There are certain bands that you just have complete and utter faith in, you know that when they release an album it’s going to be great, you don’t even question it, Enslaved are one of these bands.
I struggle to get across how brilliant and important a band Enslaved are, they hit what was, in my opinion at least, a creative peak on the last record.Riittiirwas a benchmark for extreme progressive music with its sprawling and jaw droppingly brilliant soundscape, no with its long running time it wasn’t the most accessible album in the world but when given the time it deserved it just blew you away, but Spoiler alert they may have outdone themselves here.
With In Times Enslaved once again veer yet further away from their Black metal origins but when they are making albums this good you just don’t care, every track has its own unique identity, there is no sameness and unlike some progressive albums no song really ever outstays its welcome. This is exactly what you want from an Enslaved album in 2015, it’s raging, beautiful, complex and epic, it’s one of those albums that takes you on a journey through a kaleidoscope of musical textures, ideas and set pieces. Like most Enslaved albums it probably not for those with short attention spans, although the album is only 6 tracks long, each track hits at least 8 minutes with the title track an impressive 10.44, but for those of you with the attention span for it, In Times is a joy to listen too, and given its less is more approach to song quantity it is actually a more accessible album than its predecessor.
The album starts deceptively with Thurisaz Dreaming going straight for the jugular, the song comes at you like a blizzard of blackened fury, then the attack abates and Herbrand comes in to soothe the listener, it’s one of the more straightforward tracks on the album and a great starting point. As he did on Riittiir keyboard player Herbrand Larsen continues to feature prominently sharing vocal duties with Grutle Kjellson his emotive, soothing vocal melodies are the perfect foil for Grutles vicious delivery. And building on the positive reaction to the last album Herbrand is allowed to feature even more prominently on this record, this is best highlighted in the next track Building fire in which he carries the majority of the vocal duties and it’s a testament to how he has progressed vocally that this is one of the best songs on the album, the almost rock and roll elements of this track blend seamlessly into the extreme sound-scape that is becoming Enslaved’s signature, and when Grutle comes in with his spiteful delivery it just works brilliantly. One thousand years of rain is a spectacular moment chock full of rage, melody, big riffs and tempo changes, this is the first track on the album where everyone is given the opportunity to shine and it is brilliant, part way through there’s this slow passage where you have cultish chanted vocals that just works so well. Nauthir Bleeding catches you slightly off guard, starting as it does with clean melodic guitars, Herbrand leads the proceedings but things get heavy in a hurry, these two songs in particular boast some absolutely brilliant drumming by Cato Bekkevold he is just ludicrously precise here. Next the title track In Times is an absolute tour de force of everything that Enslaved do so well the 1sthalf of the track is especially rewarding, it starts with one repetitive guitar riff, then gradually a more melodic guitar rhythm comes in laying beneath the main riff brilliantly, it builds and builds drawing you in only for you to be shaken out of your daze by an all out vocal assault on your ears. Finally they saved the best for last and the album ends with a show stopping finale in the form of the blackened shoegazey epic that is Daylight, for me it’s the best track on the album its absolutely incredible, it just sounds huge and it gave me goosebumps when the choir come in singing gently in the background.
Overall this is another predictably brilliant offering, yes you will have some who yearn for the more straightforward sound of the earlier records, but for those of you who like your music challenging and enjoy hearing a band stretch the limits of what extreme music can be in 2015 then you will enjoy this, it’s a hell of a trip and definitely one best enjoyed when listened to as a whole with a bottle of wine.
9/10 – Stunning
Listen to: Daylight
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