_________________________________________________________________________ | . . | . | . | . | . | | . | . | , | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | > | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ` | ' | | | ' | | ` | ' | ' | ___|___|___|___|_______|_______|___|___|_______|___|_______|_______|_______|___ \______________________________________|______________________________________/ / \ | Artist..: Valkyrja | >-----------------------------------------------------------------------------< | Album...: The Invocation of Demise | >-----------------------------------------------------------------------------< | Genre...: Black Metal | Label...: Metal Blade Rec. | | Year....: 2009 | Cat.No..: | >-----------------------------------------------------------------------------< | R.date..: 2023-07-26 | S.date..: 2009-07-17 | >-----------------------------------------------------------------------------< | Source..: WEB (16bit) | Encoder.: libFLAC | | Bitrate.: 1049kbps avg. | F.Rate..: 44.1kHz | >-----------------------------------------------------------------------------< | http://open.qobuz.com/album/bk43x6z4wvwha | >-----------------------------------------------------------------------------< | Disc 1 / 1 | | -------- | | | | 01. Origin Reversed! 1:38 | | 02. As Everything Rupture 5:11 | | 03. Plague Death 6:24 | | 04. The Vigil 5:24 | | 05. Twilight Revelation 1:52 | | 06. On Stillborn Wings 1:48 | | 07. Sinister Obsession 8:53 | | 08. Purification and Demise 7:40 | | 09. Frostland 5:02 | | | | | | --------------------- | | (349.79MB) 00:43:52 | >-----------------------------------------------------------------------------< | Far be it for me to gouge a gash into the gush of Niall H's previous | | review of “The Invocation Of Demise,” so I won't, after all the praise | | heaped upon it was quite justified. Now re-released so that if you missed | | being trampled underfoot by horses from Valhalla the first time, you can | | now suffer a bruising, after all, as they say, the hoof hurts. | | | | As you'd expect with mythological figures from above, VALKYRJA thunder in | | and it would be with all guns blazing if such things existed in Asgard. | | There's nothing sheathed here, all weapons are bared, glinting with the | | reflection of flames of fury as melodic riffs pile in like a cavalry | | charge, often they sweep with a hint of undulation and despite the swift | | momentum, they never lose mass. With the grandeur comes touches of gravel, | | the beginning of “Plague Death” plays rough, chucking in some chunk before | | the mainstay motif takes precedence, soaring along like a raven with a | | rocket up its arse. In common with other tracks then, you get a leap from | | the precipice regularly interspersed with the bone-shattering hello with a | | cliff ledge before rolling off for the next submission to gravity's grip. | | | | Whilst much of this album whips along with firestorm frenzy, some songs | | merely smoulder, they may be glowing but it's the smoke that's showing, | | “The Vigil” brings the tempo right down but maintains its weight, this | | slow burner allows you to swing your sputtering torches above your head in | | homage to beards and braids. Ending with a soulful solo that ratchets up | | the emotion as it progresses, the guitar inspires the drums to pick up the | | tempo for an increase in double bass patter to end the song on a high. | | Amongst the barrage is a significant use of acoustic strum, which as well | | as being used as a counterpoint, also acts in accompaniment to the rowdier | | aspects of VALKYRJA's sound, it has to be said that the band know how to | | build the moment and it's gratifying to observe that despite the more | | reflective approach, there's no whiff of cheese. | | | | One of this albums strengths is the manner in which the emphasis of guitar | | and drums is equal, both unleash considerable force but rather than going | | for individual bragging rights, they work together to provide a powerhouse | | of pugnacious punishment. The drums give the word “pummel” some meaning as | | they are fuller than Pavarotti's coffin and just as heavy, as well as the | | double bass' constant tattoo, there are effective blast beats that are | | used judiciously and all manner of fills and rolls and all that stuff that | | hyperactive drummers do, it's all perfectly controlled though, there's a | | cattle prod nearby to keep this beast behaving. In a field where it's | | difficult to be distinct, the vocals have an identity that avoids having | | to use histrionics to sound different. A gruff growl is used to present | | the lyrics, occasionally rising to a harsh howl at the end of a line, it's | | mostly no nonsense sneer, dragging some words for emphasis. | | | | If any album could be described as “dynamic,” “The Invocation Of Demise” | | would have a shiny badge declaring it best in show. This is full of | | movement and event, the compositions ensure that whilst the gale prevails, | | moments of calm and threats of the storm keep you with it. A suitable name | | for this band then, only it might be considered cheating when they're | | doing the slaying too. | \_____________________________________________________________________________/ ixxu!imp