Review: Myrkur - Myrkur
By Chris Reinbold, Contributor
[Relapse; 2014]
Rating: 4.5/10
Key Tracks: “Frosne Vind,” “Dybt I Skoven”
The world of heavy metal has always been a boys’ club, especially the world of Scandinavian black metal. Myrkur, a one-woman black metal band from Denmark, is changing that. It's amazing to see a female presence in the world of heavy music, whether it be Myrkur in the black metal scene, Oathbreaker in the world of hardcore or Simone Simons fronting one of the most popular symphonic metal bands out there, Epica.
Myrkur opens the album with “Ravnens Banner.” A haunting choral vocal, heavily overdubbed and layered, introduces the song and begins to set an eerie atmosphere. However, there is an abrupt shift around the 40-second mark to a heavily tremolo-picked guitar riff that quickly becomes bland, never expanding beyond its basic chords.
The change starts a downward spiral in the song, as it begins to drag and lacks the compositional coherence possessed by similar atmospheric black metal bands such as Ulver. This song truly sets the stage for the rest of the album as a relatively forgettable listen.
“Frosne Vind” provides an incredible switch from the typical structure of the album opener. This song is driven by one guitar playing a melody strongly influenced by traditional European folk music. A tambourine can be heard in the background as a chilling female vocal rings through. The song resolves into only a few seconds of what sounds like a traditional European choir, again created through the layering of vocal parts. Not even clocking in at two minutes, "Frosne Vind" leaves a very strong desire for more.
The next two tunes are played in a typical black metal style with heavy blast-beats and tremolo-picking, leaving no real impression of originality. “Dybt I Skoven” begins sounding like an alternative rock song from the 1990s with a minor-key twist. When the vocal comes in overtop, the song takes on a nearly triumphant feeling, like a Valkyrie flying into battle. The one-minute mark displays a dreamy, atmospheric feel that is a breath of fresh air by this point in the EP.
Unfortunately the fresh air is short-lived, as Myrkur slides right back into blast-beats on the drums. By this point it's easy to want to skip the remainder of the track, as it feels completely rehashed from earlier in the album.
Myrkur displays some incredible ideas throughout the EP when not displaying its inability to ditch the old black metal formula. The folky guitar parts are captivating and should be a focus on the next release. The choral voices are beautiful in many instances, but they become a centerpiece for much of the album since it lacks much vocal diversity.
Black metal has many easily identifiable compositional traits, but all giants of the genre provide their own twist and do not rely strictly on blast-beats and tremolo-picking. If Myrkur can focus on diversity and differentiation in her compositions, she will be as recognizable as modern atmospheric black metal artists Wolves in the Throne Room and American black metal critical darlings, Deafheaven.
