The freshers flu season is already upon us and I’ve done very well to avoid the lurgies thus far; normally by this time I’ve had at least one case of the sniffles even if the serious manfluitus is reserved for closer to Christmas. Nope, the only [kh]olds I have caught this season are these two album re-issues from everyone’s favourite Yorkshire based re-releasing factory and while it never hurts to have the Kleenex within reach, for once I am not complaining! Norwegian black metallers Khold came on the scene in 2001 with debut album Masterpiss Of Pain and followed up with Phantom a year later, which are the two at hand. They brought out a further three albums for Candlelight and Tabu Recordings, which I suspect will also get the Re-releaseVille treatment in due course.
Having heard a lot about this band previously but never really heard them as such, I must say I was pleasantly surprised. Both of these albums demonstrate a band with a distinctive and exciting sound far removed from the hordes of generic black metal masses with nothing to say. Things get moving straight away albeit at a shuffling speed as the mid-pace rhythm of ‘Nattpyre’ projects an aura of menace, which doesn’t subside as the track picks up speed and begins to rattle away furiously. The bass lines are just as they should be in black metal, really making their presence known; on tracks like ‘Norne’ the colossal weight of the bass pounds its way right into the heart of the mix and on ‘Svart Helligoom’ emits a certain warmth that contrasts the icy chill coming from the harsh guitars as they dwell in distortion above. There is quite a melancholic vibe underlying this track in particular as well and there is plenty of genuine feeling behind their sound in general which to me makes all the difference between a black metal album worth hearing and one that has zero passion that doesn’t capture my interest.
Both albums here I found to be relatively accessible, but this is especially true of MOP. The tracks on here are incredibly catchy, in particular ‘Jol’ which totally rollicks forth with monstrous swagger and a mid-paced groove that seeks to demolish all that’s in its path. There’s kind of a punkish vibe in the rhythm here and tracks like this and the equally catchy, fist-pounding ‘Den Store Allianse’ make this a scintillating listen. ‘Bortvandring’ plays out with more of a slow crawling melody whose portent feels like its building towards a major catastrophe. It’s got the atmosphere and the fuzz-like bass, crackling lo-fi guitars and demonic gurgles all work to create something quite frightening.
This seems to be the angle they went with on ‘Phantom’. It is still quite accessible as far as the genre goes, which is clear from the way opening track ‘Dodens Grode’ rolls in with a Satyricon-esque rhythm and some neat drumming to back things up…but they work that ambience more here. It’s worth mentioning here that Sarke is behind the kit on these two albums so you know the drumming is going to be good. Title-track ‘Phantom’ lures you in with a truly hypnotic melody while the venomous vocals are barked out, and ‘Dode Fuglers Sang’ comes across as dark and moody, with its slow tortuous melody.
To pick a better album is tough; I’d definitely regard Masterpiss Of Pain the more accessible of the two with tons of massive hooks, groove and swagger. Still, while Phantom took a bit more time to grow on me I found it equally enjoyable and loved the hypnotic and sinister ambience that came across here without losing those stomping rhythms. Two excellent albums; both with two thumbs up!
http://www.myspace.com/kholdblackmetal
Luci Herbert
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