Isengard "Vinterskugge" CD
[Peaceville]
Yet another reissue from Peaceville, this time of an old solo project from Darkthrone's Fenriz. Oddly enough the three "chapters", chronicling three different releases from the project, aren't arranged in any order here, as 1993's "Vandreren" opens, then 1989's "Spectres Over Gorgoroth" demo, and then 1991's "Horizons". I would've expected things to either go in chronological or reverse chronological order. But that's not a big deal. I can't make up my mind on this stuff. As for "Vandreren", I like the music, which is raw, simplistic, sometimes slightly melodic metal that isn't so far removed from some of Darkthrone's slower, rugged black metal... but the vocals are usually way overdramatic singing under heavy reverb. And let's just put it this way: Ummm, Fenriz, well... he's not the greatest singer, and he hits more than a few off notes. Were he using a more aggressive vocal style this would be a far stronger record, as the instrumentals and the tracks that utilize his token snarl are far superior (for example, "Ut i Vannets dyp Hvor Morket Hviler" could easily be an an old Darkthrone tune, and "Gjennom Skogen til Blaafjellene" is a great instrumental consisting of nothing but dual guitar harmonies and some subtle synth work). And as the title would suggest, "In the Halls and Chambers of Stardust the Crystallic Heavens Open" is a ridiculous synth instrumental that sounds very immature. The "Spectres Over Gorgoroth" demo is much better due to its consistency - it's rawer and more aggressive, bringing in more of a death metal influence and lower vocals, but keeping the structures simplistic (granted there are a lot more tempo changes - emphasizing speed more often). The "Horizons" material sounds very similar to the 1989 demo at times, but perhaps a bit heavier (though still very primal in the recording department) and definitely slower... hell, it's borderline doom metal at times. But it is the logical step between the demo and "Vandreren", especially vocally. As mentioned all three of these sessions have really rough production quality, but to be honest it works out in each case. I don't find any of this stuff to be unlistenable, as rugged and unpolished as some of it gets. So I don't have any real problems with it. In fact, I'd be tempted to say that in certain instances some of these songs are making about as good of a use of a rough ass sound as you can possibly do, so... don't let that hinder you. The disc comes in a glossy black and white digipack with minimal imagery consisting of a few dark, bleak photos (generally focused on wooded landscapes), and one panel of handwritten lyrics (in Norwegian) for the track "Naglfar". The final call? About half of these songs are good, 25% of them are okay, and the rest totally suck because of the vocals. Not bad, but not mandatory... There was a lot of potential in this work, though. I'll say that. (6/10)
Running time - 62:59, Tracks: 16
[Notable tracks: Gjennom Skogen til Blaafjellene, Ut i Vannets dyp Hvor Morket Hviler, Dark Lord of Gorgoroth, The Fog]
Peaceville - http://www.peaceville.com

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