DIRENOTES

It seems \’traditional\’ black-metal is making a comeback of sorts, with bands like WODE clearly looking to seep through the mass of progressive and atmospheric additions that have practically drowned out the basic constructs of the genre – a process that has been underway since Dimmu Borgir decided to be more friendly to the masses with Death Cult Armageddon. However, I can\’t vouch for if that album was friendly or not, in truth but it\’s mainstream exposure and symphonic-like vocal sections really inspired a lot of people (I know they weren\’t the first, but they were one of the most known at the time). Anyhow – no, I don\’t hate progressive or atmospheric black-metal but it is nice to see that a more pure-blooded approach has begun to resurface – Gjendød being a prime example.

Though brief, this self-titled release really captured what I\’d always thought black-metal to be. It\’s ugly, unfriendly, and completely unorthodox. The musical structure is, as expected, frantic and edgy – if not a bit simplistic with it\’s wall-of-distortion approach. There is a lot of sound here and it\’s meant to be loud and brash, and the vocals meant to be strange and otherworldly. There are no clean breaks or strategic build-ups. It\’s mostly a expression rather then an attempt at song-writing genius – because Gjendød really just doesn\’t need to be that, at all.

So, in that regard I give it praise. But as such, it carries the downside of the entire genre as well – the very downsides that experimentation has somewhat attempted to weed out over the years. Gjendød is unfriendly, Gjendød is unorthodox – but in such a way that it\’s utterly expected and almost lacks anything truly special. It\’s a wall of sound, its thrashy, and the vocals are harsh and ugly – but, on the other side of the coin, it\’s all familiar. There isn\’t anything you\’ll hear here that you haven\’t heard somewhere else in abundance.

For those looking back to a simpler and more pure form of black-metal, but for us who look for something a little different – Gjendød simply won\’t fit the bill.