Thurs hail from Stavanger, Norway and were formed in 2005. “Mot Nord” is their very first demo, the three songs with which they have chosen to introduce themselves to the world. The cover art, use of runic designs and predilection for running around wearing chainmail and wielding swords give the game away regarding these guys’ thematic interests- of course they are purveyors of ‘Viking’ black metal: epic-sounding, dramatic and designed for the battlefield.
Obviously there are a number of directions in which bands are taking this style, and Thurs seem to be headed towards the groovy but subtle sound of Enslaved, with echoes of Amon Amarth hanging around in the punchy guitar work, particularly on “Nord for Asgard”, which has the most ‘Viking’ feel of the tracks on offer. The riffs are simplistic, but subject to frequent switches and divergences which keep the listener interested, and they seem to have the potential to grow into something really rousing with more work and a proper studio. As it is, the production on “Mot Nord” is admirable from a home set-up, but tends to flatten the sound, particularly on the drum breaks of “Skogens Grusome Sang”.
Besides taking influence from the recent albums of the aforementioned acts, Thurs are also heavily indebted to the classic early black metal sound, especially noticeable in the vocals, which comprise of a relentless, unintelligible rasping growl, which may need to meet the drama of the atmosphere and guitars on later work to be successful, but for now is strong enough to carry this demo. “Slaget”, the second song on offer, has guitar work highly evocative of black metal’s foetal days, with a nice bassy switch half-way through breathes life into an otherwise slow-paced song, and fans of the first-wave bands will feel nostalgic upon hearing Thurs’s song structures.
In all, Thurs show a fair amount of potential here; they are able to create riffs that feel epic and heroic without having to worry at all about sounding cheesy, and their foundation in harsh black metal gives them power and passion. “Mot Nord” is good for a first demo, and we should probably keep our eyes on Thurs, as once they have had more practice in song writing and production it is likely their sound will be bang up-to-date, and they’ll be serious Viking metal contenders.
http://www.myspace.com/thursband
