Hulder – Verses In Oath
Hulder – Verses In Oath
20 Buck Spin
09/02/2024
Running Time: 40:00
Rory Bentley
8.5/10
As we’re still very much in the melancholy end of the year at the time of writing, I can think of few better soundtracks to a downbeat woodland walk than the latest release from one woman Black Metal project Hulder. Beginning with the sound of wind in the trees and birds in the sky, “Verses In Oath” has a classic rustic charm that conjures the Folk-tinged Black Metal of old. I’m not the biggest Black Metal fanatic here, and many of you might expect Rick or Richard to be on reviewing duties here, but as a huge Satyricon mark, the stripped- down Medieval vibes that run through this record were right up my alley.
‘Boughs Ablaze’ has a classic 90s BM sound, switching between furious blast beats and swaying half-time tempos that lend a sense of momentum straight out of the gate, as a strong growled vocal performance carries the song. Thrown in some icy lo-fi keyboards that somehow pack more grandeur than a full orchestra and we’re onto a winner straight away. It’s pretty textbook stuff but when it’s done this well it’s hard to be mad at the fact that Hulder hasn’t gone on a flight of fancy and experimentation on this third full length.
Things take a more epic turn on ‘Hearken The Earth’, which has an almost waltzing tempo, pinned around a catchy keyboard melody that puts Hulder in contention for the ‘Most Scandinavian-Sounding American’ award. This song is more purposeful and mournful in its approach and the haunting clean sung parts really hit me in the gut. I’m currently going through the earlier stages of grief and the more melodic parts of this record as featured here and later on the heart-wrenching ‘An Offering’ which also throws in a not insignificant dash of Dungeon-Synth, have certainly struck a chord with me on a way that goes beyond head banging and making claw signs.
Of course if you do want to headband and make claw signs Hulder have very much got you covered as well! The title track does not have time to fuck around, smashing some incredibly satisfying riffs out with feral energy. A huge strength of the song, and indeed the gnarlier cuts that appear later in the record, is the way that each section is allowed to breathe as it segues into the next, with brief, sparser passages punctuating each transition, often peppered with that lush keyboard tone.
At a tight 40 minutes the record manages to maintain a feeling of grandeur and scope that belies these lean compositions. By the time the catchy yet caustic ‘Veil of Penitence’ puts a bow on things, one is left with the feeling of being pulled into a sprawling world without being ensnared in the tedium of indulgence and pomposity. This is a really strong, earthy, sometimes beautiful, always engaging Black Metal album and one that could well be on regular rotation for a long time to come round my neck of the woods.
‘Hearken The End’ Official Video
TRACKLISTING:
01. An Elegy
02. Boughs Ablaze
03. Hearken The End
04. Verses In Oath
05. Lamentation
06. An Offering
07. Cast Into The Well of Remembrance
08. Vessel Of Suffering
09. Enchanted Steel
10. Veil Of Penitence
LINE-UP:
Hulder- The bloody lot 2018- Present!
LINKS:
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