Look, sometimes it’s as clear as day. You can pretty much count on the fact that with some bands, an album is always good. Is that so? Yes, actually it is. There will always be an album in the list that is your personal favorite. But whichever record you pull from your collection, there’s always at least one song on that album that makes your hair stand on end, you know the lyrics even if you don’t understand a word of the language, and which instantly catapults you back to that day in your life when you first held the album in your hands.
I have those kinds of emotional connections with the work of Mr. Vintersorg. It’s been just about eight years since anything new was released. Till Fjäls, del II was a double album. Now, in collaboration with the Dutch Hammerheart Records, these Swedes are once again at the forefront. Something was already bound to happen. After all, the record label was eagerly busy polishing up old gems and reissuing them.
The icy region of Skellefteå has for decades been a source of inspiration for this band, as seen in the chosen themes and album covers in the past. Yet philosophical themes, astronomy and some avant-garde reflections also seem to suit him quite well. This way, through masterful albums like Ödemarkens Son and The Focusing Blur, you automatically arrive at this newest offspring. It should be clear anyway that even with artwork by cult hero Kris Verwimp on board, nothing can really go wrong with this album. Or am I being too lyrical?
Every song on this newest record has something that makes your hair stand on end. Störtsjö has a short folky middle section that doesn’t last too long but is brutally overturned. Lovely too how the bass here gets such a raspy sound. Malströmsbrus you must hear because Mr. Vintersorg dares to bring almost entirely clean lines crystal clear with almost no musical accompaniment, and in his typical style. Yet the slightly dissonant parts shouldn’t be dismissed either. Från Djupet Dunstar Tiden again brings piercing riffs combined with that rattling bass.
Ur Älv Och Å thunders and rolls like a fresh snowball. Just try to sing along! Brilliant, isn’t it! Kraftkällan brings folky, pagan-like calm guitars that are almost immediately devoured by brutal blast violence. In Regnskuggans Rike you notice in everything how mighty Swedish nature is. Just listen to those playful keyboard and synth parts. Skyrök pinches and bites as viciously as an old-school black metal track. On the closing Ödsliga Salar Mr. Peter Roy Wester also joins in. He tops off this richly filled composition with a keyboard solo.
Vintersorg remains Vintersorg. Vattenkrafternas Spel, album number eleven in the above-mentioned list, you can blindly add to your collection. Buying a physical copy is in any case obligatory. The black metal that for years has been infused with folk, pagan and progressive, experimental elements now again emerges especially well from the meters thick high snow.
Score:
90/100
Label:
Hammerheart Records, 2025
Tracklisting:
- Efter Dis Kommer Dimma
- Störtsjö
- Malströmsbrus
- Från Djupet Dunstar Tiden
- Ur Älv Och Å
- Kraftkällan
- Regnskuggans Rike
- Skyrök
- Ödsliga Salar
Line-up:
- Vintersorg – Vocals, guitars, effects, drumprogramming
- Matte Marklund – Guitars
- Simon Lundstöm – Bass
Links: