The name has lay buried in the bowels of Black Metal past for the
late great kings of the earliest Nordic uprising all those years ago. And
concurrently, with the seeming resurrection of Black Mark, the one time rulers
of Scandinavian dark, Bathory rises again from a decade long dormancy to unleash
"Nordland" upon the masses, a two-part package that's expected to be
completed in February 2003. Bathory's history dates back to a time when names
like Blood Feast, Celtic Frost, and Venom dominated the underground with their
black mass conjuring and cult followers united by the fire of the extreme that
ultimately developed into the popularized Metal sub genres of Black and Death
and the countless droves who'd follow, not the least of which includes names
like Cradle Of Filth, Dark Funeral, and Amon Amarth among many.
Bathory's resurfacing yields the most majestic and atmospheric offering of
their near twenty year career (which will be officially 20 in March of 2003),
which has included any number of recognized classics - "Bathory,"
"Twilight Of The Gods," "Requiem," and survived various
attempts at scientific self-discovery as well as the sinister leanings of
Quorthon's solo sell out attempts along the way. "Nordland: 1" is
along the lines of Bathory's ever present Nordic trace that first gave rise on
earlier epics like "Hammerheart" or the revered, "Blood On
Ice" release. It's knee deep in swords, steel, snow and self-discovery as
if from a wide eyed child's imaginative journey where reality and history clash
in an epic confrontation that's inevitably an ode to a proud yet unforgiving
homeland where "Dark grey skies and endless forests" reign supreme. At
the onset, "Prelude" serves as the expected calm before the storm
here. "Nordland: 1" is tied together by dominant themes of the great
Nordic landscape and Norse warriors in an ever changing climate from present to
past amidst great use of lyrical foreshadow, instrumentalism, and contemplative
affectation. "Nordland" and "Vinterblot" are back to back
follow ups that employ a wayward seafaring stab at adventure on the high seas -
envision an early age Running Wild dressed in skins and draped in black.
"Dragons Breath" then becomes the early epic favorite - a six-minute
monument to the mythological beast's fury and the free breaking spirit of a
slowly developing conquering hero.
"Rings Of Gold" is an acoustically led pause to reflect upon earth
and sky in a dreamlike return to origination before yielding to the eight minute
mini-tale of "Foreverdark Woods," which itself soon crumbles to the
suddenness of "Broken Sword." For its battle-ready nature, there's a
slight return to the "roots" of the past where Bathory's acclaimed
power, becomes blinded by aggression. "Hall Awaits A Fallen Brother"
embarks on another eight-minute excursion through the mists of time ably
assisted by crudely channeled guitar power and double bass drums, either of
which serves to enhance rather than dominate.
Much the same can be said for "Nordland: 1" overall, as the
dynamism of shifting tones between the enchanted and extreme embody and embolden
a densely produced record that's aurally prescient and conscientiously portrayed
and performed by the resurgent Boss and Quorthon team. In following their
massive "Destroyer Of Worlds" mixed bag undertaking of a few years
back, Bathory's satisfied to revisit their roots with a nationally symbolic
glimpse that's entrenched in rarely footed Nordic Metal extremes… if not set
to reopen the rusty gates of yesterday's dark dungeon.
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