Nordvargr
"Awaken"

Every human being should listen to this CD at least once in their life, regardless of the genre they usually listen to, regardless of who they are and what they do in life. A complete review of this work is practically impossible because it's like reviewing death. To fully enjoy this album, you must live it, you have to listen to it in as many different contexts as possible, but how can you do this for death, total annihilation. The proposal of the Swede Henrik Nordvargr Bjork, (founding member of MZ 412 with whom he released the chilling “Burning the temple of God”) is absolute nihilism, a kind of Black Ambient Industrial Drone, where absolute darkness prevails. In short, this album is pitch black, there is no hope in the eight tracks, there isn't the slightest glimmer of light, starting from the cover where you can see a pile of skulls staring at you from their empty sockets.

This CD was conceived exclusively for those who want and demand very strong emotions from music and especially for those who want to try to joke with their most hidden feelings. Even if we cannot talk about music in this case but rather about sounds and sensations. Now I will try to give you an overview of the eight tracks even if it will be a daunting task. First of all, it must be said that the work in question is totally instrumental. The first track entitled “Awaken” is predominantly characterized by a synth that sketches a slow and dark riff barely perceived with sudden twists. But it is with the second track “Cellardwerder” that, in my opinion, one delves into the true spirit of Awaken. It starts with a hyper-distorted, cold and slow black guitar riff, the sensation it wants to convey is the exact moment of passing from this life to nothingness. It's like being on your deathbed with your loved ones screaming your name at the bedside, but by then it's too late and you no longer belong to this world. The riff lasts less than a minute before giving way to the darkest and most minimalist ambient I've ever heard. The sensation is of being dragged into a vortex in some unknown dark part of the universe; at the end of the journey, you'll find yourself in a dark place where, in the distance, you can hear as if latches are forever trapping your soul in this lifeless limbo. The entire album is permeated by a alienating dark and leaden synth that perfectly blends all the tracks, cries of despair, metallic noises in the distance, slow tribal rhythms, and death knells. A noteworthy track is “Hascimh” with a deep and slow voice uttering arcane words, then degenerating into violent drones sadistically placed out of time and cognition to make the listener jump. The last track “Seeds Of Blood” alone is worth the entire price of the album. 17 minutes of agony. It always starts with ritualistic drones, suffocating and incredibly dark synths, then plunges into an endless abyss made of syncopated and very slow toms. The screams seem to echo through the foul and cold walls of hell, as if Our Master takes you by the hand to explore together with him the absolute darkness, traversing metaphysical places and dimensions. The album ends with sinister sounds that presage the end of this nightmare.

I recommend listening to this CD alone, in a completely dark room, with your eyes closed. You will see the night take shape and wrap around you, making you fall into a sort of trance; it's like tasting death for 55 minutes. After listening, you will begin to see and perceive the world with different eyes. At the beginning of the review, I wrote that every human being should listen to this CD, but unfortunately, it was limited to only 1000 copies that will never be reprinted. I recommend listening to this album (for those who have the chance) before making comments. Giorgio “GrigioO” Finiello