SLAGMAUR : DOMFELDT (RE-ISSUE)
Infernus-Profunda
Whenever listening to too many uninspired acts in a row makes me depressed about the originality of black metal these day, and gets me thinking that there’s a peak that we’ve passed and can never again obtain, I think about Norway’s Slagmaur, and I smile a cold and frostbitten grin. Having set the underground talking with a set of three demos in 2006 and 2007, these mysterious and ambitious artists then delivered two knock-out blows in the form of albums “Svin” and “Skrekk Lich Kunstler”. Inferna-Profundus, licensed by the band’s own label, have re-released the climax of the demo series, “Domfeldt”, packaged and presented in the manner it deserved first time around, and available in limited edition for the discerning fan’s delight.
Given the proximity of first demo “Svin” to masterpiece album “Skrekk Lich Kunstler” in time, it’s no surprise to find that Slagmaur’s horizons were never limited, even in the earliest days. Opener proper “Vandalens Hevn” reveals the huge presence and almost impossibly weight riffs we’ve come to expect from this band, a gradual but inevitable build-up of underlying melodies which impart a haunting, almost ‘evil carnivale’ feel. Aastelgribb’s vocals come in like a black metal revelation, searing, growling, and seated apparently in the frontal lobe of the listener’s brain. “Skandem” is another gargantuan, slow-moving beast, full of discordant play, interwoven with nerve-scraping screams and making use of a slightly different dual vocal approach, which gives a profound and ritualistic feel.
This re-issue also offers tracks that did not appear on the original, namely “SIDS” and “Autofoniens Kommandor”. The former is a creepy, unsettling piece which begins with the digging of a grave and the hysteria of a mother, before building up into an unsettling ambience, which is maintained for a long time before the percussion kicks in and the mired-down sound develops, cresting into melody after a long, agonising build-up with typical sophistication. The latter track employs once again the doom-like pace Slagmaur use so effectively. The cold, furious guitar work is very classic, but such an element cannot be allowed to dominate, and so sampled voices and gentle piano are also layered across the maelstrom.
All of the factors which make Slagmaur so imposing are present on this release; the sublime mixture of magnificence and filth, so powerfully evoked in the grand march of “Gnager”, the collapses and re-births, the surprising classical outbursts, the mountain of mind-melting distortion and the incredible creativity and quality of song-writing that allows each monumental element to be used with the lightest, most economical, touch. Providing a truly immersive black metal experience that will absolutely restore your faith in the genre, Slagmaur are an extremely special band, and you should snap up this beautiful release without hestitation.
92/100
