Review Unleashed - As Yggdrasil Trembles 2010

Tracks
1. Courage Today, Victory Tomorrow!
2. So It Begins...
3. As Yggdrasil Trembles
4. Wir Kapitulieren Niemals
5. This Time We Fight
6. Master Of The Ancient Art
7. Chief Einherjar
8. Return Fire
9. Far Beyond Hell
10. Dead To Me
11. Yahweh And The Chosen Ones
12. Cannibalistic Epidemic Continues

Band:
Fredrik: Lead Guitar
Johnny: Bass/Vocals
Tomas: Rhythm Guitar
Anders: Drums

Discography:
The Utter Dark (démo - 1990)
....Revenge (démo - 1990)
Where No Life Dwells (1991)
Shadows in the Deep (1992)
Across the Open Sea (1993)
Live in Vienna '93 (Live - 1994)
Victory (1995)
Eastern Blood - Hail to Poland (1996)
Warrior (1997)
Hell's Unleashed (2002)
Sworn Allegiance (2004)
Midvinterblot (2006)
Hammer Battalion (2008)

Guests:

Info
Engineered and produced by Fredrik Folkare at Chrome Studios, Stockholm Nov-Dec 2009
Mastered by Peter In de Betou at Tailor Maid Productions, 2010

Released 19/3-2010
Reviewed 9/6-2010

Links:
unleahed.se
myspace
nuclearblast

Swedish viking death metallers are once again unleashing their creation of viking death metal to the masses. They are back after 2008 year’s Hammer Battalion which received a rather good review from the hallowed magazine. Sure that reviewer was not available to write about this record so instead that duty fell into my lap, which most reviews seems to do anyway these days.
Musically we have viking death metal, whatever that is. I suppose it is heavy, dark, somber, grey and powerful slowish extreme metal ‘cause that is what I hear when I listen to this.

Firstly I am really struck by how I am not getting the urge to destroy this record and cover my ears due to the very aggressive music. Unleashed are actually quite soft or however I should call them. Their music is dark and aggressive but it doesn’t feel like that, it feels more like the look of the cover, sort of greyish and actually quite boring really.

It feels like there is something missing, maybe it is speed, maybe melodies but it mostly feels like a grey mass of sounds, trying too hard to be heavy with the result that it turns to mush or nothingness or greyness depending on which word you wish to select for describing it.

I must however give some credit to the singer who actually sings in a way that makes it possible to hear what he sings and that is always something positive, I hate music where I cannot hear what is said, so I don’t quite hate this, at least not as much.

There are actually two decent tracks on this record, track one and track four, I don’t care to name them as I have forgotten what they are called. Note however, that the word used is decent, not good and with only two decent tracks and the rest rubbish it is quite certain that this record will not reach any higher rating.

I can however think that if you are a fan of the band you will not hate this, but unless you enjoy Unleashed or any band that is in the same genre, you are better of buying some other record, there are loads of records that are much, much better.

Another death metal band bites the dust in our line of reviews.

HHHHHHH

Unleashed As Yggdrasil Trembles

Unleashed
As Yggdrasil Trembles