Bergraven/Det framlidna minnet/Nordvis Produktion/2019 CD Review

  Bergraven  ate  a  band  from  Sweden  that  has  had  an  album  reviewed  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  a  very  atmospheric  and  depressive  form  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2019  album  "Det  framlidna  minnet"  which  will  be  released  in  March  by  Nordvis  Produktion.

  Clean  playing  and  drum  beats  start  off  the  album  and  after  the  intro  the  music  goes  into  more  of  an  experimental  and  progressive  direction  along  with  some  avant  garde style  soundscapes while  spoken  word  parts  can  also  be  heard  as  well  as  the  solos  and  leads  being  done  in  a  very  dark  yet melodic  style.

  Grim  yet  depressive  black  metal  screams  are  also  a  very  huge  part  of  the  recording  while  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  along  with  the  music  also  adding  in  a  decent  amount  of  jazz  elements  as  well  as  some  blast  beats  also  being  utilized  when  the  music  speeds  up.

  Some  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  while  saxophones  are  also  added  into  certain  sections  of  the  recording  along  with  one  track  also introducing  acoustic  guitars  onto  the  album  as  well  as  some  clean  vocals  also  being  used  at  times  and  when  tremolo  picking  is  finally  utilized  it  gives  the  music  more  of  a  raw  feeling,  one  track  also  adds  in  a  small  amount  of  flutes  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  whispers,  spoken  word  parts  nd  female  vocals  can  also  be  heard.

  On  this  recording  Bergraven  takes  their  depressive  style  of  black  metal  into  more  of  an  experimental  and  progressive  direction,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  are  written  in  Swedish  and  cover  memories-their  fluid  nature  and  how  the  healthy  human  spirit  builds  a  wall  around  itself  with  carefully  adjusted  memories  and  yet  the  system  corrupts  and  memories  become  ghosts  that  haunt  their  hosts  with  regret  and  despair.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  album  from  Bergraven  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  experimental  and  depressive  black  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  recording.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Allt"  "Leendet  av  hans  verk"  and  "Till  preset av  vart  liv".  8  out  of  10.

https://nordvis.com/en/bergraven-a-3
https://www.facebook.com/bergraven

Bergraven/Till Makabert Vasen/HydroHead Records/2009 CD REVIEW

  Bergraven are a band from Sweden that plays a very original form of black metal and this is a review of their 2009 album "Till makebert vasen" which was released by HydraHead Records.

Drums are mostly slow to mid paced on this album with not much in the way of fast playing or blast beats except for maybe a few songs, while the bass playing takes influences from many different styles of music and plays the role of a lead bass and is one of the most dominant instruments on this album.

Rhythm guitars are mostly slow doomy black metal riffing with some mid paced to fast playing mixed in the music while the guitar leads are very distorted as well as progressive with some slide guitar playing mixed in that gives the music a very ambient/new age feel that utilizes many different musical styles, as for the acoustic guitar when it is utilized it sounds very dark and tragic with full chords being utilized.

Vocals are mostly high pitched black metal screams with some clean singing that has an avant garde feel and some occasional whispered vocals, while the production which was recorded at Necrmobus Studios in Stockholm, Sweden sounds very professional and you can hear every instrument on this album, as for the lyrics they are all in Swedish but probably cover depressing topics since this band has been labeled a Shining rip off but yet sounds nothing like them as on this album.

In my personal opinion this is a good album from a very talented band that sounds very original and progressive, if you are a fan of progressive and experimental dark/black metal you should get this album for your collection, you will not be disappointed.  RECOMMENDED  BUY.

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