When Vera Lynn reappeared in the charts 55 years after her last number one, I’m quite sure she’d have noticed a few changes. Back then in 1954, Elvis was just embarking his musical career, while today the world mourns the loss of what you could call the Elvis of our generation. Had any artist pranced around half-nude like a Pussycat Troll back then, there’d have been a public outcry but dear me, what would the black & white world of yore seriously have made of black metal, had they been introduced?
When I first heard Devar described to me as ‘1950s black metal’ my first facetious response was ‘did they really have BM back in the ‘50s?’ Now, in all honesty I don’t see where the whole 50s part comes into it, but having already sparked my attention I found this to be just as intriguing a listen as I had anticipated. ‘The Siren’ opens things nicely and instantly projects something of a maudlin vibe as well as a kind of warmth that welcomes you in with open arms, before ‘NMN’ comes storming in with a contrasting blackness. There’s something about the vocals on this track that I am just not certain about although this seems to fall into place when we reach the next track, the rather lush ‘Cold Slither’ which really does slither along with its sinuous melodies, taking one into the darkness and a rather reflective state, however, this sounds quite the opposite of cold. Generally speaking I find this album to be rather a warm one, full of rich and sonorous melodies. ‘Shadow Feline’ is a fine example of such, with a magnificent chorus that really stirs up some emotion with its moody disposition, while this is suddenly usurped by the intense racket of drums and harsh riffs that project a kind of blackness that is bordering on the epic.
There’s a bit of an avant-garde feel to ‘Scourger’ with its twangy guitars and a lullaby-esque vocal line while ‘The Dirge’ has a similar feel and is really mellow. I get a sense of other-worldliness with this one and I can’t help but feel there’s a certain Bowie influence behind it that is more 70s than 50s! The black’n’roll vibe to ‘Of My Dead Skull’ has a real stoutness to it while the Caribbean-style steel drum beats are a nice touch.
Vocally you get a sense of desperation here as clean singing is delivered with a grainy edge that adds warmth and emotion and in places sounds like he is on the verge of tears. With an uplifting chorus, ‘Watch Them Fly’ really lets the spirit soar before dropping into the far more sinister sounding ‘In Sanity’ which envelops me with its darkness that subsequently brings the album to a close. It took a couple of listens to really get into this, but once it clicked, well let’s just say I get the feeling this won’t be the last time it gets a place in my stereo. This is the kind of album to suit mellow moods when you’d rather hear soothing sounds as opposed to something full-on heavy; for relaxing at the end of a long day, or perhaps as you’re easing off that Sunday morning hangover.
http://devar.no
http://www.myspace.com/devarno
