Keep Of Kalessin 'Through Times Of War'
Avantgarde, 1997
Lord Pale:
Keep Of Kallesin play dark Nordic blackmetal in the vein of 'De Mysteriis, Dom Sathanas' with occasional droning keyboards. Incorporating some pulsing double kicks into their sound along with screeching solos, they retain a familiar yet distinctive sound sometimes reminiscent of Bloodthorn during the slower passages. With old school blackmetal vocals with slight reverb similar to, although clearer early Satyricon and heavy doom riffs interspersed with blastbeats and traditional Nordic riffery, the band stay true to the early sound of the scene. Some great drum work abounds switching between flat out and more casual brutality throughout the albums course, but remaining simplistic overall and keeping a good beat. The album cover is set up similar to Mayhem as well with no lyrics and blurred band photos but for all their similarity to the Norse legends they don't have the same knack for writing classic material that remains memorable. The last track provides and interesting twist sounding a little psychedelic compared to the rest of the material but seems to fit in without damaging the albums core of evil. A good start, but some work needed.
Favourite Tracks - I Choose To Suffer, Den Siste Krieg, Nectarous Red
Mark - 7/10 |
