Horna "Sudentaival" (Woodcut Records, 2001)

Sudentaival is the third full-length album from Horna. Released in March 2001 on Woodcut Records, this record sticks out like a sore thumb, when compared to the rest of the band's discography. For a band that has long been one of the pillars of the Finnish Black Metal scene, they made a severe misstep with this release. Thankfully, they learned from their mistakes, down the line.

Musically, this is not terribly far from the material that was heard on Kohti Yhdeksän Nousua. The band took several years to really find their own style, and this album is a product of that confusion. At this point, Shatraug's brilliant guitar melodies had not yet taken shape, so there is a mixture of generic ideas and some that demonstrate a shred of the potential that would soon be realized. The atmosphere of this L.P. is anything but dark or evil, which is a shift from the previous outing. While Haudankylmyyden Mailla was plagued by an overall sense of unoriginality, there was definitely an effort to pay home to the early-'90s Norwegian scene. Sudentaival seems to have been reaching out to more modern tastes, at the time. The overall approach sounds more in line with later Marduk, as the vocals and percussion dominate the sound. The blast beats seem to crush any attempt that the guitars make at creating a dark feeling.

The production is as much at fault for this atrocity as the songwriting. It sounds extremely fake and plastic, suffering from a sound that is similar to what one would expect from Abyss Studio. This gives off the impression of being horribly-produced Death Metal, moreso than having anything to do with Black Metal. The drums are way to high in the mix and the guitars are buried underneath everything else, when it should have been the other way around. I recall the confusion when I first put this CD in, as I thought I had been sent the wrong album. While the band's earlier efforts were all slightly too modern-sounding for my taste, this one crossed a line that no one can deny. The fact of the matter is that Sudentaival is not completely worthless, musically, but the horrible sound makes it nearly impossible to enjoy. Only during the slower sections are the sombre guitar melodies allowed to breathe. It is a shame as, with a more underground production and a little more work on the material, itself, this could have been a decent album.

Sudentaival is the one Horna record that I would not recommend. The few positives that it possesses are not really worth enduring the rest. Obviously, this did not have the greatest effect for the band members, either, as Nazgul left to start Satanic Warmaster and Shatraug began putting most of his energy into Sargeist, not long after this. After developing his style a bit more, with that project, the following Horna releases began to really take on an identity of their own. My advice would be to skip this and move on to Envaatnags Eflos Solf Esgantaavne. 

The Chasm "Procesion To The Infraworld" Dwell Records 2000

Comparing this album to the one that came before it would be very unfair. Deathcult is one of the greatest albums ever recorded. I'm personally glad that The Chasm didn't release Deathcult part 2 here. I'm glad they went in a slightly different direction. It adds another sound, another personality to the band. But I can also see how some fans were let down and turned away by Procession to the Infraworld. After Deathcult every Chasm fan was expecting another death metal milestone, another reinvention of the genre. The bar was set so high and to many fans this album didn't reach it. I enjoy this album from start to finish. Is it as a whole better than Deathcult? No, not even close actually. But is it better than every other death metal album that was released in 1999? Yes (even better than Necrophagist - Onset of Putrefaction). Not comparing it to what came before or after, Procession to the Infraworld is a really great Chasm album.

Line up THE CHASM: 

Daniel Corchado Guitars, Vocals, Lyrics

Antonio León Drums, Percussion

Julio Viterbo Guitars

Roberto Valle Bass

This is the first Chasm album with Julio Viterbo on guitar and the first recorded while living in the States. A slightly different guitar style is here. The riffs are still melodic, only a different type of melodic than Deathcult. Kind of hard to put into words really. Daniel's voice still sounds amazing. The solos are also kind of different, still melodic but a bit less emotional and sorrowful sounding and some actually shred a bit.

Spectral Sons of the Mictlan is the first track and is an instrumental, and as I said in an earlier review The Chasm write the best instrumentals. At the Edge of the Nebula Mortis is a nice song with melodic riffing and a nice solo in there. Fading is the shortest Chasm song at just over 2 minutes. Not a bad song, but it does seem a bit out of place. Return of the Banished is one of the highlights of the album and has some nice solos and great riffs. Architects of Melancholic Apocalypse is the best song on Procession to the Infraworld with my favorite solo on the album at the 4 minute mark. Daniel's voice also sounds best on this song. Storms of Revelations ends the album with more great riffing and shredding.

This 4th album by The Chasm is quite different from the first three. The riffing is more aggressive, the solos are more shredding, the vocals are more high-pitched. If you go into this album expecting Deathcult part 2 you will be disappointed. If you go into this album just wanting to hear awesome death metal then you will be pleased. This is The Chasm's most underrated album. Highly recommended.

"The Dominant Symbol of the Supremacy, Which Flows and Invades our Furious Souls and Emanates from my Conquering Visions, Feeds the Ironwill of my Essence..."

Track list in this album: 

1. Spectral Sons of the Mictlan 03:31  

2. The Scars of My Journey 03:50   

3. At the Edge of the Nebula Mortis 06:22   

4. Fading... 02:14   

5. Return of the Banished 06:36   

6. Cosmic Landscapes of Sorrow 05:44  

7. Architects of Melancholic Apocalypse 05:36   

8. Storm of Revelations 07:02   

Hypocrisy "The Fourth Dimension" Nuclear Blast 1994

Hypocrisy never caught my complete attention, musically talking, maybe except for their masterpiece Abducted that featured a violent change of musical direction towards more melodic and weird sounds. That change anyway passed also through another album, this The Fourth Dimension that opened the gates of a more mature sound for them. The violence of the early years and albums was still present but this album featured also more mature and technical compositions. 

Another change we can see is the one that happened behind the microphone. Magnus "Masse" Bromberg has been “replaced” by the real mastermind here, Peter Tagtgren that at first was playing the guitars only. This is I think the most important change ever by this band. This guy, initially heavily influenced by the american brutal death metal, had the chance to mature and fill the sound with new elements from his mind and intelligence. It was like everything had to be redone, re-played and reconstructed once again. 

The cold brutality of the past efforts this time has been filtrated through another kind of obscurity and coldness. If the one at the beginning was pure Satanic and violent, this time the futurism, the Sci-Fi themes were the most important thing. So, we begin with the strangely mid-paced “Apocalypse” that shows weird keyboards passages and good, melodic lead guitars lines under a suffered growl that sometimes turns also in screams. Peter has grown a lot technically and he could do anything in creative field for his new creature, his new Hypocrisy. 

The production this time is more “full” and the guitars are never full of that sick distortion like in the past. This time, they are more simply and more powerful in sounds while we go on meeting the great tempo changes of “Mind Corruption” and the apocalyptic atmospheres of “Reincarnation”. The growls are truly powerful and the melodies are always the important thing. These songs are really astonishing for their musical burden of darkness, sorrow and somehow something artificial and scientific. More than once I felt to be in a mysterious area where weird experiments are occulted to the common people. 

“Reborn” and “Orgy In Blood” are just the two of the most representative examples of the most violent death metal band’s side. Anyway, also during these parts the way of playing and the more “controlled” fury help in creating more mature and less chaotic compositions. In these cases the tremolo picking is the most utilized technique while during the other, more melodic, songs the open chords long noted are required to give the right atmosphere. Anyway, it is good to notice that also during the fastest compositions they never abandoned that burden of darkness and occultism. 

“Black Forest” is shocking for the number of tempo changes inside it and they lead also to complete changes of atmosphere. For example, check the mid-paced beginning that turns to galloping riffs in the middle and flows directly into a kind of obscure and sad black metal part by the end. Unbelievable. Sometimes, during the path to the Fourth Dimension we can meet also whispered vocals, melodic solos and melodic death metal parts. I believe that this album is the most representative for the growing melodic death metal scene, and not Heartwork like many say. 

This album is the classic example of unexpected, surprising, astonishing and unpredictable musical change by a band. When you leave the band to someone competent this is what you get. A great album. Actually, the new efforts by this band are a bit beyond for me and too strange for my tastes but if you want to enjoy the Hypocrisy’s essence, take this one and Abducted. The previous albums were Okay but with these two the things got really yummy.