VINTERSORG: Till Fjalls Ii (BLACK METAL): review / opinion to read on Music Waves

Offering a sequel to an album that has become a cornerstone of his discography over the years is never an easy task. The risk of disappointment is then great, and even more so when about twenty years separate two parts, as is the case with "Till Fjälls", which Vintersorg has now decided to complete with a second chapter.

Engraved in 1998, "Till Fjälls" still evokes a lot of memories for all those who lived through the commercial explosion of extreme metal in the second half of the 90s. If he doesn't return to the simplicity that animated him during this first part, Vintersorg nevertheless manages to get closer to the style they had twenty years ago, more stripped down and abrasive although still very melodic and drawing its inspiration from a dark folk humus.

At the same time abundant and limpid, direct and solemn, "Till Fjälls, Del II" asks however a lot of listening to taste all the richness that springs up little by little in a flamboyant flow that carries away everything in its path. Putting aside his progressive inclinations, Andreas Hedlund focuses on the sharpest finery of his art, even if he always brilliantly alternates furious growls and luminous geysers that his intoxicatingly clear voice pierces through the rock of these gigantic fjords that rise powerfully in a cold and fiery night.

Coloured with acoustic pigments ('Obygdens Pionjär') and bewitched by Viking choirs ('Lavin'), the titles cavalcade through grandiose reliefs as abrupt as they are epic. Some of them are even the blackest the Swedes have given birth to in a long time, such as 'Fjällets Mäktiga Mur', which roars with volcanic force. But, vibrating with raging ambivalence, they all rest on the balance between granitic features and galvanizing atmospheres, between darkness and light. Carved by the solar grooves of heady guitars, these compositions shine with a thousand lights, torrents carrying majestic melodies that weave into the imagination fascinating images frozen by the breath of the Far North.

Perhaps too long, it is nevertheless the case that this suite rises to the height of its elder thanks to the numerous hymns ('Jökelväktaren', 'En Väldig Isvidds Karga Dräkt'...) that dot its rich menu, making it one of the best offerings of Vintersorg, the band as well as the man, even if "Cosmic Genesis" will forever remain the Valhalla of his career. With an epic emphasis, "Till Fjälls, Del II" combines both the simplicity of its predecessor and the technical power of the latest albums. - Official website

VINTERSORG

TILL FJALLS II

NAPALM RECORDS

BLACK METAL