Slechtvalk
At The Dawn Of War

THE REVIEW

Ideologically born under the sign of musical cacophony, black metal has perhaps been the extreme genre that has undergone the most renewals and evolutions: the years when Bathory and Venom produced static, fast but at the same time lumbering albums, filled with palpable hatred and misanthropy, seem even further away than they actually are. These were also the years when Immortal and Emperor decided to give the entire scene, albeit from two different perspectives, a more melodic twist. From here emerged a significant number of bands, including Dimmu Borgir and the early Cradle Of Filth, which over time lost the black spirit, focusing instead on the "baroque" aspect of the compositions, stuffing the music with unnecessary embellishments that only dulled the edge and weighed down the compositions.

On the other hand, it's still possible to find some bands that, while sounding melodic, remain closer to the path already tread by Abbath and Ihsahn with their respective musical companies, and among these surely are the Slechtvalk, a Dutch band dedicated to a violent black metal with lightning-fast rhythms that also finds the right space for melody.

Born in the last decade, Slechtvalk includes Shamgar on scream vocals and guitars, Seraph on guitars, Ohtar also on guitars and clean vocals, Grimbold on drums and shofar (a wind instrument), and visually, during live shows, the dancer Meallà completes the scene.
With already two LPs behind them, they return to the market in 2005 with the album "At The Dawn Of War" which marks their definitive consecration, presenting us with an extremely mature work in terms of composition and execution, with significant, fresh, and original songwriting, and execution qualities that, while not miraculous, are more than satisfactory, especially regarding drums and guitars.

Composed of ten tracks plus a bonus track, "At The Dawn Of War" immediately presents itself as a fairly varied and dynamic album, structured in an intricate yet compact manner, so as not to lose the listener's attention: the spirits that emerge, after careful analysis, are primarily two, one closer to a folk-like aspect, as seen in "Under A Moonlit Sky," a fast track where the black matrix is well present, but also contains elements closer to folk music, thanks to the melodic guitar lines and especially due to Ohtar's interpretation capable of adding, with his clean vocals, an added value to an already impactful piece. Alongside such episodes, songs appear that are closer to typically melodic black standards, like in "Call To Arms," devastating in its violent progression. It's perhaps in this track that our young Dutch artists reach the peak of their musical expression, presenting objectively beautiful melodies, yet full of despair. The emotional aspect is what strikes the most, the scream vocals become even more exasperated and are supported by guitar lines soaked in melancholy, forming a gray ensemble where every glimmer of light, even the smallest, is swallowed up into total darkness.

In this landscape, they manage to find space for some thrash death bursts, like in "Desertion," endowed with the right charge and featuring more atmospheric and reflective moments derived from gothic metal, more akin to the tradition of Cradle of Filth from the "Dusk... And Her Embrace" period, with the insertion of background organs and choruses bridging between Gregorian and more typically gothic styles.
The rest of the album stands on more typically melodic black styles, full of references to historical groups of the genre, while maintaining a strong and defined personality, which, in my opinion, makes this band one of the best of the last decade.

Know that the album is based on a concept which I have decided not to reveal to you and encourage you to discover only after a careful listen to this product; you will be, as they say... amazed. For now, they pass with flying colors, the work done is excellent, able to draw from tradition with a keen eye to ensure the music does not sound dated or predictable, and in such lean times, this can only make us particularly happy.

Regards.