There is no doubt in anyone’s mind that Darkthrone are one of the most important bands to ever come out of the black metal scene, and their early albums are triumphs from beginning to end. Fenriz and Nocturno Culto have followed their own path for many years now, forsaking the need to play live or use external musicians and instead wrap themselves into their own world. This is their twentieth studio album, and their seventeenth in the thirty years since the departure of Zephyrous left them as a duo. It is also their fourth in just five years, and while they were renowned in their early years of being able to have a very high output with no loss of quality, one wonders if the same can now be said all these years later.

This is not a bad album, far from it, but it is also not a great album either and one cannot help but wonder if the kudos being heaped upon it is due more to the name on the front cover than the music contained within. To my ears the sound is just too clean, and while there are black metal influences here and there, we also get plenty of doom and also some power metal, all of which comes across as somewhat boring and tedious. There is an impression at times (take “Black Dawn Affiliation” for example) where it feels the band are marking time while trying to work out what to do next. The use of clean vocals care of Fenriz also just do not tie in well with what Nocturno is providing, and I found myself getting quite confused as to what the Norwegians are trying to achieve. True, they have brought in many differing metal styles over the years, but this album feels almost as if ideas are being thrown onto a wall to see what sticks best. The result is something which is enjoyable while it is being played but there is little here to make me want to play it again.

Rating: 6/10

Links:
https://www.facebook.com/Darkthroneofficial/
https://peaceville.com/