THE JUNGLE GUY (7/10)

Norway was the epicenter of the outbreak that we call second wave of Black Metal, and gave birth to legends of the style like MAYHEM, EMPEROR, DIMMU BORGIR, BURZUM, and to a lot of minor bands, not as great as these one, but having their own value. As time passed by, some of them turn their backs to the style, becoming acts to others styles of Metal, as DARKTHRONE going into Metal / Punk trend, and among these was SATYRICON, who had done some musical experiences after "Nemesis Divina", and finally became a Death N' Roll band (excuse this writer for the opinion, but that phase was very boring). And now, with "Satyricon", their new album, even with some aspects of Death N' Roll music, they really get back some Black Metal aspects of their past, following what they've done on "Age Of Nero", but giving one more step into Black Metal.

The band now is heavier and dense, throwing out the more accessible approach used before, and doing a sound pretty good, more funereal and darkened, as Satyr sings again with power with his very particular harsh voice (besides he uses his clean voice in a more gothic way sometimes), and guitar riffs are worked very fine (sometimes more fast and aggressive, and other times slower and sinister), bass is doing his part so well with some fine moments, keyboards are interesting, and Frost stills a great drummer. Combining these aspects, their music is again what we can hear with no trouble. The only problem some can have to deal is that some tracks last more than five minutes, and can be a little boring.

The production is fine, well done and clean, making all musical instruments appear in the way they must, but without taking out the heavy and lurid climate (as the greater part of the album is slow), and we can see that guitar riffs sounding very powerful and in a "in-your-face" way.

All tracks are fine pieces, indeed, but you can hear and pick as favorite ones in the first audition "Tro Og kraft" (with great vocals and killing guitar riffs), the aggressive "Our World, It Rumbles Tonight" (see as Frost does a very fine job), the slower and lurid "Nocturnal Flame" (the keyboards arrangements are too good in some moments, and the presence of guitar solos is astonishing, even with them sounding to pretty for the style), the faster "Walker Upon The Wind", and the heavy-weight "Ageless Northern Spirit". But please, take care with another ones, for some are pretty difficult to understand (are good songs, but would astonish some more diehard fans) as "Phoenix" (it's a heavy song, but very introspective, and the clean voices sounds too gothic), "Nekrohaven" (Death N' Roll times is back here, and Satyr uses some effects in his voice. But does he really need them?), and "The Infinity of Time and Space".

Good album and we can welcome SATYRICON back for the attack. But they can do better than this, it's clear for us all.

THE ZARTO (4/10)

Divide Et Impera, SATYRICON really has something to say with this album, is a reborn, that will divide all of the fans, not only for the lightness, but for the musical direction they have taken now. This is a total difference from what they have been known, and that is exactly what gives something special to this album, and for my personal perspective is a good one, but I know many of you will go against this affirmation, well I truly understand you.

SATYRICON have compelled musical differences in one album, facing the rawness that in some moments have the production, with atmospheric keys that are just made to change the rhythm of the song, the voice is not as harsh as before, but not as clean as is now used in Metal industry, is a strange mixture that has no special moment. The guitars are made to make an equality, not so heavy but not so soft, accompanied with drums that are easy to follow and doesn't have the fastness used in Black Metal.

After all I can't catalogue this a Black Metal album, is more extreme but not as they used to be, a good experimentation a little bit too late for this time, because this has been done before, and have not had so many good results as the people who did it expected, this may one of those cases, a big name fallen in the "New" age of Metal, where metal disappears and has nothing left to say. Hard fans may love it, but I am one of them and I don't, so the only thing I could say is: SATYRICON has returned, and this may be doomed, but the fall is the great moment to arise, from people like me, who maybe did not understand the concept, and had just made a bad review of them.