Frost (album)
| frost | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Enslaved's studio album | ||||
|
Publication |
1994 |
|||
|
admission |
June and July 1994 |
|||
| Label (s) | Osmosis Productions | |||
|
Format (s) |
CD, LP |
|||
|
Title (number) |
9 |
|||
|
running time |
50:10 |
|||
| occupation |
|
|||
|
Eirik "Pytten" Hundvin, Enslaved |
||||
|
Studio (s) |
||||
|
||||
Frost is the second album by the Norwegian Viking metal band Enslaved . It was released by Osmose Productions in 1994 . In addition to several re-releases, it was released in 2009 as part of a wooden box released by Viva Hate Records along with the demo recording Yggdrasill and the albums Eld , Blodhemn , Mardraum: Beyond the Within , Monumension and Below the Lights .
Emergence
The music and lyrics were created between 1993 and 1994. The album was recorded in June and July 1994 in the Grieghallen studio in Bergen and mixed there in July. The sound engineers were Eirik "Pytten" Hundvin and David, the album was produced and mixed by Pytten and the band. Pytten played at Yggdrasil also fretless bass .
Track list
- Frost - 02:52 (Music: Bjørnson)
- Loke - 04:21 (Text: Kjellson; Music: Bjørnson)
- Fenris - 07:16 (Text: Kjellson, Bjørnson; Music: Bjørnson)
- Svarte vidder - 08:43 (Text and music: Bjørnson)
- Yggdrasil - 05:23 (Text: Hávamál ; Music: Bjørnson)
- Jotunblod - 04:07 (Text: Kjellson, Bjørnson; Music: Bjørnson)
- Gylfaginning - 05:31 (Text: Kjellson, Bjørnson; Music: Bjørnson)
- Wotan - 04:12 (Text: Kjellson, Bjørnson; Music: Bjørnson)
- Isöders dronning - 07:45 (Text and music: Bjørnson)
Music style and lyrics
Since the band does not deal with Satanism , they specifically referred to their music as Viking Metal and not as Black Metal ; Nevertheless, Götz Kühnemund of Rock Hard claims that it is "without ifs and buts, flawless Black Metal that captures the mood of the Norwegian early nineties scene both musically and in terms of content". As musical characteristics he sums up “[ furiously screeched berserk vocals, frenzied drums, overflowing riffs, Nordic melodies and a very good, but completely 'uncommercial' production”. According to Kai Wendel, "[i] m in contrast to many 'true' Block [sic!] Metal bands [...] the typical Nordic, raging riffs and the rough screeching vocals with orchestral monumentality. This formative effect is achieved through well-considered keyboard use, finely woven, sometimes very pathetic sound carpets give the music its fullness. On the current silver disc, the trio places even more emphasis on lyrical elements than on their self-titled predecessor (also known as ' Vikingligr Veldi ') or the split CD with Emperor. 'Yggdrasil' and 'Isoders Dronning' could well have sprung from Quarthon 's [sic!] Brain, the titles are reminiscent of his Viking epic ' Hammerheart '. So variety is provided. "
layout
The cover shows a landscape photographed by Svein Grønvold, the band's lettering in the upper part and the title Frost in the lower part . Instead of the letters of the alphabet , runes were used here , which are similar to the letters, but in some cases do not correspond to them. The F is represented by the Ansuz rune from the older Fuþark with the sound value a, the R by Raidho , O by Ingwaz with the sound value ŋ , S by Sowilo in the variant of the younger Fuþark and T by Tiwaz . In the case of the jewel case version, the lettering and the title are both centered on the plastic cover and are therefore not visible on the booklet, in the LP version the Enslaved lettering is printed on the top left and the title is printed on the bottom right, both proportionally smaller than for the CD version. The cover concept comes from Ivar Bjørnson and Grutle Kjellson.
On the back of the booklet there is a picture with the title Frost centered above and Viking Metal below , not, as Götz Kühnemund claims, “in bold letters on the back cover”; there is the list of titles, a few lines in Norwegian and images of Grutle Kjellsons with a nasal helmet , Ivar Bjørnsons with a sword and Trym Torsons in leather clothing with a mask and whip. In addition to the original Norwegian lyrics and English translations as well as a greeting list, the booklet contains a photograph of the musicians with the same props in the forest. Trulte Teigen was responsible for Kjellson's and Bjørnson's clothes, the photographs of the musicians are by Harald Nordbakken. Robin Malmberg from Mysticum was responsible for the design of the album .
reception
Kai Wendel wrote in his review in Rock Hard that “[no] aum band […] succeeded in developing the style hit with ' Under The Sign ['] so ingeniously. [...] The northern lights are the best that Norway has to offer at the moment in terms of extreme sounds and deserve the title ' Bathory of the 90s' for their music . ”Se from the e-zine Bloodchamber.de wrote that Frost was “ not one of them Wrong […] even today to ENSLAVED's most legendary albums and the Norwegian 90s. Already on 'Vikingligr Veldi' the versatile Scandinavians impressively indicated what new cosmos they will create with their music. ”He praises the cover as“ one of the most beautiful front designs ”. The band “laid the foundation for a genre that is widespread today and, to a large extent, also depraved [...]. That is why one must not make the wrong conclusion to dismiss “Frost” as irrelevant Viking doodling. Because this album has an audible roughness, the character of an unpolished rough diamond (also regarding the sound). The further polishing (see the following albums) did not damage it in the following years, but the uncut shape does not sound imperfect, but carries a different kind of fascination. "Götz Kühnemund reviewed the album in 2009 and wrote that the musical elements" fit together to a giant that ENSLAVED will have to carry around with them until the end of their career. Later works by the band were musically more demanding and much more meticulously worked out - but the boisterous anger and raw energy of 'Frost' cannot be reproduced 15 years later. And when we talk about 'anger' and 'energy', we are not talking about uncontrolled, pubescent outbreaks of violence, but about a unique force that grips the listener and hurls them into other worlds. And it creates a perverse, indomitable pleasure. ”. As musical characteristics he sums up “[ furiously screeched berserk vocals, frenzied drums, overflowing riffs, Nordic melodies and a very good, but completely 'uncommercial' production”. 2010 Frost in the Hall of Fame of the Decibel added -Magazine.
Individual evidence
- ^ Enslaved: News. Archived from the original on January 16, 2010 ; accessed on December 3, 2012 .
- ↑ Enslaved: Enslaved Wooden Box unleashed! Myspace, January 27, 2010, accessed December 3, 2012 .
- ↑ a b c d e Götz Kühnemund : Enslaved . Frost. In: Rock Hard . No. 269 , October 2009, p. 96 .
- ↑ a b Kai Wendel: Enslaved . Frost. In: Rock Hard . No. 92 ( rockhard.de [accessed December 19, 2012]).
- ^ Se: Enslaved - Frost. Bloodchamber.de, March 10, 2007, accessed December 19, 2012 .
- ↑ Enslaved: ENSLAVED - Frost - In Decibel's HALL OF FAME by Enslaved. Myspace, January 22, 2010, accessed December 10, 2012 .