By Andrew Bansal
With their self-titled debut album in 2010, Norwegian hard rock band Kvelertak caught the attention of many in the world of heavy music, and now they’re back to carry out the daunting task of following up such an impressive debut. Their sophomore effort ‘Meir’ is set to release on March 26th in the US via Roadrunner Records, and this is also the band’s debut on the label. For the uninitiated, Kvelertak is basically a six-piece hard rock band with elements of black metal and hardcore punk in the music to go with Norwegian lyrics and song titles. But the three-pronged guitar work is their standout quality, and this is showcased in the first album on tunes like ‘Fossegrim’, ‘Blodtorst’, ‘Offernatt’ and others. Back when I heard it for the first time in 2010, it came across as one of the best debut albums I’d heard in a long time, but based on the musical style, at the time I thought Kvelertak had opened up a number of possibilities and could take their music in pretty much any direction. With that curiosity in mind, I started listening to ‘Meir’ as soon as I got hold of it.
The strength of the combined melody and riffs emanating from the three guitars is quite evident from the opening track ‘Åpenbaring’. After that kind of beginning, it’s nearly impossible not to listen to the rest of the album. The following tune ‘Spring Fra Livet’ continues along the same path and expands further with some solid black metal-style drumming and guitar work. In many ways it could be almost called a ‘happy black metal’ tune, if ever such a term existed. From here on, each track offers something similar yet something different at the same time. As a listener you could identify one song from the other, but they’re still very much connected by a common thread. At the core of it, it’s still a hard rock album that boasts of powerful musicianship, best listened to loud and with a drink or two.
If you’ve read any of my past work, you’d know that I’m very much a guy who listens to entire albums as opposed to single tunes in isolation. So it’s always hard for me to pick favorites in albums I like, but I would definitely say ‘Åpenbaring’ is the most important song on Meir, because it’s the opening track, the first impression. In comparison to the band’s debut effort, I think they’ve still presented what they did on the debut, i.e. varying combinations of hard rock, hardcore punk and black metal. If anything, the guitar melody is stronger this time around, it’s better produced, and there’s some musical expansion with a few thrashy bits in some songs, while progressive passages in others, and you’ll find as you get towards the latter half of the album.
The overall verdict is, Kvelertak is not a ‘one-album wonder’ kind of band, thankfully, and ‘Meir’ looks set to consolidate their stronghold as a rising force in heavy music. ‘Meir’ is a stellar effort from an insanely talented group of musicians who seem to have found the right balance between consistency and evolution.
Rating: 9.5/10
Record Label: Roadrunner
Release Dates:
March 25th 2013 (Europe)
March 26th 2013 (US)
Track Listing:
01.Åpenbaring
02. Spring Fra Livet
03. Trepan
04. Bruane Brenn
05. Evig Vandrar
06. Snilepisk
07. Månelyst
08. Nekrokosmos
09. Undertro
10. Tordenbrak
11. Kvelertak
Links:
kvelertak.com
facebook.com/Kvelertak
twitter.com/kvelertak