From Bandcamp, “When merited veterans of Norwegian Death/Black Metal conspire to breathe life into a new entity, you know you are in for a real treat. With “Retaliation, ULVEHUNGER managed to create a worthy addition to the endless list of masterpieces from Norway no adherent of the genre can afford to miss out on.” The album has ten songs, and “Desecrator” is first. It comes out of the gate with dissonant riffs and horrid vocals. The circuitous nature of the music is at least interesting, and different than most Black Metal. “Leave Them in Disgrace” follows another path that is off of the main one and deep into the woods. “Fight back with power, fight back with rage, show them no mercy” he quips.

“Consumed by Hate” is a faster moving song where the anger in the band is on full display, and the riffs are more thrashy in nature. Speed Metal with Black Metal. “Castle of Blood” is the second song in a row with a linear riff, and it appears the band is leaving some of the Progressive elements behind. Let’s hope that they can get back on track. “Forces of Doom” brings back some of those elements within a noticeable swing, and groove in the song, or at least, as groovy as Black Metal can be. It also has an ominous edge. “Declaration of War” swings back to a more straightforward harrowing sound, as the title suggests. It’s no ordinary war, however, it’s a war against all mankind.

“Rise From the Shadows” has some real resolve in the sound. It is hardened, angled, and thick, and again has a bit of a confident swing. “The Mighty Pentagram” shows the hidden power within the symbol, but beyond that, some of the band’s early energy has burned off and they appear to be struggling a bit. “Covenant of Pestilence” closes the album, and it does have more energy and resolve. What started off as a promising album in terms of some unusual elements eventually descended into another Black Metal album that didn’t provide any distance between itself and thousands of other albums in the genre. That was disappointing to me.