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![]() ENSLAVED Utgard ![]() By Francisco Zamudio, Metal X Candy 2.0 Thursday, November 12, 2020 @ 9:09 AM ![]()
Going down a rabbit hole, you’ll hear that these songs are written with such diversity. You certainly get those dark and blackened influences but only for short while. The opener "FIRES IN THE DARK" essentially sets a tone for an album that elevates, overwhelms and can maybe even lose a listener. With a URIAH HEEP and DEEP PURPLE vibe, the second track "JETTEGRYTA""SEQUENCE", being one of the longest songs on the album, and "HOMEBOUND" are two of several songs that give a commercial sound making this album (and band) more acceptable to a wider audience. The latter wouldn’t surprise me if it ended up on the alternative station in my local area. Speaking of alternative, "URJOTUN" definitely gives off a synth-pop/new-wave vibe that could get some play in a goth club. "FLIGHT OF THOUGHT AND MEMORY" is an intense ride and my favorite track off the album that captures everything that this album had to give with its blackened side, gone proggy.
UTGARD is an album that is open to interpretation, both lyrically and musically. As bassist/vocalist Grutle Kjellson would point out. “UTGARD could be countless things… something that is hard to master completely, perhaps impossible…. It is a place where madness, creativity, humor and chaos dwell.” While there are hints of their Blackened sound all throughout the album, this far less metal approach is commercial and much more prog-rock, so don’t expect much of a fast-heavy Blackened Metal album. These veterans do not need anyone’s approval. They have established their sound through the 3 decades as a band and this somewhat new direction only expands their persona. Should this direction carry them further due to commercial success, time will tell.
3.5 Out Of 5.0
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