Mor Dagor: MK. IV

I still remember borrowing CDs from my childhood friend, Zahid (we're still keeping in touch), way back in Y2K because at the turn of the century, guitar playing took a tedious embrace for the mundane; the celebration of one's limited abilities playing the guitar as manifested by the whole grunge movement, was still spilling over & music was as drab as it could be. One of the CDs I received from Zahid was Mor Dagor's Bloodstream. I wasn't a fan of black metal back then because of how singular the guitars sound like & often punctuated by bad technicalities but with Mor Dagor, I was extra patient.

I am a fan of the music till today. I believe Mor Dagor consists of some of the most talented minds in the aggressive music industry as evident in the music. Riffs are varied & efforts were made to manifest creativity as opposed to the obligatory buzzing of distorted guitars. The band's latest release, MK. IV, perpetuates this salutations but the guitar tones here are a little disheartening, reminds me of the rather absurd tonalities of Deicide's Once Upon the Cross (ok so you like that one, huh? maybe you like listening to bees buzzing in jars...). The bass in this release is more upfront & plays a rather commanding role on some tunes. The final track fades into a night time atmosphere complete with creaking cicadas & ... country singing?? Intriguing but true...