Perkele!!! You probably know by now we're talking about a Finnish black metal act. SHADOW'S MORTUARY by their name, this Oulu based quartet is handing us a very basic, straight to the point record. If you are into Swedish-top notch production, this is NOT for you. We're dealing with a true Norwegian style approach that will only please part of the black metal community. This gang means it, so you better like your coffee black.

These guys are not beating around the bush. Just taking a short look at the cover artwork the listener will get into that old school vibe of the early 90's: fog... smoke... a castle up on a hill in the distance... a pair of ravens patrolling the sky. You get the picture, you feel the vibe. Short war themed intro and on your horses! Track after track the Finns are taking you down. The 8 songs on "Unohdettu Maa" will keep you plugged in with no time for a sandwich break. Why would you, the melodies are pretty catchy (surprisingly catchy!) and you won't wanna miss anything. First four songs are equally good in terms of riffs, themes and intensity. All songs keep the same trajectory: fire at will & take no prisoners. They are short and the vocals are pretty convincing. You get this raw-punk attitude with a touch of melancholia (or should I say melalcoohlia, as we are dealing with a Finnish brand) that really gets you in the mood.

After the first half of this record, "Vereme Voima" comes as a sort of a hick up. Guess it's not that easy to keep it up like that, but with "Ylistys" things seem to go back where they were. All good in the land of a thousand lakes! That's until the closing track "Kahleista Maan". A tendency to exaggerate and overcrowd everything at the end. Many bands do that in the hope of creating a last powerful impression on the listener, but forget that it's just mayhem for your ears and obtain exactly the opposite.

As mentioned at the start, no grandiose arrangements to be expected, drums actually sound like they were recorded in the practice room as opposed to the guitars that are much more focused, creating a bit of an unbalanced sound. Don't discard this release, it has a certain feel that some will appreciate for sure. SHADOW'S MORTUARY make music only for the chosen few. Kippis! Give it a spin if you are an old school black-spinner!