Brandmale

I came across the name Melkor via the second full length “Irrlicht”, which has been a very intriguing piece of dark and captivating music, although not without a few flaws. Seven years later Patrick returns with his one-man-project and delivers album number three “Brandmale”. While the music has one again been done all by his own he decided to cooperate with a label this time, namely Crawling Chaos. Not many labels have delivered releases on such a permanently high quality standard over the past few years so the info of those two parties joining forces came as great news to my ears. The info sheet calls this effort “harder and more direct”, a statement that got me excited but also a bit wary. With eight songs and a total running time of nearly 55 minutes this album offers quite a bit of content to get through so let’s get started.

One thing Patrick has always been great at is balancing sinister and dreamy soundscapes with raw black metal basics and create a thick and dense atmosphere. He achieves a wonderful mix of the light and heavy elements, and the light portions of the record feel like developed pieces rather than interludes. Venturing into his work often is the musical equivalent of the overwhelming sensation of being lost in a dark and otherworldly place. It is absolutely fascinating how Patrick is pulling off his vision in every single minute to provide us with an amazingly flavorful album of black metal that’s soaked in atmospheric elements, while still delivering stringent songs and also keep a nice punch.

It is obvious that the past 7 years were wisely spent to gather new inspiration, as Patrick really dugs his heels in for this release to incorporate everything that he could bring to the table in order to craft an experience that’s not just compelling right from the beginning, but immensely satisfying in its entirety. The tracks here just hit all the right notes in a different sense to where I could not help but fall right into this album right from the beginning. Melkor’s creative potency and skill is far above the norm, and an incredible combination of it all that quickly allows this effort to rise above the competition just by the end of the first track. It is difficult to put the finger on what exactly makes this release something special that gets more spins than most other stuff right now, as the core is nothing particularly new. But maybe this is exactly the reason, as this effort feels like a work by a real fan of the genre, enhanced by some refined details and brought to life in a vibrant way.

Like stated by the band and the label the riffs hit a bit harder this time around, and the keyboards are not as dominant as they used to be, although they are still an important factor for the whole picture. There are some parts where the layering of the guitars along with the depth of the vocals provides an encapsulating feel, and the soundscapes in the background engulf everything in darkness. The rhythm guitars tend to drone, serving as a deeper bedrock from which the lead guitars can dictate the finer emotional tone, as difficult as it can be to determine exactly what emotional reaction it brings out as you’re listening. When needed Patrick pushes a cold and desolate atmosphere to the forefront, as vocals laced with aggression and pain crash over a wave of breakneck riffing.

One aspect which had room for improvement surely was the production quality of “Irrlicht”, as it was a bit too muddy and the riffs have been buried in the mix. “Brandmale” sounds a lot better and very transparent, and while I personally could have done with even a tad bit more punch and dynamic this is a huge step forward for Melkor. The drums are probably programmed, but thankfully they do not sound as flat as before. The lyrics are surprisingly sophisticated, as Patrick took inspiration from the work of great historic lyricists and poets. The pensive words perfectly underline the somewhat melancholic nature of Melkor’s music. I personally am a big fan of this record and in case you like your black metal with moving harmonies and a dense atmosphere you owe it to yourself to check this one out. The cover artwork is also fantastic, making the purchase of physical copy mandatory for fans of the genre.