Vredens dag — As onlookers sink into irradiated unmarked graves on this day of wrath Swedish black metal trio LIFVSLEDA are the mouthpiece and the pulpit at Walpurgisnacht, stoic as heralds of death’s silent summon and messengers of all that would dissolve into fire under the gospel of Satan. The piece that would compound an already bleak vision, a triskelion of cloven hoof and coven in arcane spiritus, arrives with this third full-length album aimed at the restless dramatism of Scandinavian black metal ‘Evangelii härold‘ looks to the thunder of the mind, the morgue, the mausoleum, and calls for the end of the wheel’s turning toward absolute death. Another pointedly miserable yet highly sentient venture into coldest, most classic traditions of death’s music here we find their black spiraling mood intensifying to the point of slowed yet harder hit movements, a groaning mind beset with torpor and inspiration at once within these eight movements descending toward unholiest death.

Officially noted in record since 2019, the morbid reach of Lifvsleda states simply enough their goal to “recapture the old feeling of early Nordic Black Metal” and without question they’d achieved this general sensation from the start as folks who’d clearly had some experience under their belts. Without evidence, or any pressing need to identify the folks involved, we can at least tangentially confirm elite work and tendrils which stretch back to the early 90’s Swedish scenery ’til today. There are two minds for tone and melodicism here, one which aims to resuscitate the earliest strikes of mournful guitar work by way of early ’94 demo-era, the droning determination of those days (see: Isvind, Octinomos, Unpure et al.), and one which translates those core features into full-fleshed but never overdesigned post-millennium era black metal pieces which are variously atmospheric, most often melodic, and always graven in mood. This was an ideal I’d explored per very high general praise for their second full-length album (‘Sepulkral Dedikation‘, 2022) upon review before ultimately placing it at #34 on my Top 100 Albums of the Year. The gist of it was that I’d felt their first album was good but their second reached a different pinnacle, a more connective ritual which still calls upon the same magick felt two years ago when revisited today. Of course, this presents both a hill for this follow-up to climb and a chance to expand and refine their intended ideal.

The mind’s thunder… — With opener “Det Perfekta Sinnet” we drop right back into the cold yet compelling depth of their previous effort through a throttled percussive pace, dramatic lead guitar pathways which act in place of chorus, and what I’d seen as a semi-melodic analogue to the memorable highs of Lifvsleda‘s previous album where the strike of pace made all the difference. While this is an effective opening statement which briefly introduces the sonic lustre of this third LP it isn’t he main song to set the tonal heap alight and it ends up being the two longest pieces on the album, “Sönderfall” and the title track, which open the window to something I’d considered entirely different as often mid-paced and steadily atmospheric pieces which reach for post-mortem despondency.

The spoken or, sampled speech, on the title track (“Evangelii härold”) feels like a strange headspace to have reached for in this case which achieves something like more recent Mortuus (Sweden), who’d spoken to an “orthodox” black metal sound early on yet transformed into droning muse later, yet even in this application Lifvsleda bear a depressive touch which connects with melodramatic arrange as a point of purpose. This reads to me as a fundamental emotional range, a sense of connectivity and expression, inherent to the course of each of their three albums. It is not the most clearly stated bout of scenery available between its washed out rhythms and occasionally slowed martial percussion but it is however something different, slightly more freely-formed than the buttoned up perfectionism of ‘Sepulkral Dedikation‘.

Beyond that first substantive third of the full listen each piece takes these specific aptitudes and seeks to create distinction between each depiction available going forward. The simpler early second wave groove driving “Griftefärd” certainly arrives by the same hand that penned “Trämälningen” in terms of technique yet the depressive nigh post-black ebb of the latter and its deft transition into more ornate, introspective melodicism in its second half feels a league apart from the former. My personal favorite piece on the album, “Bland Likbodar Och Vintergrafvar”, combines both sensations into one hazy yet clever opus via groove-stricken finesse and ‘epic’ feeling strokes, speaking to the same reality but not necessarily a hapless thought, achieving a piece which speaks to an ever-escalating realization without conclusion.

There is a swinging yet dramatic ferality to the remainder of Side B, movement which is given its grit and rootedness by the slapping yet ride-ready fleet footedness of the drum performances here. For my own taste this is where the vibrancy of their work on ‘Evangelii härold‘ begins to inspire most, leaving the final two pieces as the reward for attentive listening. This is also the portion of the albums lyrics which benefit from having paid attention to the exploration set forth earlier on, even the most vague literal auto-translation should reveal the impact of these final moments but this process is best left to self-directed exploration; While I was not convinced in full during my initial exploratory phase upon approach some patience and pecking through the deeper rifts of ‘Evangelii härold‘ warranted its stature as a follow up and expansion of what Lifvsleda have been working at since 2019 or so.

The more attention I’d paid to the details the more ‘Evangelii härold‘ seemed to reward those inquiries with nuance and expression, in this sense it is a different shade of Lifvsleda which eases away the physical violence one might’ve expected when ramping up beyond their second album. While this isn’t a glaring omission from their greater equation the tone of this release is hollowed and dismayed to the point that it lacks a bit of the vigor I’d gone in anticipating. Otherwise as a fan of the minutiae of Swedish black metal and the general moodiness of this band I’d been predispositioned to enjoy the ride and its sullen pacing more than the actual specifics of the riffcraft this time around and ultimately found most of my enjoyment in the quality of the recording, its immersive qualities, and the morbid but sometimes tuneful aspect which defines each of their releases. A high recommendation.

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