Mortualia - Mortualia

Mortualia is the side project of the prolific Shatraug, one of the bigger names in Black Metal from bands like Behexen, Horna, and Sargeist. His project though is a far cry from the furious, blasphemous behemoths that Horna or Behexen are. Mortualia is more of an atmospheric listen the way that Wongraven is different from Satyricon (headed by Wongraven Satyr). Moribund Cult is releasing the debut from Mortualia on a more world wide basis; Shatraug has three albums out already, but they are very difficult to obtain for the normal music collector. However, perhaps that is a good thing. Mortualia creates a very ambiant, very cold soundscape that is extremely long on each track. The opening track wails away at sixteen minutes and just wails... that's it. Mortualia has a very repetitive style that tries to retain a certain level of atmosphere and tone, and it is so chilling that it does feel like coming out of a snowstorm after over an hour of listening. However, fans who are used to the likes fo Sargeist or Horna should not expect a fury of tremolo picking or vicious vocals that will rip everyone apart. Shatraug keeps a high, screeching tone that is somewhat faded to reflect the entire 'storm' atmosphere, on all of his tracks, but unfortunately it is a bit too high. Some have considered earlier Striborg works some of the most 'annoying, yet mystical voices' in Black Metal, but Shatraug may end taking that (crowning?) achievement.

On the plus side, his guitar work and bass work is just as good as it is with Horna or Sargeist. While the entire album is shrouded, one can still hear the long, droning chords and thumping drums that lead a hypnotic procession. It is all beautifully orchestrated, but again, the vocals sometimes just kill the entire mood that could have been downright astounding. The epic length of a track like "Forgotten Soul" is just monumental weight that drags listeners along like funeral Doom Metal, but at least Shatraug doesn't add too much distortion to make the music on Mortualia seem like Drone Metal, which can sometimes just be downright boring. In fact, if one discounts the piercing vocals, the musical part of most of Mortualia is far from boring. It's very beautiful, even if it's not completely organic due to a gigantic amont of folk keyboards thrown in like many typical ambiant Black Metal bands like Vinterriket tend to do. There are some parts where instruments and vocals work together to create just right amount of soundscape such as on "Cold and Grey," but at the same time it is the only short track on the album, so perhaps the lesser amount of audial torture is one of the main reasons it can be tolerated more than the other tracks. Overall, Mortualia's debut will take some getting used to. It's not Horna and certainly not Sargeist. Mortualia's future works that have come out in the past few years are still monumental and epic, so Shatraug certainly keeps up with the atmosphere over his career. Vocally, he can be a hit or miss (it really depends on how much of an octave one can stand). The average Black Metal fan may not enjoy this at all for the slow, repetitive nature of the music, but there are most likely a few eclectic listeners who will overlook the painstaking vocals and really absorb the beauty of what the instruments have to offer.

  1. The Blue Silence
  2. In Bleak Loneliness
  3. Cold And Grey
  4. Devoid Of Warmth
  5. Forgotten Soul

Reviewer: Colin McNamara
Oct 18, 2011

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