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Enslaved: Blodhemn

02/05/08 || The Duff

I wasn’t quite sure whether this deserved to be in the classic section or not; to say that this album, like all of Enslaved’s early records pre-“Monumension”, is short of magnificent would be doing an injustice to the band, yet on “Blodhemn”, it feels as though Enslaved aren’t quite up to scratch with their songwriting when taking into consideration their first three records. This is still an incredible black/Viking release, filled with some of the most intelligently rendered compositions I’ve heard coming from simple keyboards, black metal rasps, guitars and insane, extremely capricious drumming that doesn’t quite sound like its being played by someone in complete control of their body. If ever there was a band that could challenge Emperor, it would be Enslaved, and I can’t say that “Blodhemn” is far off the mark in maintaining this as fact.

The scope of any Enslaved album is traditionally very grand, despite the variety of music to be found within the entirety of Enslaved’s discography. On “Blodhemn”, the band seems to have willingly cut down track lengths and kept the arrangements quite simple (nothing as lengthy as something off of “Eld”, for example). As a result, you get an amazing record that is filled with the classic Enslaved touch, but unfortunately minutely pales in comparison to other efforts from the band because you get the impression things haven’t been pushed to the fullest. What’s more, “Blodhemn” suffers from a dud track or two, namely the closer (purely Viking-influenced folk music, and some laughable vocals) and the forgettable “Brisinghamen”, as well as some segments lacking that spark found all over everything else the band has released up until present (with the exception of “Monumension”) – this would be a remarkable E.P., and the more I think of the masterpieces that preceded and followed it, “Eld” and “Mardraum” respectively, the more I wish such was the case and the less inclined I am to spin “Blodhemn”.

The funny thing is that “Blodhemn” still deserves a score that shits all over the majority of albums today – the production (Peter Tägtgren, Abyss Studios) is very bright, with every instrument mixed to a spacious overall quality, reflecting the light album artwork. The musicianship is of an unusually high calibre; you rarely find musicians playing so well together without at least one of them jumping out and jizzing all over the listener with an eagerness to reveal the fruits of many years of labour it takes to master an instrument (there’s a lazy pun somewhere in there), and although there are flourishes here and there from all the performers, its always with the song (or in Enslaved’s case, the complete album) in mind. Yeah, I have some trouble with the clean chants when not overlaid the black metal attack, but you’re not likely to find a more accomplished vocalist than Grutle Kjellson (or “ol’ Rusty Cock” as he’s known to his mates) within the sub-genre, who delivers a blood-chilling performance responsible for bringing half the album’s feel to the table. The riffs are both original and atmospheric, boosted by some very simple yet very effective synth – just one of the many appealing aspects to Enslaved’s music that has catapulted the band to the head of the black metal crowd. So in short, this is a great release – uglier than earlier albums, which seemed to focus more on the ambiance, but unfortunately belittled when taking into account all of the band’s efforts.

7 challenges to Emperor’s throne out of 10.

Information
Released: 1999
Label: Osmose
Website: www.enslaved.no
Band
Grutle Kjellson: vocals, bass
Ivar Bjørnson: guitars, synth
Richard Kronheim: guitars
Dirge Rep: drums

Tracklist
01. Intro: Audhulma
02. I lenker tel Ragnarok
03. Urtical Gods
04. Ansuz Astral
05. Nidingaslaki
06. Eit auga til Mimir
07. Blodhemn
08. Brisinghamen
09. Suttungs Mjød/Outro: Perkulator

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