ALBUM REVIEW: Til Klovers Takt – Kampfar
As far as pagan black metal goes, KAMPFAR are fast becoming the keeper of the keys. Delving deeper beneath the surface of 2019’s Ofidians Manifest, Til Klovers Takt doubles down on the mysterious darkness that settled into its predecessor’s bones.
Inspired by the eternally young skiing village of Hemsedal, located in the Scandinavian Alps, and Hallingdal, one of eastern Norway’s major valleys, Til Klovers Takt is an audible trek through snowy mountains and hazardous valleys. Its six chapters spread across 44 minutes will burden you with frostbite before relieving you with the warmth of a thousand suns; it’s slow and steady out the starting gate, until its second half steals the show immeasurably.
Lausdans Under Stjernene is a dungeon-like dirge of an opening drive, as clanging pianos chime against guttural vocals before giving way to a blastbeat blizzard of bleakness that sees you wading through impossible conditions. Whilst its worldly interludes and progressive black metal show growth, it’s four minutes too long, as its murkily mucky mix leaves you sludging it out in a swamp-like sound that sinks into one.
The primeval power of Urkraft readies you for war, as the industrial clangs echoing into your eardrums find a home in its stomping, tribal drums. Its lo-fi vocals and murky mixing, reminiscent of the mid-90s black metal scene the band made their name in, has you crawling through the caverns of Mordor, before its instrumental sections slip your mind into a subconscious trip through time, through KAMPFAR’s many shapes and sounds, yet ultimately the continuous clashing of ideas crumbles a strong song’s potential.
Wait out the storm however, and you’ll be duly rewarded for your loyalty. Flammen Fra Nord’s dissonant riffs echo out, breaking into English-speaking spoken word at a pace so lightning fast you’d be forgiven for feeling someone summoned the God of Thunder. Vocalist Dolk’s signature scream is like a moth to a flame – this is the soundtrack to being set alight, and its unforgiving attempt at causing an avalanche of distortion, noise and walls of rhythmic dissonance to chase you down the snowy slopes is a stroke of genius.
Rekviem and Dødens Aperitiff follow in Flammen Fra Nord’s footsteps. The former roars out of the gate with the ferocity of a thousand dragons descending upon the Earth, its blastbeat-armageddon stealing away your senses as Dolk spits venom into your eardrums. The latter’s slow, churning riffs roll out like funeral marches; firing itself up as it makes its grand entrance through the halls of Valhalla, eerie atmospherics flooding your body with chills.
Til Klovers Takt may struggle to synthesise its ideas into palatable bites at times, but nonetheless it contributes to KAMPFAR’s enriching back catalogue of experimental pagan black metal. If you need a world of fantasy to fold your reality into for just under an hour, Til Klovers Takt is the ultimate soundtrack.
Rating: 7/10
Til Klovers Takt is set for release on November 11th via Indie Recordings.
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