By now it is a fact: Iceland, over the last 10 years, has proven to be a true breeding ground for talents devoted to the cult of the Black Flame. Numerous indeed are the bands from this land that have given new life to the genre, revitalizing and reshaping it with a completely new and personal perspective; a black metal that indeed has its roots in the glorious '90s tradition but is reinterpreted with a more modern, more current view. A perspective born from the most modern extreme avant-gardes that revolutionized the stylistic canons of Black Metal in the early 2000s (Deathspell Omega and Blut aus Nord above all, although the list of names is longer).
Among the numerous formations emerging from the land of ice and fire, Svartidauði (a name that can be translated as "Black Death," catchy isn't it?) can be considered the forerunners of this new school. Hailing from Reykjavik and active for about fifteen years, they began to take their first steps in the underground around the mid-2000s, with a series of demos and splits where they engaged with raw and primordial black metal, but which added nothing new to what was already known. Things changed with the release of the first album "Flesh Cathedral" (2012), a debut record where the band's deviant and quirky personality emerged with all its force: four compositions (with an average duration ranging between 10 to 15 minutes) teetering between black, progressive, dark ambient, and a subtle psychedelic vein that delighted those searching for something fresh in the extreme realm. The album soon became a cult record and one of the most brilliant examples of the new Icelandic wave, so much so that it opened the doors for a series of respectable musical formations such as Sinmara, Carpe Noctem, Misþyrming, Zhrine, and Rebirth of Nefast, just to be clear.
"Revelations of the Red Sword" was released in December 2018 by Ván Records, a label always attentive to the extreme underground, exactly six years after the debut. It was not an easy task for them to replicate the success of the previous record while simultaneously avoiding releasing a copycat album.
Fortunately for us, the Icelandic band, after taking the necessary time to choose a new musical direction, hit the target again with six new compositions that don't make us miss the past at all but rather show us a formation in shape and capable of reinventing itself with each release. More melodic and fluid than the debut album, "Revelations of the Red Sword" also boasts a decidedly fitting production, with a clear and powerful sound that does justice to every single instrument, including the voice.
In the new chapter of their discography, the band from Reykjavik decided to abandon the obsessive and hypnotic approach that had brought success to "Flesh Cathedral," reducing the average length of the tracks and giving them greater dynamism and compositional variety, as well as a greater melodic drive. Illustrative, in this sense, are the first two tracks, namely "Sol Ascending" and "Burning Worlds of Excrement," restless tracks that are in constant flux, yet at the same time assimilable and almost "catchy" even for an untrained listener. Thanks to a remarkable compositional sensitivity and an ability to fit multiple riffs fluidly and seamlessly like a river in full flow following its natural course. Noteworthy is the drumming work of Magnús Skúlason, capable of alternating irregular tempos with epic gallops, supported by mighty blastbeats.
However, Svartidauði also know how to slow down the tempo when needed, to give the entire work greater pathos and weight, as occurs in the fourth track "Wolves of a Red Sun," which starts slowly and in a measured way, then increases in intensity up to an overwhelming finale, or in the long "Reveries of Conflagration," characterized by a sudden break at the limits of doom around halfway through, and then taking an entirely unexpected path.
But the main course is served at the end of the album. "Aureum Lux," with its eleven-plus minutes of duration, is the worthy conclusion of this torrential album. Slow and measured at first, the track increases in intensity and speed minute by minute, until it culminates in a white-hot assault with blastbeats and scorching riffs (remarkable guitar work by Þórir Garðarsson, also active in compatriots Sinmara), so much so that it wouldn't be out of place on an Enslaved album of the old school (those of the "Frost" or "Eld" era, just to clarify). And after so much emotional intensity, the piece dissolves slowly, gradually slowing down like in the first minutes, until the nebulous final conclusion.
So, what else is there to say? With this "Revelations of the Red Sword," Svartidauði hit the target again, giving us three-quarters of an hour of textbook black metal, reaffirming themselves as one of the best formations around. Of course, replicating a record like "Flesh Cathedral" is practically impossible, and the more seasoned listeners may not find anything revolutionary in these grooves; however, it's undeniable our band's ability to rewrite the rules of an entire musical genre while avoiding appearing as mere clones of more established bands. An album, therefore, that confirms the excellent health of the current extreme scene.
Tracklist
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