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/:: Artist :: Horna ::\
:: Album :: Kohti YhdeksΣn Nousua ::
:: Year :: 2021 ::
:: __ _ _ __ ::
-:--\\-----------------------------------------------------------------//--:-
:: \ / ::
:: . Genre :: Black Metal Source :: CDDA . ::
:: Label :: Black Metal Store R.date :: 08.10.2021 ::
_::__ Cat.nr. :: BMS065 Size :: 62,8 MB __::_
::// \\::
::/---------------------------------------------------------------------\::
:: ::
/: Encoder :: LAME 3.100 -V0 :\
..: Bitrate :: avg. 264kbps : .
. Quality :: 44,1kHz/Joint-Stereo .
. .
Website ::
__ __ _ . : _ ____ _ _ ____ _ : . _ __ __
.\\\\------- : | ---\ /---------------------\ /--- | : -------////.
+/ -\------- | | ----\ tracklist /---- | | -------/- \+
/: . : : . :\
/:: ::\
:: 01. ╓rkkivuorilta 04:05 ::
:: 02. Imperial Devastation 05:40 ::
:: 03. Sword of Darkness 04:49 ::
:: 04. White Aura Buried in Ashes 05:02 ::
:: 05. Sormus Ja SilmΣ 10:04 ::
:: 06. Outro 03:07 ::
:: ------- ::
.. >> 32:47 min ..
__ __ _ . : _ ____ _ _ ____ _ : . _ __ __
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+/ -\------- | | ----\ release notes /---- | | -------/- \+
/: . : : . :\
/:: ::\
:: ::
:: Kohti YhdeksΣn Nousua is the first official full-length ::
:: from the Finnish black metal horde known as Horna. Released ::
:: in April 1998 by Solistitium Records, this L.P. ::
:: demonstrates just how much Shatraug had developed as a ::
:: songwriter. While Hiidentorni had its moments, though very ::
:: few, it was rather unimpressive. Nonetheless, within a ::
:: matter of months, the band managed to write and record ::
:: something that far exceeded their previous output and still ::
:: stands as one of their best albums. ::
:: ::
:: By this time, black metal was already massively polluted by ::
:: an overabundance of horrible bands that were churning out ::
:: pure trash. Countless mediocre albums were being released, ::
:: making it difficult to keep up with what was going on. One ::
:: need not even dwell on the legions of goth losers that were ::
:: appropriating black metal elements and mixing them with ::
:: wailing whores and Casio madness; even the majority of key ::
:: second wave bands had metamorphosed into something hardly ::
:: recognizable. Thankfully, there were a handful of musicians ::
:: capable of keeping the black flame burning. ::
:: ::
:: At this stage, Horna absolutely wore their influences on ::
:: their sleeve, which is not a bad thing. Obviously, the ::
:: early black metal bands from Norway left quite an impact on ::
:: Shatraug, something that is clearly evident. Rather than ::
:: taking any cues from fellow Finns, such as Beherit, ::
:: Archgoat or even Impaled Nazarene, Kohti YhdeksΣn Nousua ::
:: bears a much closer resemblance to the earlier works of ::
:: Emperor, Gorgoroth and Satyricon. It would take some time ::
:: before Shatraug created the signature style that he was ::
:: later known for. That being said, the lack of a distinctive ::
:: identity is not a negative criticism, at all. Personally, ::
:: I'd rather hear a hundred so-called derivative albums like ::
:: this one over experimental garbage. ::
:: ::
:: Despite its relatively brief run time, Kohti YhdeksΣn ::
:: Nousua covers a lot of ground. "╓rkkivuorilta" starts ::
:: things out with intensity and hatred, erupting from the ::
:: depths of hell with aggressive riffs and vicious vocals. ::
:: The guitars are reminiscent of something from Emperor or ::
:: Nemesis Divina, at times. "Imperial Devastation" is a bit ::
:: more restrained, moving between mid-paced tremolo melodies ::
:: and more Bathory-inspired riffs. In a way, it bears ::
:: similarities to "Funeral Procession", from Under the Sign ::
:: of Hell. "Sword of Darkness" is an all-around gloomier ::
:: affair, featuring more haunting melodies and a different ::
:: vocal approach, sounding more hideous and tormented. Though ::
:: the production is more modern, almost too much so, these ::
:: riffs would not have been out of place on an album like In ::
:: the Nightside Eclipse. ::
:: ::
:: The overall sound may be the only negative aspect of this ::
:: record, and even that is negligible. On its own, it sounds ::
:: fine. It's mostly when listening to this material alongside ::
:: the albums that inspired it that one really notices the ::
:: difference. Kohti YhdeksΣn Nousua boasts a rather full and ::
:: powerful sound, lacking the harshness of the early albums ::
:: from the Norwegian black metal bands. Even relatively clear ::
:: and well-produced records like Gorgoroth's Pentagram sounds ::
:: like a garage rehearsal compared to this. Still, it's just ::
:: at the threshold of what's acceptable, not yet venturing ::
:: into the plastic, fake-sounding territory where Sudentaival ::
:: would ultimately land. ::
:: ::
:: "White Aura Buried in Ashes" consists mainly of intense, ::
:: fast-paced riffs and hellish vocals, reminiscent of "The ::
:: Majesty of the Nightsky", with some with some Bathory-ish ::
:: parts thrown in for good measure. This is followed by a ::
:: total shift, featuring an eerie riff with clean vocals ::
:: buried underneath, which induces a haunting vibe in the ::
:: closing moments. "Sormus ja SilmΣ" is the last proper song, ::
:: a slow and brooding track that hearkens back to "Sorg", ::
:: from Gorgoroth's Antichrist. As with "Sword of Darkness", ::
:: Nazgul's voice is much dryer and more strained than usual ::
:: which adds to the darker atmosphere. For one reason or ::
:: another, rather than building upon this composition and ::
:: creating something more epic, the band opted to add to the ::
:: running time with a re-recorded version of "Kun ly÷mme ::
:: Jumalan kodin liekkeihin". This is the weakest part of the ::
:: album and it's no wonder that they included it as a hidden ::
:: song. ::
:: ::
:: Kohti YhdeksΣn Nousua had to grow on me a bit; years ago, ::
:: the first things I noticed when listening were the presence ::
:: of clean vocals (albeit brief), the lack of harsh ::
:: production and the frequent use of double bass, something ::
:: that I personally don't care for. Once I got over being so ::
:: picky, I quickly realized that this is a very solid record ::
:: and ranks among the very best among Shatraug's very ::
:: prolific career. Despite the influences being very obvious, ::
:: the songwriting is very cohesive and there are a lot of ::
:: memorable moments to be found. This record is not dull in ::
:: the slightest as Horna did well to pick up the torch that ::
:: had been dropped by their predecessors. This record is ::
:: highly recommended for those into classic Norwegian black ::
:: metal. ::
:: ::
:: . _ _ . ::
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