You wouldn't guess that this record would be a black metal album just from the look of that cover of "A Umbra Omega". It sort of looks like something you'd expect to see on a house album or indie rock band's record cover. But if you believed that, even for a moment, you'd be fooled. Norway's DØDHEIMSGARD are a completely different breed of black metal band. And this latest release of theirs marks DØDHEIMSGARD's second decade of existence since their inception in the early 1990's. And this is also the latest album to come from the band in quite some time; their last record dropped in 2007.

You may not know about this by now but DØDHEIMSGARD are one of the few bands that are left standing from the second wave of black metal bands to emerge out of Norway in the 1990's. Fenriz of DARKTHRONE, Apolloyn of AURA NOIR and Galder of DIMMU BORGIR and OLD MAN'S CHILD were among the band's earliest members when they recorded strictly black metal. But in 1999, the band decided to head towards a more experimental and edgier direction while still retaining their black metal roots. This stylistic decision can also be heard in Vicotnik's other project, the incomparable VED BUENS ENDE, which remain one of the most idiosyncratic offerings of all time to black metal music.

And what DØDHEIMSGARD has done with "A Umbra Omega" is offer another high-quality musical experience that creates a brand new, more creative angle for Norwegian black metal. The bizarre expressions of insanity, the sense of losing your mind and being begotten by the world in the composition of each song are painted in temperate and desolate tones and shades. And each vocal section are mastered as though they are like twisted church sermons ensnaring the mind of the listener to a string of words expressing the living contradiction we create and continue to throw future generations into this artificial void of madness and despair. These words are recited in a way that is similar to what you might expect during a performance of a Shakespeare drama; very expressive and melodramatic.

"Aphelion Void", the album's gigantic opening track that stretches its impressive arrangement of dark, moody, avant-garde rock music across a quarter of an hour, kicks things right into gear. Not that this is the only track on "A Umbra Omega" that caught my attention or that is worth mentioning but I will mostly focus on this song for my review. I really could make a much longer review going over the intricacies of each and every composition on the record though I won't. I feel like this one track is a fine representation of the rest of the record and I certainly do not want to spoil any of the surprises the other songs have for my readers.

What's particularly exceptional about this song, and the rest of the tracks on "A Umbra Omega," are how much presence the bass guitar and synthesizers and keyboards are. Both of these instruments seem to be the most expressive non-vocal instruments when DØDHEIMSGARD are movements that aren't so "kvlt" and "grim". "A Umbra Omega" isn't so much made for elitist black metal fans either but rather for audiophiles such as myself. So, for that, I am grateful. 

There are times on "Aphelion Void" that feel dizzying. The songs constantly morphs and changes its shape to something different every minute it goes on. The mixing, along with the mad genius that DØDHEIMSGARD are, becomes extremely hypnotizing the deeper you go into the song. "Aphelion Void" is very similar to a lot of the other songs on this album where it begins right off the bat with a blasting, frigid storm of black metal riffs but soon transforms into something much more delicate and strange.

I think both stylistically and melodically, "A Umbra Omega" is a huge, polar-opposite sound from DHG's last release, 2007's "Supervillain Outcast".  That album was so much more grounded in creating a sinister atmosphere and with "A Umbra Omega," DØDHEIMSGARD seems to be striving to transcend the stereotypes of being a black metal band. The writing on this album reflects this in a way I found to be quite captivating. "Taught how to hide/But not to listen/Until words come/Ripping mouths open/Can you handle the hunger/When fear favors the broken." (from "Aphelion Void")

Despite the track lengths being taxing, every composition going well over the ten-minute mark, and the lyrics being borderline insane, "A Umbra Omega" was a true artistic masterpiece in my book. DØDHEIMSGARD are easily one of the most fascinating bands in all of black metal and really know how to create tones that have a wealth of character, melodrama, emotion and setting to them. This album was a grand experiment that succeeded with flying colors. There is so much to soak in on this album that it will most likely require several listens that will demand your full attention.