Jordpuls

If you've never heard Vintersorg before, the first thing you'll notice is how damn catchy this album is. Even if you are familiar with their work, you notice more clean vocals, harmonies, synths, and an overall more positive atmosphere. You'll notice an abundance of folk melodies, quiet acoustic interludes, complicated chord work and song structures, crisp (almost sterile) production, weird electronic bits here and there, and yes, just the right amount black metal grit to keep this from becoming a total prog fest.

But, if you've heard their other albums, you know that this is just another Vintersorg album. Nothing really new happening here, just a talented musician streamlining and perfecting his craft. The only problem with this album is that it may be too much of a good thing, as the songs start to sound the same a little more than halfway through, which may be the fault of the too sterile production values, also a problem of just needing to cram as many songs as you can on a disc. The lyrics are entirely in Swedish, so English speakers may want to use their Google translators to further appreciate the frosty yet ethereal vibe put forth.

http://thesocietyforexcellenceinheavymetal.blogspot.com/2011/06/vintersorg-jordpuls2011.html

Since Vintersorg is surely one of the best known persons in black/viking/folk/progressive metal you should have a certain background knowledge. Therefore I will not describe him or one of his projects. If you do not know anything about him I am sure you will know where to find the informations you want.

The advertising text from Napalm Records promises, that Vintersorg will allow you to glimpse back at the past while you are listening to the new record Jordpuls. So they are promising, that stylistic elements of their first records will be combined with those of the later ones (for instance Cosmic Genesis). To be specific, that means that Vintersorg is supposed to combine the catchy and folky parts of their first records with the progressivity of the later ones, but can the record achieve that?

The balancing act between progressivity and the touch with nature seems to be quite difficult, as they have to catch the calamity of nature and combine that with quick-tempered progressivity. The result of this balancing-act seems to be really good, as the progressive passages could resemble brash phases of nature (such as storms). To be more exact, the compositions are more catchy than those of Cosmic Genesis etc, without losing much raffinesse. The progressive phases are generating a multilayered record, which draw a line from Jordpuls (or Till Fjälls etc.) to Cosmic Genesis etc.

Another element that has increased again are the clean vocals, although Hedlund still manages to switch between those and harsh growls from one second to another. In addition they are using synthesizer sounds repeatedly, as well as sounds from flutes and other folky instruments, to resemble the touch with the nature. The orchestration and clean vocals are therefore creating a good atmosphere. By the way: The vocals are kept in Swedish.

Sadly all that glistens is not gold and so the second half of the record is a bit weaker than the first one. That could be traced back to the first two songs, which are really strong openers. That does not mean that the songs on the second half are bad at all, but they are lacking variation in general, as the distinction between the songs is mostly on a thematic basis. So as not to close with a negative comment, it has to be said that the production is really cool, as it leaves enough space for the music to breathe and therefore, there are melodies all around, even in the smallest gap.

Conclusion:

Jordpuls is a typical Vintersorg record, as fancy melodies and arrangements were again pressed on CD. The musical direction came back to their first records, although they seem unable to detach themselve from the progressivity they once discovered. The symbiosis of their styles is really worth hearing, although there are some weaker songs. You can not really describe the sound of the record, as it is to complex. If you are interested in the record, you should listen to some songs (newer ones, or older .. doesn’t matter) to get an impression of their music.
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nilgoun / http://threnodies.com

Although beginning as a fairly black/folk metal oriented project, Norwegian duo Vintersorg has since tread quite far from the label, instead more recently being quite a bit more melodic and mellow in their music. The seventh album 'Jordpuls' was described to me as an album that takes the band further back to their roots, but still greatly evident is the strong presence of clean vocal harmonies. After a brilliant impression with the previous Vintersorg output 'Solens Rotter', I was quite intrigued to hear what these guys would have to offer now. 'Jordpuls' greatly disappoints me in the sense that it feels like it is a step backwards in virtually every respect for the band, despite the fact that Vintersorg has still maintained some of their strengths here.

There isn't too much of an evident development in Vintersorg's sound on 'Jordpuls'; rather a regression in the pejorative sense. The songwriting feels somewhat dumbed down from the dynamic, melodic and powerful presentation given on the prior album, but 'Jordpuls' does generally pull through. There are still some of the same great black metal guitar riffage here in parts, but the highlight of the sound remains frontman Andreas Hedlund's beautiful clean vocal harmonies, which had me fall in love with 'Solens Rotter' originally, and now do make up an even greater proportion of what there is to like about this album. Despite the shortcomings concerning how memorable the melodies here may actually be, Hedlund still stands strong as being a master of harmony.

Possibly the most disappointing element of 'Jordpuls' is the folk instrumentation, or- in this album's case- programming. From the very beginning, I was immediately put off by the cheap, fake sounds that seemed as if they were trying to emulate such instruments as the violin. Although I am generally appreciative of the fact that many bands do not have the resources to have all of the instruments they would like on their album, there does not feel as if there is an excuse for Vintersorg in this case; albums in the past have heard the folk element sound much less contrived and fake. If this has been an artistic decision on the band's part, it sadly does not work to their benefit, and tends to have me think that this may have been a step backward for the band. On the other hand, the drum machine here is done fairly well; sounding often as if there is a real session drummer behind the kit.

I cannot wholeheartedly recommend 'Jordpuls' as a listen, due to the fact that Vintersorg has disappointed the fan in me with this one. Although it scarcely compares to the last couple of albums they have released, 'Jordpuls' does retain some of the things that had me love the project to begin with, so I'm not left entirely discouraged.

Vintersorg is a progressive Viking metal band from Sweden who have released seven albums since their debut in 1998. They are the namesake of vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Andreas "Vintersorg" Hedlund, who has also done impressive work with Borknagar. Jordpuls is my first experience with this band, but I picked it up because Borkanagar's Universal impressed me on many fronts.

The musical approach is a strange beast. Yes, it sounds like Viking metal: strong influence from black metal and folk music, with anthemic songs. But what makes it odd is that the focus is clearly on the vocals. Metal tends to focus on guitars and, to a lesser extent, drums, but only a few (Slough Feg, Danzig) put this much emphasis on the singer. And he definitely has the voice and singing chops to pull it off. He has a capable black metal rasp, but the clean vocals are the real star. They're emotional, dramatic, beautiful, and distinctive. The closest to his style is probably ICS Vortex, the former Borknagar vocalist and Dimmu Borgir clean singer. The vocals are even better layered, either with two clean vocals to create harmony or with a clean and rasp to create contrast.

The focus on vocals is especially strange considering how much is really going on in the music. Besides the usual suspects, there are keyboards, Hammond organ, and digital effects, and every instrument seems to be doing something different all the time. The effect is not chaos, but high drama, a suitable backdrop for the vocals. All of it is cleanly produced, and considering everything that's happening that is a wise choice.

The songs are extremely well-written, full of hooks and varying tempos and rhythms, and tend to alternate between harder and softer sections. "Palissader" may be the highlight, but other standouts include "Klippor Och Skär" and "Skogen Sover". Seeing as this is basically a solo project, there are bound to be a couple duds, and "Stjärndyrkan" fits the bill, while closer "Eld Och Lågor" probably won't get much play unless you're listening to the whole album.

The Verdict: I am completely sold on Vintersorg's approach. This is catchy stuff, and it's got drama and progressiveness in spades.

originally written for http://fullmetalattorney.blogspot.com/

There was a time, in the long long ago, when Vintersorg’s music was purely magical. Folksy before folksy was the new black, the first three albums teemed with a natural beauty that was lacking in the ever-increasingly commercialized black metal nethervoid, which in turn warranted bouts of credibility upon Mr. Hedlund’s mighty, Viking shoulders. But, all good things come to an end, and while “Cosmic Genesis” through “The Focusing Blur” were good listens for what they were, the new progressive, spacey direction he began to undertake just didn’t flow as naturally as the forest-born melodies and growls of yesterdecade’s artistic wonders, and it was with a rather vain hope on this listener’s end that he’d find his way back to the Swedish wilderness that spawned his heathen heart.

“Solens Rotter” was a step in that right direction, but old habits die hard, and the proggy feel was still present despite an increase in the old folk appeal. And let’s see if “Jordpuls”, his latest offering, continues this upward spiral…

What made Vintersorg’s early albums as great as they were was being able to tackle both the beauty and savagery of the very earth itself, something that was missing when he started up his dialogue with the stars later on. And once “Jordpuls” bursts forth from the speakers, that very real feel seems as present as can be given the circumstances up to this point. Rather than confounding the listener with avant-garde arrangements and wild abandon song-writing, Mr. Sorg comes at you with both swords blazing, unleashing that pretty straightforward folk/black metal sound that made him who he was, albeit retaining a modern-day approach. The melodies are infectious, the heavy moments are bestial, and the strings/clean guitar tandems are tasty to a resolute fault. These are easily some of Vintersorg’s most honest and real compositions in a long time, where guitar/bass riffs and orchestral maneuvers combine cleanly with half-way realistic drum machine usage and his always fantastic screams/growls, inviting the listener to come back to this many a time. However, a touch of negativity is still present, preventing this from being the perfect Vintersorg release; the progressive feel is still there and doesn’t seem to want to go away any time soon, though it’s far more truncated and less of a distraction that before. That kinda keeps the natural feel of the music from reaching its full fruition, instead making some of the arrangements seem more like calculated equations than by-the-fireside chord progressions. Much of this can be relegated to the pitch-perfect clean singing and choirs, which have gotten increasingly more out of control as the years and albums progressed (such a performance is what kinda turned me off from BORKNAGAR’s “Universal” and lead to more distractions than I’m sure the band would’ve wanted on my end). It’s almost as if Vintersorg is more showing off than truly performing with the way the vocal calisthenics bounce off the album’s walls of sound. Yes, it’s obvious he has some serious skill and craft with his singing, but if it all reined in a bit more, it would’ve made for a more fantastic listen. Still, that’s just one minor mishap, as I went from start to finish with interest still aflame, where the likes of “Varldsalltets Fanfar”, “Mork Nebulosa” and “Skogen Sover” truly satisfied.

At the end of the day, “Jordpuls” is easily one of Vintersorg’s best albums in a long time, even with its somewhat shaky and modern foundation. If I may be so objective, this is something I hope he continues pursuing in the years to come, where honest and real music breaks past the computerized madness that always seems to rear its ugly head and threatens the forests that once existed in his music. Truly recommended.