“Døden demper det største fallet.“
One-man Norwegian black metal tour-de-force Mork return just a year after the seminal Dyept with nine new tracks of trve blackened Norwegian decadence in the form of Syv, a varied yet uncannily cohesive effort that may well be Mork’s masterpiece.
Mork’s core values continue to be rooted in all things Darkthrone, but with Syv, guitarist, vocalist, drummer, bassist and mixing engineer Thomas Eriksen seamlessly blends together many different flavours of black metal. These cover quite a vast range, including hints of Psychonaut 4-esque DSBM, the straight-ahead sensibilities of black n’ roll, and the relentless spirit behind a force of evil like Marduk. Syv’s sheer variety from song to song means that you don’t, even for a second, find yourself bored listening to it; and that it can have such a level of variety whilst retaining its sense of continuity is a testament to the quality of its construction. For example, “Ondt Blod” has a lot more in common with Dark Funeral and Marduk than does the very Psychonaut 4 or Lifelover “Holmgang” – but they have enough in common with one another sonically to belong on the same album.
If one thing is to be known of Eriksen, it is his sheer work ethic – Syv is, in fact, the second full-length album the mind behind Mork has released this year, with the other being the supremely raw self-titled debut of his brand new solo project Udåd. Unlike Udåd, though (and deliberately so,) Syv is one of the most clear, perfect-sounding albums I have ever heard. The mixing is exemplary; everything sits exactly where it should, and processing like delays and reverbs are utilised with beautiful execution. Everything is also so well-recorded, which certainly goes a long way towards how fantastic the mixes sound. Perhaps the best of all are the distorted guitar tones, which see the very delicate job of making high-gain distortion sound polished handled without even the smallest misstep, never sounding muddy nor thin or grating with too much top-end. Additionally, the type of distortion is never fuzzy or overdone to excess.
Keeping in line with Mork’s latter-mentioned adoration for the ways of Darkthrone, Jack Control of the beloved Enormous Door studio handles the mastering with such finesse that it is easy to see why this is Mork’s third album with the mastering engineer. Audiophiles will certainly appreciate Control’s contribution to the already incredible sound of Syv.
In terms of the music itself, Erikson’s lack of other band members does not hold him back in the slightest. Syv’s songs understand themselves. They take the listener on a journey with a clear and well-rounded structure. Everything happens for a reason and every element is doing something for the greater overall sonic cause. “Tidens Tann” sees different layers of guitar complimenting one another, for example, creating a beautiful collage of soaring, peculiar melody. Mixed in are low choral vocals that complement the guitars and lend strongly to the Scandinavian element within the music.
Syv is a supremely dynamic record, with some tracks wallowing in misery, whilst some revel in their evil. Perhaps the most poignant example of the former is “Til Syvende Og Sist”, which, aside from its already melancholic chord progression, ends with a soaring and immensely emotive violin solo atop a bed of other strings, a nice touch that Mork use across Syv’s more miserable tunes. As for the latter, Mork remind us they know how to let rip on tracks like “Ondt Blod”, which full embraces the straight ahead blast beat assault side of black metal, complete with a typically Tom G Warrior “OUGH!”.
“Utbrent” is another example of Mork’s exploration into Marduk-esque black metal, and wouldn’t sound out of place on the band’s Panzer Division Marduk album. That said, “Utbrent” has an almost Crack the Skye psychedelic middle section, before abruptly bringing back the fury after some exploration into the ideas found in the middle.
Though Mork certainly do have their influences and comparisons can easily be drawn to contemporaries, it is important to stress that nowhere on Syv are Mork derivative. In fact, the material found on Syv undeniably sounds like Mork rather than trying to emulate. One of the most crucial factors behind Mork’s sound is Eriksen’s songwriting style, from how he structures each song to how the songs play out.
To end the album, Mork transcend the realms of metal with the haunting acoustic composition “Omme”. Though the song is centred around Eriksen’s emotive clean vocal and acoustic guitar, the song moves whilst layers bloom into life. These consist of the previously mentioned strings, which are utterly forlorn, as well as some distorted guitar that is hushed a little further back in the mix. As the final track on Syv, “Omme” is a great choice; perfectly highlighting Eriksen’s heightened compositional integrity, not dissimilar to a modern-day Beethoven (or, in this case, Grieg, I suppose.)
To conclude, Mork present a wonderfully dynamic but cohesive collection of songs with Syv. The album is quintessentially black metal, crossing the paths of Psychonaut 4, Immortal, Marduk and of course Darkthrone, yet always remaining true to the sound of Mork and failing to be derivative for even a moment. The album expresses itself so hauntingly, with main contributor Thomas Eriksen’s songwriting stamp firmly planted on each composition. Production is handled beautifully, making for one of the greatest sounding black metal albums that will surely grace all fans’ record collections very soon.
9/10
Pre-order Mork‘s new record here.