Thursday, November 1, 2018

ISKALD - Innhostinga review



ISKALD - Innhostinga

Indie Recordings




I first got into this Norwegian duo back in 2008 with their second album, Revelations of Reckoning Day. I thought that release was an icy masterpiece. Even to this day when I want that cold winter like feeling I'll pull that out and blast it.


Since then I've kept up with the band. I've got the follow up releases, 2011's The Sun I Carried Alone and Nedom og Nord from 2014. Both of which were decent. So now it's been four long years and as a fan ya gotta wonder. Have they changed or is this one gonna be more of the same.


As far as this goes it's the latter. Innhostinga is an incredible release make no mistake about that. Musically it's totally precision as in the song structures are complex. The musicianship is over the top, as far as black metal goes. The guitar work and the drumming is all exceptional. But the thing is that it all comes across as a mechanized cold instead of a nature based atmosphere.


The songs do not flow at all. There's no melody whatsoever. No theme being presented. Instead it's a tangled mess of riffs thrown into a dryer to spin and bounce around. What made me like this band early on was their ability to bring about a cold and icy sound which sent chills down to your bones. On here, despite multiple listens, I ended up being bored. 


Even the vocals, which are sung in a caustic harsh way, seem to be without soul. Overall I was disappointed with Innhostinga. There are moments on here where you think it's gonna be cool with icy tremolo picked melodies and then it's ADD time with the tempo changing riff and drumming theatrics. Oh well.


http://www.indierecordings.no/news

https://iskald.bandcamp.com/album/innhostinga

https://www.facebook.com/iskaldofficial


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