Nordvargr – Awaken

Busy days for collectors of the complete works of Nordvargr… He is releasing material with many projects, like Folkstorm and Toroidh and a handful more, there seems to be a new cd out every week. Shortly even an 8-cd box will be available, through Old Europa Cafe, under his full name Henrik Nordvargr Björkk. This “Awaken” cd is re-released as a co-production between Eibon Records and Code666, and sounds rather minimal and ambient. But as always the mood is ultra dark.

You have to turn up the volume and listen closely, and even then it takes a few listening turns before the music gets through to you. This album descends into deepest cellars, which remain a bit foggy, without revealing all their secrets, but it is a scary world down there. At times the dark electronic soundscapes are adorned by sparse orchestral elements, to achieve some haunting, mysterious effects. Lustmord-like solitary noises add to the ambience. Some tracks consist of not much more than veryd eep drones. At times you hear whisperings of lost souls or frightening voices, but the sound always remains subtle. Good dark and threatening ambient, a soundtrack for nocturnal horrors.

artist: Nordvargr
label: Eibon Records
details: 8 tracks, 54 min. 1000 copies