Windir
Likferd

THE REVIEW

"Likferd", meaning “funeral” in the Norwegian dialect Sognamål, is an almost ironic title for an album released the year before the hypothermia death of Valfar, the unfortunate founder of Windir, a metal band that wouldn't survive its creator. The Windir, meaning “warrior” in Norwegian, were one of the few genuinely interesting and original bands within a genre that is too easily exhausted, photocopiable, and sterilely recyclable like extreme metal.

The music played is essentially viking metal with strong black metal influences. These influences manifest themselves in the band's external appearance (with face painting and absurd nicknames) as well as in the music. However, it is a black metal devoid of its most difficult and extreme aspects; therefore, there are no monotonous drone-like rhythms, constant blast beats, and enigmatic cacophonies: what you find is only powerful and piercing scream, strength, speed, violence, and a unique sense of epicness. On this base, conceived and played properly (you can even hear the bass for once), Windir managed to leave room for their personal melodic taste which is expressed in passages of clean vocals, synthesizers, and accordions, often winking at Norwegian folk music. The more melodic parts are not only found in breaks and isolated parts but are often blended with the more violent, dark, and impetuous sounds. It may take more than one listen to notice the melody painted on this dark and turbulent base. The lyrics themselves are composed not only in English but mostly in Norwegian, with parts in the Sognamål dialect and Old Norse, testifying to the group's deep attachment to their homeland. Also, notice the superb cover, taken from a 19th-century painting.

It begins with Resurrection of the Wild, a powerful song characterized by clean vocals capable of immediately immersing the listener in a whirlwind of emotions: a strong sense of epicness, pride, dignity but also sadness and melancholy is perceived. The various songs do not differ too much in style from one another, but they manage never to seem like a copy of one another; notable is the accordion intro of Fagning, the Viking might (I wouldn't know how to define it otherwise) of Martyrium and Despot, the darkness of the extremely violent On the Mountain of Goats, and the simple beauty of the concluding Ætti Mørkna.

It is nonetheless a work that is difficult to listen to, not recommended for newcomers and aimed at genre enthusiasts: a casual listener like myself had to struggle a lot to finally appreciate this album in all its greatness.