Aspera Hiems Symfonia

It seems that whatever Garm touched back in the day became great, and "Aspera Hiems Symfonia" is no exception. Truly this stands as a monument in the genre of symphonic black metal, I have yet to see anyone manage to recreate it's atmosphere (though some have come close).

The first time I heard this album, I found the production a bit bothersome (though I quickly overcame it), and that's because I thought it to sound a bit flat, and this was due to the drums. The playing is very good: the drums know their place, and play according to the melody. The drumming is also most impressive, as the speed, at times, is quite fast, showing that Hellhammer is very skilled, which makes me appreciate the drums even more, as he doesn't show off by playing unnecessarily fast all the time; he knows when to slow down. So why did the drums bother me? Well, it's the sound of the drums. At first I wondered if they were fake, due to the bass (it just sounds a bit fake, in my opinion), and the snare sounds a bit flat, it sounds like paper, if that makes sense. But, again, this was a problem I was quick to overcome.

On to the music itself: It's cold, harsh, dark, truly an album made for the harshest and coldest of winter nights. I couldn't have named the album better myself: "Harsh Winter Symphony". Often, when listening to this during summer, I plainly forget the season and imagine that outside, there must be many metres of snow and utter darkness. I think the album cover does a great job of representing the atmosphere of the album. The atmosphere is also somewhat nostalgic and somber (though certainly not depressing). The atmosphere is much established by the synth. The synth plays a major part in the music, and it's not a mere backing instrument; it plays it's own melodies, creating new layers in the music, and it truly shines on the track "Fall of Man", a testament to symphonic metal. On this track, it takes the lead, with layers upon layers of synth and piano, creating an unfathomably somber atmosphere, as the guitars takes a rest and stays in the background. The synth player is very skilled, and often plays rather complex melodies.

The guitars are, in many ways, somewhat abnormal compared to most black metal. There's little tremolo picking, they're very melodic, and don't aspire for simplicity. The riffs themselves aren't amazing, they're good, but they're merely a single layer in the music, out of the many layers created by both guitars and synth, which by themselves are fair, but together are utterly incredible. Another aspect where the guitar playing differs from the black metal norm, is that there's quite a few solos. Though I initially disliked them, I've come to terms with them. They're a bit flashy and very fast paced, though they aren't your typical "look how fast I can play" solos, as they are actually quite melodic, it's not just fast gibberish being played, they feel naturally integrated and they progress the music.

Holy hell, this might just be Garm's best performance (either this, or "Nattens Madrigal"). There's quite a bit of both clean vocals and shrieks. First of the shrieks, they're so raw, aggressive and powerful (especially during the ending of "Raudt og Svart"),and though they follow the general tendencies of black metal vocals, they're phenomenal. As for the clean vocals, they, too, are great. I still remember the first time I heard "Wintry Grey"; at first I didn't like them, but I've grown to love them. The vocal melodies are well written, they fit well in, and add new layers to the music, rather than just follow the melodies of other instruments. Additionally, Garm often backs his own vocals, with many layers of vocal melodies. His voice sounds powerful and deep, and he hits every note, and is able to hold his notes for some time. Another, though small, aspect of the vocals, are the whisper/talking. At times he merely whispers or talks, plain enough as it may seem, it does work very well.

What's great about Garm is that not only is he a great vocalist, he also writes great lyrics. Most of the lyrics are written in English, though some songs have Norwegian lyrics, both of which Garm excels at. His English is quite archaic, using middle English verb conjugation, and general archaic grammar. For instance he uses "wither" and "hither" and "thither", terms now seldom used. The content is also quite good, they do remind me a bit of Emperor's lyrics, as they're fairly vague, cryptic, and are descriptive of mystical and mythical concepts. The Norwegian lyrics are great as well. I must admit that I really like the fact that "Raudt og Svart" is written in Nynorsk. The language is somewhat archaic, though not nearly to the extent of his lyrics on "Ulver", but, nonetheless, I do like the linguistic factors of his Norwegian lyrics. As for the content, it's pretty much the same as on the English lyrics.

The song structure is very good. It is somewhat progressive, as the songs often change, and songs often end quite differently from how they started. There's little use of repetition, unlike most black metal, and never have I gotten bored during a listen. The transitions always feel natural, and none of the changes in tempos or melodies feel awkward or out of place. Each song feels satisfying, as each riff is repeated the right amount of times. And one more thing before I wrap up this review: the bass is pretty much inaudible, and that's why I haven't commented on it.

So, to conclude, "Aspera Hiems Symfonia" is among the greatest symphonic black metal albums, hell, it is among the greatest albums of all time, and, in my library, is equal, in terms of quality, only to "Arntor" and "Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk" (within the genre). Favourite albums come and go, however this album has always been quite high on my list, and will probably remain for many years to come. Often have I sat with this album on repeat, and I never grow tired of it. I would recommend this album to all metal fans.

Favourite tracks:
To Thou Who Dwellest in the Night
Wintry Grey
Raudt og Svart
Du Nordavind
Fall of Man

From 1995 onward, the lid on the black metal can of worms had been opened and things would never be the same again. Much to the dismay of many "grim" folks out there, outside/alien elements seeped in, and those who truly made it work stood out the best and brightest, yet it all wasn't so simple as just adding keyboards and symphonic elements (Emperor and Ancient had been on that shit longer than that). A year or so on the burner later, things got a little...odd within the scene, when progressive, psychedelic and downright fucked up bouts of inspiration wedged themselves right in. And one of the biggest examples of this new strange direction was Arcturus' debut release...

Adding a few twists and turns down the symphonic/atmospheric blackened road, Garm and Co. bring unto us one of the most intelligently constructed black metal records ever made. Not entirely sophisticated nor blisteringly brutal, it really takes an appreciative set of ears and a mind between them to take it all in, and once you do it will stick with you. What makes "Aspera..." work greater than other bands of their ilk is the ability to combine the causticity of the guitars with the otherworldly synth lines and make them work together versus relying too much on the latter to carry the former's lack of weight. But that being said, still leaving the keyboards at the forefront makes for a truly grand listen, as the lushness of the lines and the grandiosity of the movement schemes have the appeal of legit compositions, something that needed a lot of time to formulate (one would think) and resulting in each instrument going through their own respective motions during the better parts (I dare one to sit through the pipe/Hammond organ segment of "To Thou Who Dwellest in the Night" and not be absorbed into it all...).

The lyrics, as well, are a whole other kettle of fish altogether. Written during a time when Garm gave in to his inner Chaucer as opposed to...whatever the hell future songs were really about, his poetic odes to deities of ultimate winter and evil probably took a lot of folks by surprise by way of its blinding verbiage as opposed to other groups screaming the same trite Satanic rhetoric over and over. This, as well, helped push Arcturus onto their own level within the black metal spectrum and made them stand out all the more. Pedantic and a little bit full of itself, yet not so much as to be too up its own ass and can still be a great album in the end. If that makes any sense. A few stumbling blocks still abound, however; a hollow production approach, occasional performance slip-ups and exhausting arrangement schemes that don't always provide proper cohesion and result in 4 minute tracks feeling twice as long, but if you can be able to bypass them you'll find plenty of reward for your troubles.

For whatever it's worth, I've just never been able to get behind the Arc's foray into oddball avant-garde strangeness, mainly due to it feeling so contrived in the end. Like they were trying way too hard to get away from the black metal scene and wanted to construct works so bizarre that no one but the most hardened of music fans could appreciate. If that was the case, then I guess good on 'em, but for the rest of us we could have used something a bit easier to digest. Not unlike Enslaved's sudden obsession with wanting to sound like a Viking-style Led Zeppelin (and, consequently, failed at it...). But the point I'm trying to make is that the direction they would stumble towards from " Le Masquerade Infernale" onward only served to make appreciation of "Aspera" all the more vibrant, as it does feel like this was the one time they had any level of genuine realness about them. This was a legit album by a legit band, seemingly the only one in their entire discography that's ever been and, for my money, the only time it will ever be. Or maybe I'm just hard to please when it comes to avant-garde metal, especially when it doesn't feel like a natural progression (Solefald has that shit down to a science, for example, and few could match that level...). Ah well.

All in all Arcturus' debut was imperfect, yet a still stunner all the same and, for the era when it was released, proved that there could be new levels of depth to be plumbed in the black metal scheme of things. This is the best place to start, if you ask me, 'cause getting into the group around the time of "The Sham Mirrors" will only work against new listeners as they were, in every sense of the word, a completely different act than they were here. And if ever you needed a single album of theirs to call you own, my money would be put on this. Trust me.

Arcturus was one of the first Norwegian black metal bands to incorpore a large dose of symphonic keyboards to their music, leaving behind the rawness and brutality of their contemporaries at an early stage of their career (there are four re-recorded songs from 1994's Constellation EP in here). In fact, their approach to the newly-born (by that date) symphonic black metal sound is less aggresive and more melodic than the one of Emperor, Dimmu Borgir, Limbonic Art and similar bands, having some similarities with atmospheric black metal instead.

The music is mostly mid-paced, with blast-beats only being present briefly on the first track. The keyboards are at the forefront of the music, using symphonic arrangements and/or atmospheric effects. The guitarwork is varied enough, playing melodic lines along with the keyboard ones, sometimes being more of a rhythmic instrument, playing either mid-tempo riffs or tremolo-picked ones, and with many songs featuring neoclassical-influenced guitar leads and blistering solos (like the ones on 'To Thou Who Dwellest in the Night' or 'Fall of Man'), where the guitars have their moments to shine.

The drumming is technical and precise, and even though the rhythms are quite basic, Hellhammer spices them up with his characteristical use of cymbals and double bass (to prevent the songs from sounding plodding and slow). Garm hadn't quite developed his charismatic baritone vocal style, and for most of the time in here, he goes for full-on harsh vocals. Actually, his best harsh vocal performance ever is on this record, surpassing (by little) even the one on Ulver's Nattens Madrigal. His screams sound passionate yet spiteful and angry, like the one on 'Raudt og svart', or the "THROUGH THE WOOOOOAAAAADDDSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!" section of 'Wintry Grey', to name a few. Nevertheless, his clean vocals are still present, but on choral, spoken or whispered sections, and doesn't sound as strong as the ones of posterior works.

Other feature of the record that makes it different from its contemporaries is the progressive approach to songwriting, something that can be evidenced in the frecuent time signature shifts and the frecuent changes in the structrure of the songs, as well as some unusual sounds (like the reversed vocals of 'Whence & Whither Goest the Wind') and odd, quirky (yet not blatantly carnivalesque like the ones on 'La masquerade infernale') melodies, which give it an experimental edge that would be explored with more depth in the subsequent releases of the band.

The thin production (with the airy keyboards, the razor-blade guitars, the metallic, thumping drums, and the echoey vocals) gives the record a cold feeling, and it has this sort of winternight-esque atmosphere, like being in a forest while snowing, contemplating the northern lights (yes, like the ones on the cover) and the stars. This "cosmic winter atmosphere" gives the music a contemplative, calm and mellow feeling.

The glorious symphonic arrangements, the soaring guitar lines, the emotional but not straightforward or standard songwriting, and the atmosphere are the things that make Aspera Hiems Symfonia so special and one of the most remarkable achievements in the realm of symphonic black metal, an album that manages to be accesible enough to draw new listeners to the genre, but at the same time is one of their most forward-thinking and intriguing works.

Aspiring towards a similar grandiosity as Emperor’s majestic In The Nightside Eclipse, but differing from that work in method of application regarding instrumentation and form, Arcturus produce a symphonic black metal album in the compositional tradition of progressive rock, featuring an abundance of celestial keyboards dominating in sound and presence over simple, melodic guitar riffs and active, intricate drumming that drives the flowing motion of rhythm, emphasized by a variety of vocal styles in melodically reflective phrases. Embellishments in instrumentation and formal divergence make these structures seem more complex than they are, though this tactic often has the opposite of the intended effect in that these songs aim for the sweepingly dramatic, yet the choices the band make in thematic elaboration and melodic ornamentation disturb compositional cohesion and expressive clarity, resulting in music that offers a few moments of aesthetic intrigue, and individual skill in instrumentation and technique in percussion, guitar solos, and vocal range, but ultimately fails to establish atmospheric and melodic continuity and significance or relevance of thematic content. Interesting and beautiful as it sometimes is, the album remains essentially atmospheric decoration to late night stargazing, with some fine musicianship on display and pleasing moments of melodic ascension, but never reaching anything great or profound in composition or expression.

Most impressive on this album is the finesse in execution which attributes to the fluid motion of the music and the atmospheric quality of crystal clear winter-nights; while the riff-work is nothing spectacular and secondary to keyboards, the guitarist’s sense of melody and ambiance makes for pretty solos, and the dynamically detailed drumming of Hellhammer provides energetic currents over which Garm voices ghoulish screams, operatic singing, and ghostly whispering. These rhythms are much more gentle than violent, as the band seek to maintain the atmospheric essence intended to spark cosmic wonder in a state of clarified environmental perception, a transcendent moment of universal awareness that could have defined this music’s spirit if not for its lack of compositional vision and presence, which is partly lessened by a thin production that is too generous to high-end components, particularly keyboards, which dominate the sound-picture, leaving this music too light in its sonic weight for the purposes of the power of metal music, no matter how sophisticated its design and execution.

The drummer known for the unrelenting merciless battering on Mayhem albums shows a remarkable diversity in style of beat-patterning and delicate treatment of cymbal accent on the beat which qualifies this performance as his most atmospherically inclined. It would be fascinating to see what this music in its orchestral union of instrumentation could be like if its elemental design was somehow cast into and spread across the night-sky in star-like adornment, as perhaps there, in that astral context, its individual components of instruments and vocals would not demand more attention than the entirety to which they belong. The album asserts itself aristocratically in its determination to differentiate its conceptual method and expressive purpose as a more advanced and justifiably self-indulgent approach from orthodox efforts, but it desires this distinction at the expense of substantive content, and thus void of a central theme representative of something significant to existence.

The melodic translucence ascends through its intellectual diagram to reach beyond accepted standards of creative existence, with a will to dream the world into a transformation of one’s own experiment. Its pretension to individualistic aspiration for universal knowledge assumes the very pre-existing reality it claims to deny, and its aesthetic transparency limits its reach and source of interest because in its attempt to raise itself into the avant-garde it achieves less than the genuine orthodoxy it wishes to overcome in terms of powerful expression and communicative substance.

I remember hearing this band played "technical black metal" which around the time I checked Aspera Hiems Symfonia out really sold it to me. "Technical black metal"? Whoever it was that coined that couldn't have been anymore off the mark. This is the only Arcturus album I'm versed in, so I can't comment on how this compares to later releases, I do know they took a more avant-garde approach. Some of that does kind of bleed out here, but for the most part this is the type of black metal album you'd expect from a band who were quick to progress.

Aspera Hiems Symfonia is quite the flawed release, and I can't really understand the positive press the album received, especially considering the sheer amount of quality that clutters up this genre. Now I know the line up reads like a who's who of the Norwegian scene, with the awesome Garm handling vocals, and drummer extraordinaire Hellhammer smashing up the kit. However, even with such a quality line up it's still a case of the parts greater than the sum.

The first thing I noticed about Aspera... is how long and drawn out it feels, even when the band are playing a relatively short four minute affair such as "Wintry Grey" the track feels almost twice its length. Secondly I really think this album is unfocused, largely meandering under the pretensions of being "avant-garde" or "atmospheric". Sure this is unorthodox in places, in the sense that it doesn't conform to what makes black metal you know, good.

I hate to be hard on this release, as the band are clearly quite talented. What it is, is Arcturus, whilst trying to avoid the trappings of their genre and regional scene managed to forget that their music had to be interesting. I'm quite open minded, especially considering black metal and all its little sub-branches, but this one has me reaching for the stop button half way through.

The pacing is drab, the use of dynamics is all wrong, and with the exception of the vocals, drums and lead guitar work there is barely a memorable moment on Apsera.... I think I'll return to Ulver for my Garm fix in the future. If you like this drawn out, meadering style of music, no doubt with a deep seated meaning or concept then you should probably check this album out. For black metal fans I'd strongly suggest trying before you buy, at best this is a poor mans Bergtatt (just nowhere near as folky, atmospheric, or good). At worst this could be used on repeat as torture to Mangekyou Sharingan effect (Tsukuyomi).

Arcturus’ first album, “Aspera Hiems Symphonia” is a very classy, atmospheric debut album. It is a very beautiful piece of art. Being their only black metal album, “Aspera” does not sound out of place amongst the other albums. Only “The Sham Mirrors” sounds out of place in the discography.

Although “Aspera” is black metal, the beauty of Arcturus still exists within it. Everything on this release is so atmospheric. The guitars play a huge role with that. They are used in a very beautiful, majestic manner. Another huge part of this album is the keyboards. They are also very majestic sounding, and help keep that gorgeous atmosphere alive.

The vocals on this album are top notch. They are provided by one of the best in all of metal, Garm. This was a wonderful time period for Garm fans, like me. He actually put effort into his singing, and was not afraid to perform harsh vocals. He sings beautifully on this record. He uses that low baritone voice for atmosphere, and he does it so well. His singing is a huge reason why this album is so successful. Garm also does black metal screams on this release. They are perfect and fit in nicely. His voice is very unique, sounding very high-pitched and venomous. Garm has always performed black metal vocals with class, and here is no exception.

Hellhammer provides drums on this album. Like usual, Hellhammer does an awesome job drumming. He brings in that unique sound with his drums making the album perfect. It is black metal, but Hellhammer does not blastbeat much, he does use his double bass drum effectively.

Highlights include every song but “Whence & Whither Goest the Wind.” The lyrics are recited back words, which ruins the song because it really sounds silly. “Wintry Grey” is my personal favorite. Garm’s harsh vocals sound so passionate in that song.

This is a tremendous album that I think everybody should listen to. Black metal fan or not, I think most metal fans would enjoy this masterpiece.

The Seduction Of Art: Part I.

So, black metal lacks invention does it? Well, this is where Arcturus enters to blow the opinions of those who say that black metal is too one dimensional for it’s own good out of the water. The demise of this band came out of the blue for most people. After the efforts of ‘Sideshow Symphonies’, many people were wondering whether the magic had died. It would seem that it had. Whether the band decided to call it a day on the long and winding career of Arcturus because of how the last effort was perceived and received will remain a mystery. According to the official statement, the bands members no longer had time for the project, but to many, it was simply due to the fact that Arcturus were beginning to run out of idea’s. When you’ve experimented as much as they have, it’s quite understandable. However, with a career that spun it’s web over two decades, the band has issued a fair amount of positively received material to the world. The first part of this saga begins in Norway with Arcturus’ very first effort in ‘Aspera Hiems Symfonia’.


So, how diverse can black metal be? Well, ‘Aspera Hiems Symfonia’ is seemingly here to prove that it can be very diverse and still be perceived as a masterpiece by a generally fussy set of fans. Black metal is a precise genre. It may not seem it, but it is. A band has to be very direct in their approach for their music to be received well and despite the fact that Arcturus use many different methods in which to profess their inspirations differently from the vast amount of bands within the genre, they were and still are received very well. There are those who look upon ‘Aspera Hiems Symfonia’ and see it as the defining moment for not only Arcturus as a band, but for the genre of avant-gardé black metal. It’s not a term that is likely to go hand in hand with black metal often, avant-gardé, but when it does, it has to be something very special to draw most people’s attention away from the normality of the genre. It’s certainly a difficult task facing any band wishing to stray away from the constraints of the norm.


It’s probably best to define the term avant-gardé as not everyone will be as familiar with it as the already established fans of Arcturus. “Noun - The advance group in any field, esp. in the visual, literary, or musical arts, whose works are characterized chiefly by unorthodox and experimental methods.” After hearing the bands debut album, this is a definition that truly depicts the album for what it is. Extraordinarily experimental in many ways. So, in what ways are we confronted with experimentation here? Is it of the highest order? Or does it simply fall into the pits of mediocrity like so many others tend to do? All of these questions are answered step-by-step throughout the duration of the set.


From beginning to end, Aspera Hiems Symfonia’ evolves in a gradual process. Black metal is often viewed in a similar way as a rollercoaster would be. We begin slowly, but when the adrenaline takes hold of your mind, body and soul, it’s an uncompromising ride. There are slow passages and there are fast passages. Much like rollercoasters, black metal, especially the avant-gardé kind, is an acquired taste. You’re either born with the devotion and passion to it, or you’re not. It’s not something that can be learned. You can never explain to someone why music of this extreme nature is good, it just is to you or it isn’t. Arcturus set out to do what they aim to achieve very quickly.


Experimentation takes form in several different ways and here is how. The vocals, these are experimental too. Some may find experimentation in terms of black metal vocals quite odd and in truth, it is. Whilst the rasps are a significant part of this record, they’re not the only part. The rasps serve to enhance the mild aggression that is present. It may not be an emotion which is in the foreground too much, but it is there, on occasions. Rasping vocals also give the audience a sense of mystery, which certainly suits Arcturus and their overall sound, in terms of the atmospheric qualities, it’s mystical and often projects an astral feel through the use of symphonic sounds. Now, I’m not a fan of symphonic metal, at all, but the way in which Arcturus portray the symphonies is enjoyable. The symphonic sound is produced entirely by the keyboards, which become an integral part of Arcturus’ music throughout the album. They’re often situated next to solos, which is a nice touch.


Hissed, spoken, whispered and even operatic vocals are used. A wide ranging selection to suit everyone’s needs. For those of us, myself included, that aren’t fond of one or more of those styles need not be worried as Arcturus’ amazing song writing puts all vocals in the right places, uses them in the right ways and even manages to put aside all worries you had upon hearing the albums selection of vocals. A variety is important to the soundscapes of Arcturus. The soundscapes are also wide ranging so they need many different elements of sound to portray the agony, the beauty and the sorrow that fills this album to the brim. Emotion is at the foreground, though even that ranges across a wide selection.


In terms of the instruments that one has not already covered, the bass is forever accessible to the audience. It’s sound is low and driving. The drums are often varied, but they can enter stages when double bass blasts can be heard, which will delight the senses of those who enjoy the old black metal trait. The guitars are especially important. Black metal has it’s solos, but Arcturus are more experimenting, of course, with those. They vary and spring up all over the place. Despite all this variation, it’s not difficult to get to grips with the album. It’s entirely accessible and really rather enjoyable. A must have for anyone seeking to escape the modern drivel black metal offers.

'Aspera Hiems Symfonia' is Arcturus' first full length release. It combines elements of Black metal with the symphonic style they are now known for.
Nowadays, the style of Arcturus has changed, with the release of 'La Masquerade Infernale' they became an avant garde metal band, and they do it extremely well.
Now, i must mention that when i say sing during this review, it's completely different from the type of singing he does on "La masquerade Infernale" and "The Sham Mirrors" the type of singing he does here is absolutely beautiful, for anyone who's heard the album "Kveldsanger" by Ulver, it's that kind of singing.

Track one - To Thou who dwellest in the Night: This song starts off fast, with a nice guitar riff with synth's setting the sound along with blaring double bass. The verse is dominated by Garm's screams and the keyboards, making for a great combination. As the song progress's the guitars become a little slower, letting the synth's take over even more. This doesn't last long as the speed soon follows, the same speed from the beginning of the song. There is an alternating pattern here between slow, epic riffs and the faster riffs. With Garm singing (yes, singing not screaming) over the slower riffs. Soon, an acoustic guitar shows up which plays perfectly over the synths, along a cello. When the cello ends, Garm enters singing/speaking/whispering. When Garm stops, theres a very technical solo, full of sweeps and speedy licks. The song ends with Garm screaming over a slow epic riff and somewhat progressive riff.
5/5 One of my favorites on the CD.

Track two - Wintry Grey: This song also starts off fast, Garm wastes no time, he immediately begins singing along with the coordination of the guitars and synths. The verse is a little weird, the synths take a more progressive edge. The song then turns 180 degrees, and there is a synth riff that almost sounds distant along with the banging of a few toms. The song comes back with an awesome riff and Garm singing again. The next part is one of the few times when you can really hear the guitars rather than the synths, it also includes Garm whispering. Then back to the verse, this part to me doesn't really need to be there. The double bass does eventually come in, but that doesn't really help this part of the song either. The song then does the epic stoppage. (the same 180 degree turn as before), this time it is accompanied by sounds of lightning and rain. The song ends on the sound of thunder.
3.5/5

Track three - Whence and Whither goest the Wind: Before i start this song, i tell you this, all of Garm's vocals on this song are played backwards on the actually track.It Starts off with blaring double bass along with a simple drum beat. Then the music comes in with the same drum beat behind it, the piano really stands out here. Sverd really shows off his piano skills. He is not using effects, it's just plain piano (on a keyboard of course) along with guitar chords to match what he is playing. The song then takes a huge turn towards the epic side, with constant snare rolls and epic synth riffs along with Garm's vocals. This next part i especially love, it portrays the image of chaos, the guitar and synths really sparkle here along with Garm talking. Then the song returns to it's previous state with piano riffs and guitar chords. The song basically repeats itself until about 3:45 where a faster riff comes into play, i don't really like this riff. The guitar work after this part is the star, up until the song ends, the guitar work matches everything that keyboards are doing perfectly. Right up until the end.
4.5/5

Track four - Raudt Og Svart Song starts with an off time guitar riff, then changes quickly into something a little more symphonic along with Garm singing along with music, until returning to the off time riff that the song began on. The song then repeats the syphonic parts from before. Garm's voice soon enters doing both singing and screams. This makes for an interesting combination. The guitar solo is quite good and it fits in perfectly with the song. The song soon totally stops, except for a few synth chords which is accompanied by a shriek, courtesy of Garm. The song then becomes very slow. Towards the end of the song, Garm comes in singing, i absolutely love this part. That is how the song ends.
3/5

Track five - The Bodkin and the Quietus This song starts extremely slow, starts off with guitars and odd synths full of chorus. Then in comes a guitar solo which picks the song up a little up until it becomes a little faster. The song doesn't get much faster but it does get faster with some heavier drums, and heavier guitar riffs. The synth's in this song are extremely odd. The song continues to be somewhat slow, though it picks up speed as it goes. Soon it returns to the first extremely slow riff, from the beginning along with the same solo. The ending has a solo, nothing special, it's actually more of a lead fill. The song ends on that.

3.5/5

Track six - Du Nordavind This song is extremely abstract, the synths at the beginning almost sound as if they are from a carnival. The verse riff is nothing special. Then in comes Garm singing again. Then back to the verse riff again. The next part is very interesting, a piano solo, along with the guitar playing the harmony part, and let me tell you, this piano solo is not something that you could play with your eyes closed. The song then comes to a stop, with just drums and a very 'distant' keyboard and bass accompanied by Garm talking. Soon enters the guitar playing a riff that fits perfectly. The song then picks up with Garm singing again. The guitar riff here also seems like it was taken from a carnival, though it fits perfectly with the song, no complaints here.
4/5

Track seven - Fall of Man Opens with a piano playing away, with some odd synth's in the back. Then in comes the guitar, full of energy, along with synth's that play basically the same as the intro but it fits perfectly. I love this verse riff, Garm screams make the synth riff here sound so much better. Then a synth lead fill along with a perfect guitar. Then in comes the piano along with guitars. Then a very symphonic part, there are both synths and piano's here along with guitars and Garms screams. Then the synth lead fill again. The upcoming part of this song, is by far the best part on the album, enter synth's of epic proportions and guitar chords that fit perfectly. Along with Garm singing along to the sound of the synths. The guitar solo begins somewhat slow almost as a lead fill, but when he begins to sweep the song is so full of energy, the climax of the album, right here. The solo is very nice along with epic synths that Arcturus is known for.
5/5 Best song on the album.


Awesome album, this one of the few albums that i have which i like every song on. Highly recomended for fans of symphonic black metal.

ARCTURUS - Aspera Hiems Symfonia
(Century Black)



Atmospheres of blackened revelry have been created by Arcturus. A black metal super group of sorts, with Ulver vocalist Garm, Mayhem drummer Hellhammer, Ved Buens Ende bassist Skoll, and Tritonus guitarist August. This isn't your average black metal release, indeed Arcturus have created a musical world were fantasy and reality collide. While you will find elements of traditional black metal, riff and vocal wise. There are many original elements thrown in. For instance there are lots of melodic guitars, primarily the lead runs. The Lead guitar found on this album have never appeared on any black metal release, the harmonized guitars are so very melodic and free flowing, a welcome change to say the least. Also found on this disc are whispered vocal passages, chanted chorus vocal sections, as found on track two Wintry Grey. There is an over all atmosphere to the disc such as the keyboard laden track Whence And Whither Goes The Wind, numbers like these are a stark contrast to the traditional black metal style employed by many a band. A good production highlights the bands talents and musical journey's through the snow covered forest's of Norway. Enter the forest and experience the aural soundscapes of Arcturus. Arcturus have taken black metal to new heights.