Apoch's Metal Review - Vreid: V CD Review

Discography	Discography covers all information available up to day of review and is updated if future albums are reviewed.
Full-Length(s):	Kraft (2004) • Pitch Black Brigade (2006) • I Krig (2007) • Milorg (2009) • V (2011)
Single(s):	Noen Å Hate (2010)
DVD(s):	Vreid Goddamnit (2010)

Review

Vreid has only formed rather recently, storming into the Black Metal scene in 2004 with their debut album, Kraft. But, in that time, this Norway-based act has really taken the community by surprise. Each effort since their first release has shown a band progressively getting stronger with each album. Their last release, Milorg, climbed many metal charts and found itself on many top album lists for 2009 from critics and fans of the style. Vreid's fifth album, aptly titled V, has been one of the most anticipated releases in the Black Metal community, melodic and not, in the past few years, and given the quality of the material this act churns out, it's completely understandable. So, does V stand out as another phenomenal release from these guys, or is this an album that doesn't live up to the standards that have been established on the past four releases?

The audio to V is crisp and clean without being sterile in any sense. The drums stand out nicely here with a small amount of click to the bass kicks with a lower, more hollow booming sound to the snares while the cymbols crash nicely at a level equal to both, being not too loud but still high enough to get the point across and fill the music nicely. At times, in an effort to give off a melancholic atmosphere, there are some keyboards that sound more like organs mixed with some additional symphonic instruments that will often fill slower, more empty passages of songs, but these can be much louder then they need to be in the final mix, and sound more like something you would get from a sixties album of any kind. The guitars are a little louder then the kit, which is a bit disheartening in the long run, though still having that sharper sounding Black Metal distortion on them with a bass presence that is there supporting the guitars, but sounds a little more like it's hidden in the mix. When it does come through loud enough, pending on the chords being played, it sounds great and acts as a wonderful supporting layer. A deeper bass presence in that instrument and even the kicks would have been nice to have with the recording, and it becomes the only truly major fault to the audio since the music is still strong enough to grab the listener and institute mandatory headbanging through much of the release. The vocals are the typical rhaspy screams once again, and while it's nothing out of the ordinary, the performance is splended and has just the right amount of energy to go with the somewhat restrained volume level of the music, though the band clearly tries to bring a good amount of energy into the mix, many times working it in nicely, especially around the solos and more intense bridges. This becomes clear right away with the first track, "Arche."

Going past the six and a half minute mark, "Arche" shows off how good the audio can sound, and the faults with the bass levels through the recording. There are moments when the music goes slower that the bass guitar can really shine through, which is closer to the end, but when the track is a lot faster and has more going on with it to fill the music nicely from the guitars and drums, the song does seem to get a little lost and some of the harsher aggression to the music the bass does add seems to end up drowned out more then it should be. This happens all throughout the album, but this track does manage to set the tone of what the band is looking to do for the rest of the album, and that's not really a bad thing considering how strong and enjoyable this song is to start things off with. While these faster tracks that seem to froth at the mouth are superb examples of the intensity Vreid offers, it's the slower tracks like the following "The Blood Eagle" that show everything off nicely. The bass is given a chance to come through, and the more melodic sound of the track really makes it catchy, and one of the more important mandatory headbanging songs of the release. The orchestral moments that fill the music nicely, but remain largely in the background to accomodate keyboards really establish a dull, dismal war-like atmosphere half way through the song, and it all feels natural to the recording.

But, it's about the point of "Wolverine Bastards" that V starts to kind of go off in a bad direction. The music to this album actually can feel a little more generic, or even just bland to the point it doesn't stand out as that unique an offering in the Melodic Black Metal field, and many songs here just are not that engaging after "The Blood Eagle," even if there's a good deal of atmosphere to it. "The Sound of the River" is a good example, as the song does have a good amount of periods where atmosphere becomes quite important, but that's about it. The song itself feels pretty generic to the style for the most part, and aside a strong guitar solo and it's atmospheric traits, there's nothing too impressive about it. Luckily this doesn't seem to impact every song on the release, as the following track "Fire on the Mountain" does a good job at creating an intense sound through it's faster passages, and create a very emotional, mournful closing to the track complete with clean singing that suits the song, none of which feels forced, generic or even bland in any way. "The Other and the Look" is the same way, though the music itself feels a little more upbeat and hopeful compared to the more dismal and war-themed atmospheres of many other tracks. The transitions through the song also feel fluid to the track, though some of the slower moments of this song do tend to lose a little more of the unique sound to the album, again coming off a bit typical to Black Metal in general, but with some additional melody. The main issue with this track is largely that the song feels drawn out, and it seems to hit rather quickly, a sad thing given the song's ten and a half minute track length.

The final few songs to V don't necessarily make up for anything, but it does boast some of the best tracks since "The Blood Eagle." "Welcome to the Asylum" really has some catchy material, as well as some stronger bass-driven moments that again show off what a little more attention to that part of the audio could have done for the release. The song is energetic and doesn't feel dull or just recycled from traditional Black Metal concepts, and acts as a nice climax to what the band had clearly been trying to build up throughout the release. "Then We Die" acts more as the suitable conclusion of the album. The darker tones mixed with some haunting guitar work, deep spoken word passages, and overall heavy sound leaves the album wrapped up in a rather eerie sound that feels more genuinely unique to Vreid then other songs here have come across. The colder atmosphere of the song and heavier presence just enhances the experience so well against the mournful music, allowing this to become one of the most important songs of the effort, and an experience you'll come back to time and time again specifically.

Honestly though, the album really isn't that gripping or engaging. Vreid do a lot of good things here, and some tracks have nice mixtures of the faster intensity and gloomier slower paces. However, it seems V shows the band trying to play it straight here, and it often leads to the band sticking to more traditional Black Metal concepts and foundations with a little melody to keep things along their signature sound, as well as some material that's just rather boring. The first few tracks here are great, and some that appear later are also worth taking a look at, but overall the album feels a bit underwhelming and drawn out musically due to this safer performance. Add on the drowned out bass and lack of a little deeper audio quality to make the songs sound just right, and you can't help but feel that this album just is not one of the band's strongest offerings. If you like the style or even the band, there's still a decent amount of material worth checking out here, but other then some of the impressive songs like "Arche" and "Welcome to the Asylum," as well as a few others, the album isn't a huge priority to have in your collection at this time.

Digital review copy of this release provided by:
Indie Recordings.

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