Wotan's Return". The first track, ideally divided into two, features a long atmospheric intro that inevitably brings to mind the famous "Shine On You Crazy Diamond", then it fades into a sort of psychedelic progressive metal in which Transeth delivers an excellent performance in clean vocals. The second half of the piece settles on more typically black territories: the shift occurs around 7 minutes in, after more than a minute in which a spoken voice is laid over a dark and menacing keyboard base. In this instance too, In The Woods... prove to be at ease, with sharper guitars, and the capable Transeth releasing an acidic and desperate scream while drums and bass in the background build impetuous rhythms that engulf the listener. The work astonishes also because possibly for the first time a piece succeeds in so happily merging the fury of black metal with a pursuit of technical and melodic aspects, without either aspect ever becoming predominant.

The other track referred to, "Wotan's Return", is instead steered towards a more typical black metal sound, featuring within its structure more stripped-down riffs that depend on a rhythm section performed at consistently high speeds. In this piece, the aspect that stands out the most is the scream vocals, which imbue a sense of despair throughout the composition, aided by the use of vocal filters that render the lines almost suffocated. The instrumental part is excellent, highlighting, if there were still any doubt, the band's technical prowess, especially in regards to guitars and piano (the solo around eleven minutes reaches truly high emotional peaks).

Within it, there is also room for two short instrumental tracks, namely "Mourning The Death Of Aase", in which the young Syanne Larsen makes an appearance with her soprano vocalizations, and "Pigeon", in which the piano is left as the sole protagonist. The other three songs, that is, the title track, "...In The Woods" and the concluding "The Divinity Of Wisdom", continue to move in the realms already tread by "Yearning..." and "Wotan's Return", achieving in these cases too quality levels well above average, especially in the last one, where one can witness an exciting duet between male and female voices, followed by the usual Transeth displaying a wrenching scream.

Summing it up, we can confidently define "Heart Of The Ages" as a unique work within the music scene, one of those few works where everything is in its right place, where no note is out of place, in one word (often overused), a masterpiece. The only flaw to note is the recording quality which is too muffled, tending to slightly drown out the sound of guitars and bass, the latter sometimes barely audible.

The album is recommended to all those who seek an original, quality-rich record, capable of moving from the first to the last minute. Beautiful.