An important release for the extreme music subgenre of Viking metal, Frost represented a sizeable creative leap for Norway's Enslaved. After only a few years of existence, several record labels, and a few member changes, Enslaved had settled into a bit of a groove on this 1994 release. Bassist/vocalist Grutle Kjellson leads the way with plenty of throat splitting call-outs to various Norse gods and apocalyptic battle descriptions, while Ivar Bjørnson (guitar, keyboards) and Trym Torson (drums) plow through plenty of destructive riffs of their own. The music oscillates between spooky, plodding keyboard intros to black metal so fast and furious, barely a beat or melody is descernable. Highlights include the relatively decipherable "Fenris" and the slow, dissonant "Yggdrasil," but in general, all the tracks on Frost bear enough of a resemblance to make this 1994 release a fine black metal listen…
Formed in 1991 Norway's Enslaved have released 14 full length records over their nearly 30 year career. The band's 2020 album Utgard is a record brimful with northern magic and shows them at a stage where simply everything they touch turns to gold. Icy black metal anthems walk hand in hand with refined prog rock gems and primordial, dark folk sorcery
In true Enslaved fashion, the Bergen voyagers' 16th album, "Heimdal", is both a departure and a communion with roots forged over three decades ago in the turbulent birth throes of Norway's black metal scene. "Heimdal" is named after arguably the most mysterious entity in Nordic mythology and the album itself a reflection of paths travelled, a promise of a new beginning, and a rite of passage between the two.
Norwegian metal avant-gardists ENSLAVED will release a new EP, "Caravan To The Outer Worlds", on October 1 via Nuclear Blast. According to a press release, the four-song effort "is a tale of departure, of leaving behind a barren and desolate world, travelling boldly into the future." The "Caravans To The Outer Worlds" EP contains neck-breaking riffage that points backwards to the raw beginnings of ENSLAVED — the title track marking an explosive lift-off with melodic breakaways and proggy slingshots onto new orbits, while the ominous "Ruun II: The Epitaph" takes a somber dive into the murky and mysterious ocean of stars beyond the known. These two main pieces are framed by two intermezzos: "Intermezzo I: Lönnlig. Gudlig." and "Intermezzo II: The Navigator", wrapping up the main stories with respectively what came before and what is to come.