Swedish mastermind Swartadauþuz unleashes a blizzard fury on the third full-length album “De Fornas Likgaldrar”. Once again Bekëth Nexëhmü takes the frosty elements of lo-fi black metal and carves sonic landscapes of a wintry opus. The eight lengthy songs take you on a journey to the frostbitten realms of ice. While the approach here is coated in the ghostly atmosphere of the synth, the dense guitars create a wall of sound. The opening track “Sjalsig Urvilia” weaves blazing tremolos to blasting drums and evokes the essence of sublime majesty. The atmospheric canvas of the shimmering soundscapes merges the beautiful fragments of the synth. In this sense, the songs are heavier and they’re potent enough to cleave through the blistering pace of the drums.

Swartadauþuz perfectly fuses the ambient elements on “Nordens Vidder”, which emanates like a radiant jewel and begins with a fuzzy guitar sound whereas the keyboards provide a glacial backdrop for the percussion. There is always a focus on rich keyboard textures and the guitars sweep through the darkened domains of majestic black metal. The lush details of the synth have a touch of art, the main strength of the album is how the guitars display sophisticated melodies. Other elements like the water drops and the atmospheric chords are intertwined and they’re saturated with a dark melancholic veil. “Vinterlandskapets Klangor del.I” begins in a slow dramatic reverb of the guitars that becomes intensified, the guitar notes build to slow-burn ambient track.

While “Urtidens Kall” is a beautiful mid-paced track that feels epic and dark, the calm keyboard passage opens to an atmospheric guitar section that displays the skills of the composer. The guitar works have a tremendous effect in creating a hypnotic wintry theme, though it all fits in this epic track. Chiming guitar chords flow over like frigid winds blowing its dramatic effect of awe-inspiring melodies, and the rhythm guitar gives it a unique sonic feel. Doomy riffs cascade in epic fashion then suddenly the emphasis is focused on the ambient soundscapes.

There is a clear element of menace to the echoing harsh vocals to make “Det Forgangna Dunklet” a captivating song where it combines lush keyboards and the classic elements of the past demos clearly manifested in this prolonged track of seventeen minutes long. The cold ambiance creates a wonderful atmosphere while the drums erupt loudly in the background, the keyboards lend an alluring sound to the blistering tremolos. The sharp barbed wire riffs enchanted the cold atmosphere of the sweeping crescendo. “De Fornas Likgaldrar” takes Bekëth Nexëhmü to an untrodden path, there are plenty of variations and tempo changes in the song itself, the guitar melodies add immense hooks which provides a dream escape experience. The elements of ambient soundscapes are melded in such a creative way, though I must say that the changes here are noteworthy to the previous album “De fördolda klangorna”.

The guitar melody resonates in sheer brilliance the use of the tremolos lays the groundwork for music. The third album has a very spectacular atmosphere, however, the songs lean to the atmospheric side of Bekëth Nexëhmü classic sound, Swartadauþuz combines every element to the music and this is why “De Fornas Likgaldrar” is well-balanced and expands on the emotive standards. “En Forglomd Ursjal” conveys the dark proportions of the earlier works of the composer, the use of the droning guitars creates a brooding atmosphere before the drums pick up the pace.

The spoken words embody the majesty of the second wave of black metal, each moment draws grand spectacles to the wintry realm of Swartadauþuz. Bekëth Nexëhmü portrays a unique sound on the third album, the songs morphing in a hypnotic atmosphere. Bone-chilling riffs are followed by an eerie synth with reverb-heavy tremolos adding dark rhythm to the music resulting in some breathtaking moments. The grand epic closure “Vinterlandskapets Klangor del. II” pursues an ambient soundscape of nineteen minutes long and is worth shadowing your cold wintry nights. The nuances of the ambient sounds in the background define the musical prowess of the composer.

While each moment here transitions slowly, it dramatically expands on the cold atmospheric work of the synth. “De Fornas Likgaldrar” is a marvelous addition to Bekëth Nexëhmü’s expanding catalog. This is yet another defining oeuvre that looks for an obscure cold future in the composer’s artistic work!

Release Date: December 12th, 2021
Label: Purity Through Fire
Tracklisting:

1. Sjalslig Urvilja
2. Det Isande Kallet
3. Nordens Vidder
4. Vinterlandskapets Klangor del.I
5. Urtidens Kall
6. Det Forgangna Dunklet
7. En Forglomd Ursjal
8. Vinterlandskapets Klangor del.II