Neithan: Ov Hell: the new all-star Norwegian black metal debut is there: the album is called ‘The Underworld Regime’ and I think that the entire black metal scene has been looking forward to this debut, be it that no one calculated for something innovative. Yes, Ov Hell is an all-star band: what about Shagrath on vocals, Tom Cato “King (ov Hell)” Visnes (ex-Gorgoroth, God Seed) and Ice Dale (Enslaved, Audrey Horne) on the guitars, Frost (Satyricon, 1349) on drums and last but least Teloch (Gorgoroth, 1349) on bass? Actually I felt that King Ov Hell and Satyricon were working on something new: after all, God Seed has been put on heavy ice (ice made out of heavy water that is!) and Satyricon has announced a break fors ome years. And Ice Dale? Well, this über-mercenary is always in for some musical cooperation, I bet this guy eats guitar strings for breakfast.
Ov Hell: actually, the album can only be disappointing since all musicians have participated in legendary albums: take the essential top of the genre and be sure that you will find several albums on which these guys have played in the top ten (guest appearances by Varg Vikerness, Roger Nattefrost and Demonaz would have made the set complete). My first impression is that the album will be to the liking of fans of, oh surprise, God Seed and the latest Gorgoroth ((‘Quantos Possunt ad Satanitatem Trahunt’). Pure Norwegian black metal, yet this time with a production as massive as the Trollveggen! Apart from the fast tracks ‘Acts Of Sin’ and ‘Krigsatte Faner’ it is mostly midtempo and on occasion epic metal headbangers in which the writing hand of King Ov Hell is obvious. Shagrath shows that he is still one of the grimmest vocalists in black metal, Frost rolls the drums like he can do so well (including a mighty groove) and the riffs are performed with power: yet what else would you expect from such a line-up? It is sheer professionalism what is offered here, even if I think that the songs ‘Invoker’ and ‘Hill Norge’ (the new drinking anthem for the Norwegian black metal scene?) are a bit too common for a band like this.
Ah what the (ov) hell: it is just a good album, without negative or positive surprises. Many, including me, will also take this album as a worthy alternative for God Seed, the band that did not happen since Kristian “Gaahl” Espedahl is done with playing metal (at the moment). Ov Hell does what they are expected to, and as such ‘The Underworld Regime’ is not a surprise but above all a good album, which is also very advisable to those who don’t want their black metal to extreme.
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