Ereb Altor is the
Viking Metal side project from members of Doomsters
Isole (or it could be the other way round depending on your musical preference). This is actually their fourth full length album from the band that takes it's cue from
Bathory's mid catalogue, but probably not as comprehensively as the record label would have you believe. I take it for granted that if a Swedish band class themselves as
Viking Metal then
Bathory MUST be listed as an influence. It may now be an actual Swedish law.
And yes, of course there is some
Bathory in “
Fire Meets Ice”, but there is much more too...
Ereb Altor are actually a three-piece for recording purposes with guitar, bass and vocals being shared by Mats and Ragnar (drumming duties ably handled by
Isole sticks-man Tord), giving an unpredictability to the band's sound, as they constantly mix vocal styles and musical intensities throughout. The fact that the members of the band are also in
Isole means that their style leans much more to the darker side of the genre rather than say
Turisas or
Ensiferum. So, using
Bathory and possibly
Doomsword as a basic thread, the band display many more facets to their overall sound -
Borknagar to
Amon Amarth,
Candlemass to
Kampfar,
Tyr to
Emperor and many more spring to mind in various guises.
Tyr are evident in the chord progressions under the twinned clean vocals that crop up in the title track, 'The
Deceiver Shall
Repent' and 'The
Legacy', but as is the case with the third of those tracks, the sheer gloom and sombre nature of the track separates them from direct comparison. Also I admit that
Ereb Altor tend to prefer a nice plod a lot more than on this release as opposed to their previous offering, but they prove they have the speed and aggression of say
Amon Amarth or
Unleashed on 'Post
Ragnarok', which has harsh vocals to match. This track, along with 'The
Legacy' really highlight
Ereb Altor's diversity on “
Fire Meets Ice”. Maybe the album title should have been a clue? 'Post
Ragnarok' is
Furious Pagan Melodic Black/Death
Metal, yet 'The
Legacy' is a slow, dark, atmospheric anthem of a track, full of emotion and drama. It's ironic that these two tracks are the last two on the album as all the other tracks seem to fit into a style within the parameters of these two tracks, pushing the boundaries of both. Nice that the band keep their two extremes until
The End rather than showing their cards straight away.
The
Borknagar angle that I hear comes from the braver arrangements, where harsher moments are effortlessly blended with melancholic passages - such as '
Nifelheim' (which also has parts that remind me of
Arcturus through to
Primordial) and '
Sacrifice' (is that a little
Moonsorrow I detect?).
This is a great sound-scape that the band have created. At times you are transported right into the heart of the frozen north (no, not Aberdeen...), and there is always a slight underlying sense of tragedy and hardship to the feel of the songs that some
Viking Metal bands can miss. This must be down to the doomy
Isole influence I guess which really does give the band an edge.
I think
Ereb Altor might finally have found their sound on this release. They've reeled in the Blacker sound of previous release “
Gastrike”, slowed it down and managed to blend it with the feel of their first two. They've got a balance of Heavy/
Doom/Black/
Pagan and
Viking Metal that seems to suit them and sounds natural. This is not your average
Viking Metal album.
Epic Viking Doom Metal also falls short, so forget labels, this is just a good Nordic
Metal that has challenges and surprises with every
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