Kvass

Following the excellent Fra underverdenen (1999), it took Norwegian black/pagan-metal outfit Kampfar until 2006 to release the long-awaited follow-up called by the name of Kvass. Fans were surely wondering whether Kampfar would be able to shake off the rust and repeat their earlier success.

In that regard, album opener “Lyktemenn” is a harbinger of, uh, not so good things to come. It kicks off by repeating the same simple riff for no less than two minutes, which wouldn’t be a big deal if it was a particularly exciting riff. Unfortunately, it’s pretty dreary—neither very heavy nor very catchy, which can be said for many of the riffs used on Kvass. “Lyktemenn” is propelled by an unwavering, mid-paced drum beat which… Well, it literally never wavers. Every time you think the song might finally go in a different direction and head toward something more interesting, toward some sort of climax, you’ll find it just drones on endlessly in exactly the same fashion. “Lyktemenn” also lacks a real chorus, which would be fine if the parts that make up the song offered more than an arduous exercise in literally going nowhere. Oh, and did I mention “Lyktemenn,” to make matters worse, goes precisely nowhere for a duration of more than eight minutes?

“Ildverden,” which is almost ten minutes long, “Hat og avind” and the closing “Gaman av drømmer” give us much of the same, though they at least come up with the occasional faster, more aggressive section (the rather diverse “Ildverden” springs to mind) as well as a couple of neat, catchy riffs here and there. “Gaman av drømmer” in particular sports a somewhat livelier drum beat and more energetic riffing, qualifying as one of the better tracks on Kvass.

“Ravenheart,” the only song not sung in Kampfar’s native Norwegian language, is probably the best-known track on Kvass and a bit of an outlier compared to the rest of the material. It goes for a “happier” sound and is very much geared toward melody and accessibility. It can definitely be considered a success, even though it’s so ostensibly catchy that parts of it feel a little like something you would hear when visiting a Renaissance or Medieval fair—sans Dolk’s black-metal growls, of course. Anyway, after the misbegotten opener and taking into account the rather uniform and even monotonous nature of most of the songs, it ends up as a welcome breath of fresh air.

The track that really shows Kampfar getting their act together and proving their mettle is “Til siste mann.” Well, at least to some degree. It opens up with a nice and unexpected—that is, after the snooze fest that was “Lyktemenn”—barrage of blast beats and is generally much more determined and energetic, as well as by far the fastest, nastiest and most black-metal based tune on Kvass. Even the slower passages, such as that solemn part beginning with roughly two-and-a-half minutes left in the song, display more vigor and a greater sense of urgency than much of the other material.

Overall, the major issue with Kvass is not that it feels somewhat monotonous; after all, the same could certainly be said about many of black metal’s most revered classics. It’s more that it can’t seem to decide what exactly it wants to be. As it stands, it’s neither black metal nor folk/pagan metal enough to really qualify as either of the two, aiming for a sort of middle ground which, unfortunately, fails to really move the needle for fans of either genre. For proper black metal, Kvass is nowhere near angry or menacing enough, and for proper folk/pagan metal it mostly lacks the big gripping melodies or the bold frequent use of traditional folk instruments.

Way too often Kvass comes across as the equivalent of being forever stuck in second gear. Kampfar can clearly do a whole lot better and so they did on most of their albums. In fact, it took them only two years to make up for their misstep, improving on Kvass with the much stronger Heimgang, which showed how potent their blend of traditional Norwegian black metal and pagan metal can actually be.

Choicest cuts: Til siste mann, Ildverden

The more you know: The term kvass can refer to a fermented low-alcohol beverage originating from northeastern Europe, with light-brown color and sweet-sour taste. According to frontman Dolk, however, the album’s title is derived from the Norwegian word kvass, meaning sharp, spiky or harsh.

Rating: 6.0 out of 10 points