Urgehal – Through Thick Fog Till Death
Southern Lord Recordings – sunn38 – 2005
By Jason Jordan
Words such as fog, death, evil, and Satan aren’t usually associated with black metal. Okay, I’m joking. In fact, the presence of those words on the 2005 re-release of 2003’s effort,
Through Thick Fog Till Death, is quite strong. What we have here is essentially Norwegian black metal that is formidable, despite being rather unoriginal.
There’s really no need to scroll through the album when “Possessed (Raped by Evil)” gives a full-on glimpse of what to expect. This is fast, raw black metal in the vein of
Dissection or
Immortal. Luckily, the members of
Urgehal are adept songwriters, and are immensely talented at their respective instruments. A moment like the seven-minute mark of “Invasion” is great due to the war-like rhythms and enrapturing riffage utilized. The band move through “Mirror Satan,” “Satanic Deathlust,” and “Dod, Dod Og Atter Dod” with immaculate care, though the nearly-tangible hatred remains intact. As a bonus, Southern Lord Recordings tacked on four, live tracks to the end of
Through Thick Fog Till Death; the quality isn’t spectacular, but it does suffice.
I felt n3kr0, kvlt, gr1m, and tr00 as I listened to
Urgehal, until I realized that I was wearing a Union Bay sweatshirt, Adidas pants, and Nike socks. That right there kind of ruined everything but – either way –
Through Thick Fog Till Death is a good eighty-minute excursion.
8/10
Official Urgehal website
Official Southern Lord Recordings website
