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Månegarm: Nattväsen
03/12/09 || cadenz
In the beginning there was wood. No, not like that you sloppy-cock; you know, Ask and Embla , the first two humans that were carved out of wood by Odin and his brothers. Though as humanity’s history didn’t stop at those two, there has to have been – in Ask’s pants – wood. And now, some fifty-six aeons later, when one of today’s pagan/viking/folk metal’s flagships Månegarm’s new album is released upon humanity, I’m sure all of you fans of horned helmets and double-bladed axes are experiencing the one and the same – wood. Ta-dah, the circle is complete – I’m glad I got that out of the way, so we don’t have to discuss penises for the rest of the review…or do we?
If you are familiar with Månegarm’s few latest releases, you’ll know how this sounds. Pseudo-harsh drumming, folkish melodies, heavy metallic riffs, and a whole-lot of raspy-throat man-wailing – you know, drunken vikings hollering to one another across the mead hall about last week’s conquests, while at the same time pressing a whole onion-and-pepper-stuffed oxen into their salivating mouth, thus making any by chance coherently uttered phrases ultimately indistinguishable. In linguistic terms: “BRAAAAAAHHHGGLLLWWWHH!!!”
For this type of bellowing to be functional, the vocalist has to be exceptionally good. Mr. Grawsjö (Gravelake, how metal a name is that?) does an OK job. His gravelly “clean” voice sounds a bit corny sometimes, but pulls through, barely. The mid-to-high-pitched growling is better, but all in all the vocal department doesn’t fully convince me, which is crucial in this genre. The guitars deliver pretty standard traditional heavy metal riffing for the most part, with the odd blackish tint to some chord progressions. A frequently heard violin shares lead duties with the guitars, and bring the folkish touch to the mix.
Quite a lot of the melodies are sing-a-long-worthy and have quite a high a catch factor, and “Nattväsen” is a quality disc that contains quality songs with quality riffs, melodies, arrangements and execution – but something’s missing. I never get the feeling that this is anything more than “just another record”. On Månegarm’s first two records you could feel the magic of their inspiration and the need to express themselves through their music, an overall sense of creativity. Now, ten years later, I mainly hear the need to record another album so they can go on tour and support it. Another product out of the factory, if you will.
Still, this is an OK release and there are some highlights to be found. Catchiness is plentiful as mentioned. “Bergagasten” is a nice slower tune, and “Vetrarmegin” is a darker piece that is more in the vein of Månegarm’s earlier records. The title track is a guaranteed fan favorite with its catchy chorus, and surely works like hell on gigs. If your cup of tea is Scandinavian metal with catchy folk melodies, this might well suit you. I’ll have some coffee, please.
- Information
- Released: 2009
- Label: Regain Records
- Website: www.manegarm.com
- Band
- Erik Grawsjö: vocals, drums
- Markus Andé: guitar
- Jonas “Rune” Almquist: guitar
- Pierre Wilhelmsson: bass
- Janne Liljeqvist: violin
- Tracklist
- 01. Mina fäders hall
- 02. Nattsjäl, drömsjäl
- 03. Bergagasten
- 04. I den svartaste jord
- 05. Hraesvelg
- 06. Vetrarmegin
- 07. Draugen
- 08. Nattväsen
- 09. Delling
