Enslaved Album: “Ruun [Candlelight]”

I'm only familiar with a few of the Norwegian black metal bands, and decided to try out Enslaved after reading some good reviews. I'm quite surprised and intrigued by the creativity in this band's sound, and they've gotta be one of the most progressive and interesting bands in their dark circle. I bet if the most adventurous and big-thinking Vikings had access to modern instruments, as well as a yen for both classic extreme metal and prog rock, they'd make music like this. As opposed to the relentless violence of their compatriots, Enslaved enslave the listener with an ominous creeping dread and slow-burning menace. The most powerful tracks on this album, such as "Entroper" and "Tides of Chaos," build that power with shifting dynamics and unexpected stylistic changes, while the haunting acoustic breaks in "Path to Vanir" and "RUUN" find the perfect balance between beauty and power. Now that's how to build true heaviness, rather than just bashing away at full blast all the time. Prominent keyboards and some snippets of exotic instrumentation, as well as the interesting juxtaposition between the Alice Cooper-like sneer of Grutle Kjellson and the forlorn wizened singing of Herbrand Larsen, are all signs of a band that is fully committed to breaking out of its category, and moving that category into new musical realms. This extreme metal is extremely fascinating. [~doomsdayer520~]

...or maybe a bit of both...have you ever watched a cat chase a flashlight on a wall...entertaining indeed...however, this album makes me feel like the cat. Can't really put my finger on what it is about this album...suffice it to say...it has slayer (early), opeth, stoner rock, classic progressive and whatever else you will bear witness round about listen 20, but a fine effort indeed. Everything just seems to find its place in the mix on this album and that is a testament to the band and the production quality. Some may spew venom about the sound quality being too proggy, but if that were the case the drums would be much higher in the mix! To me the drums are great, but the guitar and keyboard interaction make this record what it is. 8 tracks with no repeatition what-so-ever...and for a band of this propensity...you would believe them to be less prolific...but you would be wrong...

I have listened to this as much as 10,000 days and think this album is much better...and that album has its moments.

Enjoy!!!

Some years back, a new album from Norway's Enslaved was an occasion for pagan celebration only among those few who honestly appreciated "Viking" black metal of EPIC quality... people like me for whom a band in tunics and tights was indeed "cool". But more and more folks came around to this band's undeniable if eccentric brilliance (and their stage clothes have become less archaic). Now they're one of the biggest acts in the world of "extreme metal" and the release of a new album like this one (Ruun being their ninth full-length in a 13 year career) is a big deal. As it should be. I've always made a big deal about Enslaved's albums.

So as always, excitement ran high for this new disc. And my reaction to it is similar to how we felt about their last one, Isa -- it's obvious immediately that Ruun is another proud entry in the Enslaved discography, and one that promises to be a grower too. The carefully crafted, complex collision of aggro black metal and '70s inspired prog rock (a la Rush, Genesis, King Crimson) that Enslaved have been perfecting (or, at this point, could be said to have perfected!) is in full effect, each composition holding hidden secrets to be revealed only on repeat listens, while not for a second stinting on the venemous METAL that you want right of the gate. Already there's certain tracks that I just want to keep hitting "repeat" on.

Grutle's vocals still alternate between vicious rasping growls and "clean" Viking vox, the music similarly incorporating both jagged metallic riffing (stormwracked seas, longboats tossing) and spacier, more melodic symphonic passages (astral travels to ancestral lands beyond the stars)... the classic Enslaved dynamic at work! Though maybe there's something smoother about such transistions nowadays as Enslaved have matured (if not mellowed). Or maybe I'm just used to it now. What I do know for sure is that Ruun's technical, emotional, majestic music for the discerning headbanger will earn Enslaved even more plaudits, not to mention the usual well-warranted comparisons to Sweden's Opeth, who have been travelling a similarly progressive path from extreme metal roots. But I also hear traces of such Nordic BM bands as Emperor and Satyricon -- and of course Voivod, and psychedelic grandaddies Pink Floyd, on the album's dreamier moments.

Black metal - check.

Viking metal - check.

Progressive metal - check.

Enslaved falls neatly into all three categories, thank you very much. They have been in this "manly" metal business for 16 years, and they know what they are doing. Ruun is their tenth full-length album, and is following "Isa", a disc that many never thought that they could top. If they did not actually surpass the mighty "Isa", they certainly made a great effort, maybe even equaling that work.

I have to give this band the credit they deserve. After being in this business for 16 years, they continue (like Katatonia) to produce quality work. They have allowed themselves to grow, having transcended the confines of black metal, exploring their roots, and successfully honing their talents to the point that the progressive route where they roam today is a perfectly natural environment. This is not an easy task, but this band makes it look easy enough since nothing on this album feels forced.

Singing duties are shared between founding member and bassist Grutle Kjellson, who provides a black metal rasp that is sheer perfection, and the newest member, keyboardist Herbrand Larsen, performs most of the clean vocals. Larsen's vocals are above the norm, nicely performed and his voice is well suited to the style. The combination of these two guys singing/rasping in tandem (as in title track "Ruun" and sixth track choruses of "Essence") is a completely wondrous, nearly visceral experience, and part of what makes this band stand out.

The musicianship is rock-solid throughout, from the lovely bass lines by Grutle on "Entorper", to the angular guitar chorus on the very experimental "Tides of Chaos". I really like the almost purely black metal vibe of seventh track "Api-Vat", the lead guitar solo at the end of this song flows beautifully into the final song "Heir to the Cosmic Seed", a song that just screams the word "progressive", with an instrumental reminiscent of great 70's prog-rock.

Seeing how much I love this album, I am finding it difficult to find anything to say that has not already been said. This album just owns, so you should own it!

I have to mention that I saw them perform live after writing this review. Grutle surprised me by doing a lot of the clean singing himself, and did it well. They delivered an excellent and polished live performance. and they were very "manly". yes, indeed.

What can I say about Enslaved? A band with a mature and progressive approach to viking/black metal. Ruun is basically Isa's natural followup; Enslaved aren't necessarily adding anything new to their sound, but rather, exploring the niche they gradually established within the course of 10 albums. The instrumentation is virtuosic, technical, but still predatory, and Grutle's vitriolic growl recall the days of oldschool black metal. Top it off with majestic, well-integrated synth arrangements, and what you get is a viking-infested, cosmic sea that's possibly this year's best album. Must buy.

- Thus says the Pellington