Marduk
Opus Nocturne

THE REVIEW

"The Evil that Challenged the Ancient Sign, The Horde that Guards the Hidden Gate of the Tombs, feasting on what its inhabitants become: all these abominations are inferior to The One Who Stands at the Threshold of Darkness..."
Necronomicon, Abdul Alhazred (uncertain translation)

The Night. Foscolo, Leopardi, Pascoli, Wilde, Goethe, Huysmans, and all those who explored human perceptions, even in the slightest, wrote about it. But none of them was able to describe the irrational fear that grips man in the presence of Darkness. This ancestral feeling is instead manifest in the masterful "Opus Nocturne" in all its disarming force.

"The Appearance Of Spirits Of Darkness" has the task of banishing the light. A spectral organ, with passages rich in pathos, produces sweetly malevolent evolutions…
The mighty guitar wall of "Sulphur Souls" shatters the atmosphere with a torrential explosion. Gravf, predecessor of Legion, delivers growls that are nothing short of abyssal, at times even overpowering the enraged drumming of the ever-excellent Andersson. B War rules with chilling riffs, shaping the sound like an infernal Demiurge, dialoguing with the voice in a horrific alternation of bestiality. "From Subterranean Throne Profound" confirms the impression of the first track: the mark of Nordic black metal is branded on every single, sulfurous note. The track is dominated by an unwholesome, unsettling growl. The tones do not wane with "Autumnal Reaper": there is no melody in this album. The only trace of stylistic virtuosity that emerges among the demonic tortured wail of the guitar and the drilling rhythmic pattern imposed by the drums is offered by a sinister bass, which knots the violent instrumental backdrop in passages of eerie slowness. Once again, B War reigns in "Materialized In Stone". The pace of the track is set by his work. The dark phrasing of his bass provides the background to the vocal insertions of Af Gravf, overshadowing the sound. The guitar adds an oneiric, surreal touch, replacing the tyrannical bassist in the final arpeggio, which accompanies a frightening growl.
The display of stylistic brutality is evident in "Untrodden Paths (Wolves Part II)". No space for change of scheme, no guitar passage. A single, devastating riff that undergoes the glorious entry of the usual B War. Unbounded violence and cruelty, aimed at worshipping the Darkness.
"Opus Nocturne" is introduced by a very somber solo followed by the drums, giving rise to an unsettling phrase. Gravf, with a deep but not scratched timbre, hails the night.
"Deme Quaden Thyrane" makes its entrance with relative slowness on low tones. The guitar proposes a fierce element. The musical massacre continues in ever darker shades in a crescendo of speed.
Perhaps one of Marduk's best pieces, "The Sun Has Failed" seems to rise from the earth like the lament of the Beast locked in the abyss. The guitar weaves fast webs of solos, cadenced by fierce drums. The bass offers unsettling scales. But it is Gravf who makes this piece a true gem. His voice insinuates itself acidly between the notes, chanting a lullaby made of darkness. His scream lacerates the parts, breaks every scheme, awakening the most ancient human fears, until it evolves into an imposing growl, which merges with the echoes of a majestic storm, a voice of thunder that gets lost in the thunder.
...and the sun fell...