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Mardraum
Artist : Enslaved
List Price : $16.98 USD
ProductGroup: Music
Release Date : 2000-11-21
Studio : Necropolis Records
Label : Necropolis Records
Avg. Customer Rating :  (13 reviews)
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Reviews
Customer Reviews for Mardraum
Nightmare Metal
Rating:
Enslaved's musical output never has failed to excite me. their first album Frost, was a great slab of blasting cold metal with a cool raw feel to it. Eld followed it up with an epic force that set the stage for the onslaught of the third record: the violent Blodhemn. now, with Mardraum -Beyond The Within-, the next stage has begun.
the term "Viking Metal" has been long tagged with Enslaved; and for good reason. they seemed to wear that label proudly; listing it boldy on the inside cover of their first album, and going so far as to don the actual Viking garb in their photos and stage show. imagine how that must have been playing music this fast and technically demanding while wearing a steel mesh body suit and an iron helmet! and what's so amazing about it, is that it's not just art for art's sake, but for the real historical value and cultural signifigance. that's one of the things that makes this band so alluring and fascinating to me...besides the fact that there music is undoubtably some of the finest and most challenging metal being made by any band these days.
Mardraum signals the beginning of some changes in the Enslaved sound. some kind of strange mystical force is brewing in these songs. where as before, the emphasis was on historical battles in the physical world, this record seems to turn it's focus a bit more on the magickal struggle. it's still every bit as fast and violent as their previous blood-soaked set of anthems, but this time around, Enslaved has prepared some new twists to their musical formula.
the opening song "Larger Than Time - Heavier Than Night" (what a great song title!) begins with the spacey psychadelic sounds of guitar heavily echoed with reverb and delay and then the drums enter in, launching a hyper speed blast of brutal riffs and kinetic energy. the pace slows down to a crawl as the vocals eerily drift in over the lumbering pace. it's a bit like a black metal version of Pink Floyd. it's overall effect is both chilling and exhilerating.
the album continues down these lines, but more brutal and overall, the speed factor is kept at a breakneck pace. barely taking a breath, the band seems to be full of life and the solid riffs just keep coming. their seems to be a more loose mood to these recording sessions than in the past. some of the rhythms have more of a groove and i can hear alot more 70's rock influence buried under all the distortion and growling. there seems to be a bit more guitar solos on this album, too. which is a good thing! it gives this album a more rocking approach. but amongst all the thrashing and headbanging, there's plenty of space devoted to weird spacey passages, such as the beginning to the third song "Entrance - Escape," which evokes a feverish nightmare of paranoid visions and an indeniable presence.
Mardraum -Beyond The Within- is a proud moment for Enslaved and probably stands as their most refined and solid album they have ever made. things will get stranger and more abstract on their recordings after this record; and the steps to their progression can be seen on this album. Mardraum is another Enslaved masterpiece!
Customer Reviews for Mardraum Cd
The turning point
Rating:
After finishing the "Viking Trilogy" of Frost, Eld, and Blodhemn, I can almost imagine the guys from Enslaved just sitting around one day pondering what to do next. Fresh from creating three albums of scorching yet beautiful black metal, inspired by Viking legend and Norse mythology - albums that would later (i.e. NOW) become seminal in their field.
So what next? Rehash the past and grow stale, or move forward?
The answer: Mardraum. In this fiery, speedy, thrashy opus, Enslaved launches into what we now see as the second phase of their career - the fusion of progressive elements into black metal, which (until now) has typically been the genre most adamantly resistant to anything hinting of progression.
Of course the first reaction of most fans (especially the "kvlt" black metal crowd) is "OMG SELLOUTS!!" -- However, you may rest assured, this is absolutely not the case.
From the creepy, ominous opening of "Større Enn Tid - Tyngre Enn Natt" to the dreamy closure of "Frøyas Smykke", the band weaves in and out of many diverse, yet enthralling styles. A grindy sort of black metal, thrash grooves, oddities that hearken to mid-career Voivod, moments of Floyd-esque space rock, even a country-western sounding bit (no, I'm serious!!) in "Det Endelege Riket" all intertwine to absolutely amazing effect.
Also, for the first time, Enslaved has taken the time to translate and print all the lyrics in English for the fans across the pond. Granted, some of them don't exactly translate all that well, but a great gesture nonetheless. (This would be the only time such a thing was necessary, however, as this would turn out to be their last album with lyrics in their native Norwegian.)
Often this album is seen by die-hard fans to be the "bastard child" between the "Viking" and "Prog" eras of Enslaved's stellar career, and even summarily dismissed as a result... but honestly such dismissal makes me wonder if they even listened to it.
The band's work continues to excel, but being a fan of both eras of Enslaved's career, this "bridge" album seems to stand taller and stronger than any other. Indeed, this is my favorite album of all time.
It is truly amazing how silent that the career of these metal giants has been, and continues to be.
Editorial Reviews for Mardraum Audio Cd
Album Description
First release on Necropolis Records expands on their signature blackened sound with haunting psychedelic atmospheres and cryptic true metal riffing, all the while keeping things even more aggressive than their past releases. 2000 release. Standard jewel case.
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