Traces o' Red

Enslavement of Beauty is one of the little jewels I discovered and all I can say about this band is that it fucking kicks ass. Their mix of black metal and that untamed grief and passion is, indeed, one of the greatest things I've ever listened to . There are few bands that can fuck with this guys regarding metal and melancholy. This album is a masterpiece and every decent metal listener would say the same thing.

What is interesting about this guys is that despite their Norwegian nationality, their lyrics are flawlessly written in English, with glimpses of modern English here and there. The riffs are so well matched with the lyrics and the vocal line like in the beginning it was a matrix and the song was poured in the pure form.

This album appeared in 1999, when, in my opinion, every fucking metal genre and subgenre was filled with atmospheric passages and some romanticism. This is certainly my favourite period. Tony Eugene composed this album without a stain. From the twisted, longing riffs to the majestical keys, this album represents a new era of melancholical metal, and yes, it seems Norway still keeps something hidden, waiting for the perfect moment to destroy our perception.

Every black metal fan should have this little Norwegian jewel in his collection.

In every musical collection there are always great albums that are the traditional. Then there are those that are amazingly unique, these are the gray areas people usually disagree on. Then you have bands that do the traditional with little differences, but overall improve the sound of the genre tenfold. These are those priceless gems musical activists enjoy so much. Enslavement of Beauty made one of those albums that only comes around ever so often. “Traces o’ Red” is unique enough to be refreshing, yet traditional enough to have all those qualities black metal is known for.

When this album was recorded the band consisted of two people. In charge of musical composition and instrumentation is Tony Eugene Tunheim. Vocals done by Ole Alexander Myrholt. Tunheim does a superior job with his classical approach to music. His guitar riffs are unique and amazingly well interwoven (transitions in this album are like non - other). I can only explain it by saying that his riffs are eerie at times yet emotional the next. The keyboard is played in what I would imagine Dies Irae (Circle of Leth) would play if they where still together. Fans of Kataxu, Parnassus, Limbonic Art, etc… I suggest this album above any other. Ole’s vocals are traditional black metal, but have an edge to them, the lyrics mess perfectly with the orchestral music. It was symphonic black metal should sound like. I cannot get enough of this album and have owned it for almost five years now.

By the way there is also a hidden song if one fast forwards about two minutes after the end of the tenth song. Other albums are very different from this one, I would only recommend this album to a black metal enthusiast.